As Purdue basketball continues to march towards a Big Ten Conference men’s basketball regular season title, it will do facing a rather odd test today at Ohio State.
The Boilers (23-2, 12-2) face an Ohio State team that is at a crossroads following the firing of coach Chris Holtmann on Valentine’s Day. Jake Diebler, who has won two games as acting head coach over the last three seasons, was named the interim coach for the rest of the year. The Buckeyes enter the game at 14-11, 4-10 after falling 62-54 against Wisconsin.
Painter said despite all that has happened with Ohio State, the Boilermakers must remain focused.
“They have good players. They have have talented players. They have a really good backcourt. They have a really good front court. They, obviously, are fighting for consistency. It’s very unfortunate, consider Chris Holtman a friend, a peer, a colleague and a guy that is a really good person and coach. You hate that for him, but now a game has to be played,” Painter said.
One of those players Purdue basketball will have to contend with is Jamison Battle, who has emerged as a prolific shooter this season. He is shooting 45 percent in Big Ten play behind the arc. Against Wisconsin, however, he was held to three points in 27 minutes.
The message from Painter to his team is simple.
“Just lock in on their personnel and just lock in on what they are doing. They are going to go out and play just like they did before. You can’t break down a system when you start in June and it’s February 15. They are going to do what they’ve done before. We have to prepare for that. We have a lot of respect for their guys, and just have to play better. It will be a tall task,” Painter said.
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