As the college basketball season has rolled on, this very young Purdue Boilermakers squad has continued to grow and develop. These Boilermakers boast a stellar freshmen class led by the very talented Jaden Ivey. Look for them to only get better down the stretch, and thus be riding some positive momentum into the Big Ten Tournament.
The baby Boilers are an interesting bet this March Madness as their seeding line could be interesting. You’ve got to do your homework ahead of your bracket betting next month, so that’s where Wazobet Bonus – Tips And Betting Platform reviews comes in. Don’t lay any NCAA Tournament bets, not even an office bracket pool, until you do you due diligence.
As it currently stands, Purdue is 15-8, with a 10-6 Big Ten conference record. Their metrics go as follows: KenPom 22, NET 28, RPI 31, SoS 26, Quad 1 record 4-7, Quad 2 record 5-0, Quad 3 record 4-1. Their is a strong case for the Boilers to be a #5 seed, but right now, all three of the main bracket projections have them on the #6 seed line facing a #11 seeded team.
CBS has them battling Drake at the Indiana Farmers Coliseum while the NCAA’s official site projects San Diego State as their opponent. Meanwhile ESPN slots the Boilers into region 1 (all the tournament sites are close for the Purdue Boilermakers right now, they’ll be able to sleep in their own beds the entire tourney) where a first round matchup with bubble team UNC awaits.
Yes, the very bubblicious North Carolina Tar Heels might be the very first opponent for Matt Painter and company.
Seeing these bracket projections, the first thing you’ll notice is that there are some really formidable #3 seeded teams that could potentially be awaiting them in the second round.
Obviously, you want to try and play your way above that potential hornet’s nest to the #5 seed line. Once there you realize that of course, the dreaded #12 over #5 curse! Purdue Boilermakers fans know this one all too well, from 2016 and the Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans. The less said about the better.
In the very next year’s tournament, Caleb Swanigan and Purdue went up to Milwaukee and started a streak of three straight sweet sixteen appearances.
They’ll be favored/projected to make it four straight next month provided they can play up to the #4 seed line or better.
Andy Katz, of ncaa.com, put the Boilers #16 in his power rankings this week, and that’s obviously the final #4 seed, as 4 squared is 16. (-4 squared is also 16, in case you’re scoring at home).
So this has got to be the goal for the Purdue Boilermakers right now.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.