Inside the Big Ten: Purdue Rolls, Wisconsin Channels History and More Conference Notes

Thing 1: Being competitive on the glass: Though Purdue played primarily with its small-ball lineup — Trey Kaufman-Renn or Caleb Furst at the five and Camden Heide mostly at the four, especially down the stretch — the Boilers lost the rebounding battle to the bigger, taller, quicker Crimson Tide by just two. Kaufman-Renn and Heide grabbed 8 boards apiece against a squad that Kaufman-Renn referred to afterward as a “Top 3 rebounding team in the country.”

“Tonight was kind of like against old Michigan State,” Painter said. “We would play them and be, like, ‘Can we just be even?’ That’s what we were talking about tonight: “Can we just get even?” And we were minus-2. But what sets it apart for us is our ability to take care of the basketball. We have the ability to really take care of the ball. Braden obviously spearheads that.”

Thing 2: Complementary players doing complementary work

For longer than a 13-minute stretch in the middle of the Purdue-Alabama game, Purdue’s three returning starters – Smith, Loyer and Kaufman-Renn took every shot. With 10 minutes to go, they had hoisted 44 of Purdue’s 51 shots and scored 54 of the 65 points.

At that juncture, Smith needed a quick blow. That put freshman backup C.J. Cox at the point. Cox, by the way, was being recruited by nothing but Ivy League schools and mid-majors until Painter noticed him — accidentally — in the final game of the final day of the 2023 summer recruiting season.

Cox buried a 3-pointer while getting tripped from behind with 9:13 to play — the first shot attempt by a non-Big 3 Boiler since the 2:37 mark of the first half — to give Purdue a 66-65 lead. Mackey Arena went berserk.

“When he makes one, he thinks he’s instantly hot,” Painter said.

GIVE PURDUE ITS DUE

What’s the Key to Matt Painter’s Success? He Reads

The Purdue coach loves books. He also wins a lot. Not a coincidence.

Cox scored nine points in 52 seconds to spin a 2-point deficit into a 7-point lead. The spree was new to Purdue’s fans and America, it was no big deal to his teammates.

“It’s not a fluke,” Kaufman-Renn said. “It’s crazy to see, but he’s a really tough shotmaker. He’s a really special player.”

Thing 3: Kaufman-Renn excelling in his new role as Purdue’s main man inside: Kaufman-Renn, a 6-foot-9 redshirt junior, scored a career-high 26 points while giving up a few inches against each Alabama big man who guarded him. It’s all part of his new role. Last year as Purdue’s starting four man — a traditional four as opposed to one that stretches defenses — he was the team’s fifth option.

But Kaufman-Renn, a Top 40 recruit in the Class of 2021, knew this season would be different, with Zach Edey gone. On Friday night, he had a career-high-tying four assists with no turnovers to accompany his 26 points.

Kaufman-Renn and his teammates took the Alabama win as confirmation that they’re doing just fine with Edey in the NBA. Of course, there’s always another challenge awaiting — on Tuesday, Purdue heads to Marquette for its first game outside of Mackey Arena. Painter joked that “I’d feel great about everything if we played every game at Mackey Arena,” but given how the Boilermakers have started the season, they have every reason to believe they can continue this show on the road.

---

John Tonje picked the perfect time to deliver the best game of his career — and one of the best in Wisconsin history.

With Hall of Fame coach Bo Ryan, 2015 national player of the year Frank Kaminsky and most of the rest of the Badgers’ back-to-back Final Four squads in Madison to celebrate their 30-8 and 36-4 seasons — not to mention dozens of players from other Wisconsin squads over the years — Tonje stacked up 41 points to lead Wisconsin to a 103-88 victory over No. 9 Arizona.

The 6-foot-5 swingman finished just two points shy of Wisconsin’s single-game scoring record — set by Kaminsky in a 103-85 win over North Dakota on Nov. 19, 2013. And, not to go all Jayson Stark on you, but that North Dakota game was the only time in Ryan’s 14-plus years as Wisconsin’s head coach that the Badgers cracked the 100-point barrier.

To take things even further, Friday’s win marked the first time Wisconsin eclipsed 100 points against a power-conference foe since Feb. 3, 1993. That’s when Stu Jackson, in his first year as the Badgers boss, directed a 101-87 victory over Northwestern on Feb. 3, 1993.

“It exemplifies how special it is to be part of this program,” said Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard, who went from Ryan’s right-hand man to the boss during the middle of the 2015-16 season. “How important playing for the front of the jersey is.”

Wisconsin fans have been yearning to feel like 2015 again. After the Badgers lost to Duke 68-63 in the 2015 NCAA title game, they reached the Sweet 16 in 2016 and 2017 as the torch was passed from Ryan to Gard. Since then, though, there have been no more Sweet Sixteens despite earning one 3 seed and two 5 seeds.

Despite being loaded with older players like fifth-years Steven Crowl, Max Klesmit and Kamari McGee, the Badgers are still learning who they are. Friday’s win over Arizona provided some evidence. To steal a phrase from the 2014 and 2015 teams, they just might be starting to “Make ‘Em Believe.”

“I was most proud of their response when it was 65-65,” Gard said. “That showed me the guts and the toughness that’s starting to develop with this group. I’ve always felt we could score. But we had to add some other things to our repertoire. It’s a good step in the right direction.”

Around the Rim

• While Purdue and Wisconsin obviously earned two big-time wins over power conference foes that tickled the algorithms, a school that has made a big jump in the first two weeks while staying under the radar is Penn State. Mike Rhoades’ Nittany Lions blew out three buy-game opponents at home — winning by an average of 37 points — heading into Friday’s neutral game in Baltimore versus a Virginia Tech squad that also started 3-0 at home. Penn State treated the Hokies like their first three foes — racing out to a 15-2 lead on the way to an 86-64 triumph. All-league point guard Ace Baldwin Jr. showed out for his hometown with 19 points, 10 assists and 3 steals. The Nittany Lions are going 10-deep and playing at the 12^th-fastest tempo in the nation, which is the highest of any power conference team not named Arizona.

• UCLA is another Big Ten squad that feels good about going at least 10-deep so far. While the Bruins (3-1) suffered a neutral-floor loss to New Mexico on Nov. 8, Mick Cronin has four transfers playing the most minutes: Kobe Johnson (USC), Tyler Bilodeau (Oregon State), Skyy Clark (Illinois/Louisville) and Eric Dailey (Oklahoma State). Bilodeau is the only Bruin scoring a bunch (15.5 ppg), but at least UCLA is reasserting itself as a defensive force. Opponents are shooting 35 percent from the field and 28 percent on 3s, committing 19 turnovers per game and losing the boards by 11 per game.

• If you checked out the Opening Night lineups for all 18 Big Ten teams, then you noticed that a whopping 51 of the 90 starters are new to their school this year. Illinois and USC boasted all-new starting lineups — which makes sense because the Illini have just one active player (backup guard Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn) from last year’s Elite Eight squad and Eric Musselman’s Trojans retained one lightly used scholarship player (Harrison Hornery) — while UCLA, Ohio State, Michigan and Washington each trotted out starting lineups with four new players.
• Guess which team didn’t have anybody new? While Purdue would be a good guess — considering nobody on the Boilers roster has played for any other college — the correct answer is Iowa. Fran McCaffery has added sophomore point guard Brock Harding and sophomore big Ladji Dembele to Payton Sandfort, Owen Freeman and Josh Dix. That’s not to say the 4-0 Hawkeyes don’t have any newcomers making a dent. Morehead State grad transfer Drew Thelwell is splitting the point-guard minutes virtually equally with Harding. Between the two of them, Iowa gets 15.8 points, 8.7 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game with just 3.3 turnovers. They’re also combining to shoot 49 percent from the field and 48 percent from 3.

• Ohio State went big into the portal with Kentucky 7-footer Aaron Bradshaw, Duke Top 20 recruit Sean Stewart, San Diego State glue guy Micah Parrish and Ohio State-turned South Carolina-turned Ohio State again shooting guard Micah Johnson. Nonetheless, standout point guard Bruce Thornton (15.7 ppg, 4.3 apg) remains the dominant force — and 6-foot freshman John Mobley Jr. looks like he might have the sweetest shot in the conference. Mobley averages just 18.7 minutes off the bench, but he has drilled 10 of 15 3-pointers and all nine of his free throws against good competition (Texas, Texas A&M and Youngstown State).

• Michigan State didn’t get the win over Kansas in last week’s Champions Classic game, but the Spartans discovered that junior power forward Jaxon Kohler might be ready for prime time. Kohler was a Top 50 recruit, but injuries helped to limit his development (and playing time) his first two years. Kohler delivered a career-high 23 points and 13 rebounds off the bench against Niagara, then repeated his double-double against Kansas (12 points, 10 rebounds) in just 23 minutes. To reward Kohler, Tom Izzo put him in the starting lineup ahead of Xavier Booker Saturday night against Bowling Green. Kohler’s first start went OK with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block and 1 steal in 16 minutes.

• Minnesota has struggled out of the gate at Williams Arena — losing to North Texas while getting pushed to the wire by Omaha and Yale — but there are extenuating circumstances. Sixth-year guard Tyler Cochran won’t make his debut until December after foot surgery while starting guard Mike Mitchell Jr. missed the North Texas and Yale games with a left ankle injury that could keep him out for an extended stretch. Mitchell is crucial as a 40 percent 3-point shooter and a solid facilitator. One person who’s not struggling out of the gate for the Gophers is fifth-year forward Dawson Garcia, who leads the Big Ten in scoring (25.5 ppg) while shooting 57 percent from 2 and 3.
• While the Big Ten is loaded with veterans like Garcia, Smith and Tonje doing big work, there are a slew of freshmen asserting themselves right away. On Opening Night, Illinois’ Will Riley came off the bench to score 31 points while Maryland’s Derik Queen stacked 22 points and 20 rebounds. Celebrated plebe Ace Bailey sat out Rutgers’ first two games due to injury, so Dylan Harper got his all-Big Ten campaign off to a flying start. He’s averaging 21.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 58 percent through three games. Bailey returned Friday vs. Monmouth and contributed 17 points and 6 rebounds in 30 minutes. And don’t sleep on another freshman: Illinois native Lathan Sommerville, who has size, ballhandling skills and footwork reminiscent of ex-Illinois big Dain Dainja, averages 11.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2 blocks per game off the bench.

• What’s up with preseason Big Ten favorite Indiana? The Hoosiers are slowly ramping up for their trip to The Bahamas for the Battle 4 Atlantis. They trailed Eastern Illinois by 1 point at halftime before securing a 90-55 blowout, then looked better Saturday while whacking South Carolina by 16. Mackenzie Mgbako has shot like an All-American (.714/.636/.900) to average 22 points per game. Then again, the Hoosiers are shooting 55 percent as a group — and that includes 39 percent from 3. The latter number will be watched all season by skeptics who remember last year’s poor long-range shooting. Shout out to fifth-year senior Trey Galloway, who lost his starting job yet has fashioned a 19-5 assist-to-turnover ratio in 57 minutes off the bench.

Upcoming Games to Watch

• Nov. 21: Oregon at Oregon State (TBA; ESPN+): Oregon State (4-0) has rolled through four gimme games while Oregon (4-0) needed a big comeback and overtime to defeat Portland Nov. 12. (By the way, Oregon and Oregon State played four times back in 1963-64. They went home-and-home Jan. 17-18 and again Feb. 28-29.)

• Nov. 22: Nebraska at Creighton (7 p.m. CT; FS1): The Cornhuskers board the bus and go 60 miles northeast on I-80 to resume this intrastate squabble that’s been a yearly staple since 1977-78. The Bluejays have dominated lately — winning 11 of the last 13 — and last year was an 89-60 Creighton blowout as Nebraska shot 2 of 22 from 3-point range. The Huskers are off to a slow start from 3-point range this year (.256) and they’ll need to be way more accurate because paint points will be tough to find against reigning Big East Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Kalkbrenner.

• Nov. 26: Michigan State vs. UConn or Memphis (6 p.m. ET, ESPN if in the winners bracket): If things go according to seed in Maui Invitational quarterfinal action on Monday, then the Spartans will get their shot against two-time defending champ UConn in this semifinal. The Huskies haven’t lost to a Big Ten team since … Michigan State pulled off a 64-60 win Nov. 25, 2022, in the Battle 4 Atlantis.

• Nov. 27: Alabama vs. Rutgers (7 p.m. PT, TBS): The Crimson Tide’s Big Ten-heavy November schedule rolls on as these teams head to MGM Grand in Las Vegas for the Players First Tournament. Five of the nation’s top 32 freshmen (per RSCI) will be all over the court. Oh, and did we mention Alabama big man Clifford Omoruyi will be facing the school he called home for the previous four years?

• Nov. 28: North Carolina State vs. Purdue (noon PT; FS1): The Boilermakers already took care of Alabama in their first matchup between 2024 Final Four teams. Now they get a national semifinal rematch with the Wolfpack on Thanksgiving — squaring off at UC San Diego as part of the Rady Children’s Invitational. BYU and Ole Miss are also part of this two-day tournament, so the Boilers will get another good opponent Nov. 29 as well.

• Nov. 28: Illinois vs. Arkansas (3 p.m. CT; CBS): Need even more college basketball goodness for Thanksgiving? Brad Underwood’s Illini and John Calipari’s Razorbacks meet in Kansas City to decide, in part, who wins the Ivisic Bowl. The 7-foot-2, 245-pound Zvonimir, who transferred with Cal from Kentucky to Arkansas, doesn’t get quite as many minutes per game as his twin brother, 7-1, 255-pound Tomislav — but they’re both efficiency monsters. If there’s a difference between the two, it’s that Zvonimir is a better rim protector. That’ll happen when you’re a whopping four minutes older than your bro.