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Takeaways: Braden Smith's defensive tone-setting, offensive balance and more from Purdue's rout of Marquette

On3 imageby: Brian Neubert3 hours agobrianneubert

Sixth-ranked Purdue spent a snowy afternoon in West Lafayette Saturday snowing struggling Marquette under, beating the Golden Eagles 79-59.

Our GoldandBlack.com post-game analysis from the win …

PDF: Purdue-Marquette stats

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ON PURDUE’S DEFENSIVE SURGE

Since cratering in the second half vs. Iowa State defensively, Purdue’s been excellent on D. These haven’t been the two greatest teams in the sport — Minnesota and Marquette — but it’s more about Purdue than the opponent.

Rebounding and rim-protection cover up a lot, but the energy and attention to detail for Purdue have been distinct, and it is starting with Braden Smith, who’s been the tone-setter with his disruptiveness and consistency. Sometimes great players are chameleons in their ability to morph into whatever a team needs in a specific game or moment, and that’s Smith right now. He’s looking like the game-wrecker he did last January only without systematic gimmicks that might not endure.

If he can keep this up all season, not just in the big games but the snoozers, as well, that’s what leadership looks like.

CJ Cox and Gicarri Harris have both been rock-solid on D, the team structure has been sound and the biggest piece of the puzzle — getting the rebound — is now a strength.

Smith is setting a tone defensively much the same way Trey Kaufman-Renn is on the glass.

ON BOOKEND POST THREATS

Trey Kaufman-Renn is having an interesting season, not averaging 20 a game like he did last season, but really affecting games as a rebounder and passer and provider of gravity everyone else benefits from.

You saw vs. Marquette Kaufman-Renn draw enough attention to contribute to the many one-on-ones Oscar Cluff got during his brilliant 9-of-9, 22-point showing. Any time either TKR or Cluff have single coverage, it’s advantage Purdue. The natural evolution of things has revealed opportunities will be there for Cluff. For Marquette, you just can’t pressure Boilermakers guards the way they wanted to, double Kaufman-Renn and not have some gaping wound to cover up. Cluff was that gaping wound Saturday and wound up being the difference in the game.

Purdue seriously has more offensive assets than it can use, but you’ll see games here and there where someone outside the Big Three just pops up and beats you.

ON THE TRANSFER PORTAL

This was a telling contrast between two programs philosophically aligned. Neither Purdue nor Marquette want to build with transfers. They want continuity and year-to-year development. That’s admirable but also increasingly difficult.

Marquette’s roster just isn’t good enough. It needed to go get new best players in the spring.

Purdue did not need best players, but needed to complete itself. It knocked that out of the park by getting Cluff.

The portal is inevitable. Run your program however you prefer, but the portal is inevitable. You may not love it, but you have to embrace it.

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