Robbie Hummel, Kalin Lucas, Tyler Hansbrough
1. Robbie Hummel has some killer instinct. A late play in Purdue's 60-54 win Tuesday night encapsulates it perfectly. The Boilermakers were up 53-50, as the clock approach a minute and a half to play. They caught Michigan St. scrambing in defensive rotation, and the ball swung to Hummel on the left wing. The Spartans' Kalin Lucas -- more on Lucas later -- rushed out from the low post area at Hummel, leaving Keaton Grant open in the corner. Did the thought of flipping the ball to Grant -- a 43 percent three-point shooter, by the way -- ever cross his mind? I don't think it did. Hummel, who had 19 points at the time, let fly, and hit nothing but net. After Michigan St. answered with a bucket to cut the lead back to four, the 6'8" Hummel capped his night with an 18-footer over 6'10" Goran Suton, a shot he made despite lifting off with his left (opposite) foot forward.
Other than some early contributions from fellow freshman E'Twaun Moore, Hummel was Purdue's offense. After going scoreless for the first 13 minutes, he scored 13 points in the final seven minutes of the first half, including one spectacular play where he grabbed an offensive rebound, threw it to a teammate while flying over the endline, stepped back inbounds to receive a pass in the right corner, and drilling a three-pointer, part of a big run that gave the Boilers a 34-18 halftime lead. In the second half, he made a number of hustle plays, twice following his own miss from the perimeter with an offensive rebound.
But don't let his image and reputation as simply a hard-worker fool you. He's got a lot of assassin in him.
2. Hummel's performance on the big stage was matched by his freshman counterpart on MIchigan State, Kalin Lucas. The point guard is coach Tom Izzo's sixth man, but he came off the bench quickly as the Spartans went more than four minutes before scoring their first points. Given that Michigan State's veterans and scoring leaders -- Drew Neitzel and Raymar Morgan -- finished the first half with zero points between them, it's safe to say that as bad shape MSU was in heading into halftime, it would have been so much worse without Lucas.
And where Neitzel continued to struggle all night, Lucas poured in 20 points, including six on drives down the stretch when Michigan State needed baskets. He did everything he could to give them a chance to win.
3. I can officially say that I have no idea what kind of professional player Tyler Hansbrough will be. My instinct is to say "not a very good one," because his main avenues of scoring will be of dubious utility at the next level. For starters, he's not getting to the line nearly as much in the Assocation as he does now.
Secondly, it seems that he releases almost all of his shots in the post from some weird angle below his shoulders, turning his body to shield the ball and attempt to draw a foul. Against bigger, savvier defenders, this isn't going to cut it.
But then I see performances like his in the first half on Tuesday night in Charlottesville, and I start to wonder. Hansbrough's fist five field goal attempts vs. Virginia last night: 12-foot turnaround from left baseline, 17-foot jumper from top of key; 12-foot turnaround from left baseline; 15-foot faceup jumper from right wing; and 15-foot jumper after jab step from the right wing.
Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish.
"Psycho T" has practically unparalleled energy and desire, so it's probably safe to say no matter the composition of his offensive game, he's going to have a job in the NBA, at least for a few years. If he can prove that he's got an offensive arsenal to go with his size, athleticism, and determination, then he'll help his draft stock considerably -- and I think rightfully so. I'd need to see more of it to make a determination, but so far, I've liked what I've seen.
And 1 One more thing about Purdue. Watching this young group -- the Boilers started two freshmen, two sophomores, and a junior Tuesday night, and have only one senior in their regular rotation, I couldn't help saying to myself, "These guys are going to be contenders next year."
Last team I said that about around this time? The 2002-2003 Syracuse Orange, otherwise known as the "2002-2003 national champions."
Of course, I'm not expecting history to repeat itself by Purdue winning the title a year "early." There are significant differences between the two clubs, not the least of which being that the Boilermakers don't have anything approaching Carmelo Anthony. Hummel, Moore, and Grant each shoot better than 40% from the three-point line, but none of them are as automatic as Gerry McNamara was (no shame in that, of course). They don't have a post threat the likes of Hakim Warrick, as much as Warrick liked to play facing the basket.
But, they do defend well, and have a young coach, and together they don't have enough experience to know any better. Is a Final Four run likely? No, but it's not out of the question, either. Keep an eye on these guys.
Other than some early contributions from fellow freshman E'Twaun Moore, Hummel was Purdue's offense. After going scoreless for the first 13 minutes, he scored 13 points in the final seven minutes of the first half, including one spectacular play where he grabbed an offensive rebound, threw it to a teammate while flying over the endline, stepped back inbounds to receive a pass in the right corner, and drilling a three-pointer, part of a big run that gave the Boilers a 34-18 halftime lead. In the second half, he made a number of hustle plays, twice following his own miss from the perimeter with an offensive rebound.
But don't let his image and reputation as simply a hard-worker fool you. He's got a lot of assassin in him.
2. Hummel's performance on the big stage was matched by his freshman counterpart on MIchigan State, Kalin Lucas. The point guard is coach Tom Izzo's sixth man, but he came off the bench quickly as the Spartans went more than four minutes before scoring their first points. Given that Michigan State's veterans and scoring leaders -- Drew Neitzel and Raymar Morgan -- finished the first half with zero points between them, it's safe to say that as bad shape MSU was in heading into halftime, it would have been so much worse without Lucas.
And where Neitzel continued to struggle all night, Lucas poured in 20 points, including six on drives down the stretch when Michigan State needed baskets. He did everything he could to give them a chance to win.
3. I can officially say that I have no idea what kind of professional player Tyler Hansbrough will be. My instinct is to say "not a very good one," because his main avenues of scoring will be of dubious utility at the next level. For starters, he's not getting to the line nearly as much in the Assocation as he does now.
Secondly, it seems that he releases almost all of his shots in the post from some weird angle below his shoulders, turning his body to shield the ball and attempt to draw a foul. Against bigger, savvier defenders, this isn't going to cut it.
But then I see performances like his in the first half on Tuesday night in Charlottesville, and I start to wonder. Hansbrough's fist five field goal attempts vs. Virginia last night: 12-foot turnaround from left baseline, 17-foot jumper from top of key; 12-foot turnaround from left baseline; 15-foot faceup jumper from right wing; and 15-foot jumper after jab step from the right wing.
Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish.
"Psycho T" has practically unparalleled energy and desire, so it's probably safe to say no matter the composition of his offensive game, he's going to have a job in the NBA, at least for a few years. If he can prove that he's got an offensive arsenal to go with his size, athleticism, and determination, then he'll help his draft stock considerably -- and I think rightfully so. I'd need to see more of it to make a determination, but so far, I've liked what I've seen.
And 1 One more thing about Purdue. Watching this young group -- the Boilers started two freshmen, two sophomores, and a junior Tuesday night, and have only one senior in their regular rotation, I couldn't help saying to myself, "These guys are going to be contenders next year."
Last team I said that about around this time? The 2002-2003 Syracuse Orange, otherwise known as the "2002-2003 national champions."
Of course, I'm not expecting history to repeat itself by Purdue winning the title a year "early." There are significant differences between the two clubs, not the least of which being that the Boilermakers don't have anything approaching Carmelo Anthony. Hummel, Moore, and Grant each shoot better than 40% from the three-point line, but none of them are as automatic as Gerry McNamara was (no shame in that, of course). They don't have a post threat the likes of Hakim Warrick, as much as Warrick liked to play facing the basket.
But, they do defend well, and have a young coach, and together they don't have enough experience to know any better. Is a Final Four run likely? No, but it's not out of the question, either. Keep an eye on these guys.
posted by H.S. Slam, Ph.D at 1:46 AM
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