Takeaways High Point

PROVIDENCE — Our post-game analysis following Purdue’s 75-63 win over High Point Thursday afternoon in the NCAA Tournament’s Midwest Regional.

ON PURDUE DIFFERENCE-MAKERS

Camden Heide was an absolute difference-maker today, playing his best basketball of the season at the perfect time. His profile at the 4 changed the way High Point could defend and really meant a lot to the complexion of Purdue’s offense, beyond his simple production.

His 10 rebounds were a centerpiece to Purdue’s winning formula today, and he is doing it with not just athleticism but also physicality.

That he’s making threes is really sort of gravy.

For Heide it’s been a bit of an uneven season, but his path to making a real impact was always going to have to involve energy, because it’s energy that really activates athleticism, as both he and Myles Colvin showed today.

All season, Purdue’s up-side as a team has lied in its two best athletes’ play, and their play has to be predicated on energy.

Today was a best-case scenario for the combo, as well as Will Berg, who legitimately helped Purdue win an NCAA Tournament game today.

ON FIGURING IT OUT

This was Purdue’s best defense probably since January, a great sign for Purdue that they figured it out for a day at least and brought the energy and level of detail that slipped later in the season.

High Point clearly didn’t want to play halfcourt offense vs. Purdue, as was evident fairly early in the first half when it started really pushing tempo and started taking long, quick threes. They made a few, but that was no winning formula.

The Panthers shot only 35 percent in the first half and had it not made three threes off or right after Purdue turnovers, and been fouled on a three, there was just no way they were going to be able to score enough to win today.

Defensive rebounding is the most important part of defense and that’s where Purdue did a great job. High Point was an elite offensive rebounding team in its league this season, but only got seven second-chances off 30 misses.

Purdue was good against the dribble and that’s where it all begins.

This was a High Point team that has excelled in areas that align directly with elements where Purdue has struggled lately, but there were no issues today, because the Boilermakers found the level of energy and detail they need, and they sustained it for 40 minutes.

ON THE CHESS MATCHES PURDUE WON

Matt Painter ought to host a clinic at this point on managing foul worries with offense-defense substitutions, as he once again had to work through two Trey Kaufman-Renn fouls in the first half. Perhaps you’ve noticed, but games have gone sideways on Purdue a few times when its No. 1 scorer has been pushed to the bench.

Painter’s flip-flopping of TKR and Will Berg hit big today more because both players played well, obviously, but Painter has picked his spots very well at times lately and been rewarded for it.

Today, Painter started offense-defense subbing with 6:49 left in the first half, his team up just two; the Boilermakers outscored High Point 14-5 from there, with TKR scoring six of the first eight points during that span, then coming out and watching Berg finish the half with a putback (we think). Kaufman-Renn was never at risk of picking up a third foul.

The result: A double-digit Purdue lead at half coming out of a situation that has often triggered end-of-half runs for opponents.

It wouldn’t have happened without Berg stepping up, but Painter deserves credit for his personnel management. It must be exhausting.

That was one of the games within the game Purdue won, one of the others being its riding of Heide at the 4 over Caleb Furst. It was evident right away that High Point was going to put shot-blocker and rebounding demon Juslin Bodo Bodo on Furst and not guard him, planting the 7-footer in the lane in a one-man zone.

The floor-spacing Heide provided changed the whole landscape of the game, as it made it really hard for High Point to play Juslin as it opened up Purdue’s pick-and-roll game, which Juslin couldn’t guard.