Purdue Boilermakers Lose to West Virginia: Should Boilermaker Fans Be Worried?
The Purdue Boilermakers recently dropped their second game in a row, this time against up-and-coming Big East dark horse West Virginia 68-64 in what was a tough road loss for the Boilermakers.
After losing this game following a road loss against Minnesota, should the eighth-ranked Boilermakers be worried?
James Evens is a Purdue student and Basketball/Football Featured Columnist for the Boilermakers, along with being a Writing Intern at Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter or like him on Facebook.
JaJuan Johnson Has Been Unreal
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In the past two games JaJuan Johnson has really stepped up his game and led the Boilermakers. Although they did not come out victorious in either game, they were still noteworthy performances by Johnson.
Against Minnesota, Johnson scored 29 points and pulled down 11 boards. He followed this great performance with another solid one against West Virginia, where he dropped 26 points but only had seven rebounds.
Johnson is playing like a national player of the year candidate right now and is really the only thing stable in the Boilermakers arsenal. Look for the Boilermaker big man to be double-teamed in the post a lot until someone else decides to step up and score.
Rebounding
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The Boilermakers are getting killed on the glass, and this is one of the problems Purdue is having. When playing in tight games on the road, if you don't win the rebounding battle, you don't win the game.
This was very evident at West Virginia, where the Boilermakers were out-rebounded 34-28. The offensive glass is what killed Purdue the most, as they allowed 11 offensive boards and only pulled down seven.
This is becoming an issue as Purdue starts to face bigger teams, as the Boilermakers have not had anyone besides Johnson that has stepped up in the post, despite freshman centers Travis Carroll and Sandi Marcius getting a limited number of minutes.
E'Twaun Moore Is in a Major Slump
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Although he broke out of it a bit in the second half against WVU, E'Twaun Moore is in a bad shooting slump. In the two losses, he has only been 8-of-32 from the field. This needs to change if the Boilermakers are going to make some noise in the Big Ten.
Moore has been settling for the three-point shot lately instead of slicing and dicing through the lane to drive the Boilermakers. Moore needs to get back to his slasher mentality and let the three-pointers come to him when he is open instead of forcing them.
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John Hart Is Back
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Hart, who was on a hot scoring streak until he got hurt, is back and played his first minutes against West Virginia.
Having the three-point shooter back in the lineup will help the Boilermakers score a bit more and cause yet another perimeter threat for opposing defenses to try to handle.
Expect Hart to be a bit rusty in his first few games back but to get back together in the next week.
Besides JJ, Everyone Is Cold
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Everyone seems to be in a shooting slump in these past two losses for the Boilermakers, with the exception of JaJuan Johnson and Lewis Jackson, who have been well above their season averages this season.
Ryne Smith seems to have dropped off the face of the earth, and the same goes for D.J. Byrd.
The Boilermakers are going to have their seniors keyed on all season, so it's important they get someone else to score in order to further their success come Big Ten play.
Lewis Jackson Is Stepping Up
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In the past four games Lewis Jackson has really stepped up. The 5'9" (maybe) point guard for the Boilermakers has been playing extremely well and has stepped up while other guys have been struggling to score.
Jackson has averaged 12 points per game in his last three and is now considered a legit scoring threat for the Boilermakers.
One thing that Jackson needs to work on is limiting turnovers. He is the point guard, and he needs to step up and take care of the basketball.
Great Turnover Ratio
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The Boilermakers have had a great turnover ratio the past few games and all season for that matter. In the past two losses the Boilermakers have forced 25 turnovers but only given it away 16 times.
This is a great stat. Purdue should continue to do this, and they will continue to be in every game they play.
Can't Capitalize on Turnovers
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This has been a major problem for Purdue this season, especially the past two games. The Boilermakers have failed to turn turnovers into points.
There is really no point in forcing a turnover if you cannot capitalize on it and score a hoop. This needs to be a major emphasis for Matt Painter and his ball club in the coming weeks.
Purdue Is Back Home
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The Boilermakers are back at home for the next two games but are going to face four great ball clubs in the coming weeks.
They have to face a tough Penn State team who has recently knocked off a few ranked teams, and then they must go on to face Michigan State in a prime time battle.
Following the College GameDay visit, the Boilermakers will have to face Ohio State on the road and then come back home to face Minnesota before leaving again to play at Wisconsin.
All of these games are going to be tough, and if the Boilermakers can come out with a winning record, they should be ecstatic.
My Prediction
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The Boilermakers will be fine in the coming weeks. Matt Painter has had a history of at least one losing streak in the middle of the season, and this one is it.
I predict the Boilermakers to win their next three ball games, beating Penn State at home on Wednesday night, followed by a tough win against the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday evening.
The next game will be a tough matchup against Ohio State, but I will have to give the Boilermakers the edge. Purdue is coming off this little losing streak and will be fired up and ready for revenge against the Buckeyes, who have been struggling as of late.
If the Buckeyes are still undefeated come next week, which I don't think they will be, they will need to be prepared to mark a loss on their record when the Boilermakers come to town.
Conclusion
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The Boilermakers will be fine following this two-game skid and will come out swinging against Penn State. I would not want to be a member of that Penn State squad traveling into the hostile environment of Mackey Arena.
The Boilermakers will be back on the track and rolling come next week as the 22nd-ranked team in the nation.
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