Takeaways from win over IU in Mackey

Our post-game analysis following 10th-ranked Purdue’s 81-76 win over Indiana Friday night in Mackey Arena

TKR’S STAR TURN

Trey Kaufman-Renn has had big games before but this one was his moment.

Of all the players in these Purdue-IU games, he might be the one that takes the rivalry most seriously because of upbringing in Southern Indiana and his recruiting story with Indiana, which he was never really interested in only to have to deal with a good amount of public scrutiny involving them.

He enjoys these wins, this one probably most given that he just had the moment of his career to win it, nailing that go-ahead hook shot from outside his normal range of comfort. Prior, he changed the game with his dominance of the opening minutes of the second half, when it looked like Purdue might not just win, but win handily.

That it didn’t was a back-handed compliment to Kaufman-Renn and a glowing example of his worth to his team. If he doesn’t wind up on the bench so much in the second half, Purdue likely wins this game comfortably, but those two illegal screens sidelined him, opening a door for IU to come back.

If those screens were bad, Purdue needs him to clean them up, especially when the fouls are one-sided, as they were to start the second half. The officials are always going to even it up, and Kaufman-Renn gave them game-changing opportunities to do so.

That’s Kaufman-Renn’s value right there. Purdue was +21 with him on the floor, an example of the flawed plus/minus reflecting reality.

This was the moment in the season in which Kaufman-Renn has become a star, an unconventional star, but a star nonetheless. He’s one of the elite players in the Big Ten, should be a cinch for first-team All-Big Ten at this point and should be considered as a factor in the Player-of-the-Year race along with his teammate, Braden Smith.

His value and reliability were both perfectly reflected in this game in particular.

A BLUEPRINT VS PURDUE

Credit Indiana: They turned the ball over too much against the steel trap that has been Purdue’s recent defense, but they also did what you have to do against the system the Boilermakers are now thriving with.

It moved the ball out of post help and more imortantly reversed the ball away from Purdue’s overloaded side, allowing offensive players — Mackenzie Mbako notably — to find advantages. Mbako’s ability to shoot and drive made things tough on the Boilermaker responsible for covering the shallow side of the floor.

Additionally, Indiana attacking Purdue with Oumar Ballo in pick-and-roll was a much more sensical approach than trying to post him up. Purdue was on the receiving end tonight of the dynamics Zach Edey threw at opponents last season. Purdue had to load up on the roll man to prevent him from getting dunks and putbacks and that allowed Trey Galloway to make those runners, the shot Purdue was willing to live with. Galloway’s 15 points and five assists were offset some by his six turnovers, but generally he was very good and IU was much better with him handling the ball while one of its prized portal imports, Myles Rice, did next to nothing, yet still had the ball in his hands at the end of the game.

Anyway, point is: Indiana prepared well for Purdue’s upstart defense and executed far better than its body of work this season would have led you to expect. The 20 turnovers obviously not withstanding.

It is nothing short of amazing what Purdue has turned into in terms of not just forcing turnovers, but making opponents’ pay.

There’s a meaningful difference between dead-ball turnovers and the kind you score off. Purdue is getting the latter and winning games because of it.

THE FRESHMEN SHINE AGAIN

Another in-season revelation for Purdue: Gicarri Harris and CJ Cox‘s collective emergence.

The ball pressure layer that Purdue has added to this defense has been eye-opening, and the two rookies are a big part of it. Back in non-conference play, those guys were applying pressure, but in so doing allowing way too many straight-line drive, breaking down Purdue’s defense from the jump.

Now, they’re really affecting other teams’ guards, but also containing them, allowing the collective system to take over from there.

That they’re getting out in transition, making shots and really rebounding — three offensive rebounds from Cox tonight loomed large — is tremendous value added.