Naysayer

“I’m just going to say this – there is no way the Indiana University basketball team is the 14th best team in the nation. And there is no way Purdue should be as low as 21st.”

The Naysayer takes a historical look at this year’s Purdue basketball team.

But for Head Coach Darrell Hazell personally, the win was even sweeter and I can truly empathize.

A little goes a long way with Purdue’s big men.

Finally, an IU-Purdue game worth watching.

Mike Botkin is a lifelong Purdue Boilermakers fan. He has been offering the dissenting opinion on the IU hoopla all season.

Fans seem to think that the game at Purdue on Wednesday will be an easy feast, and I can see why that might be—after all, Purdue is barely above .500. IU has lost just twice and now is finding ways to win with minimal point production from Cody Zeller.

The winner of the Big Ten will be a team like the Badgers who can score road wins and protect their own house. The problem is that by the end of the year, the highest ranked Big Ten team may not even be in the top 10.

Even Indiana fans must have known this day was coming. Rarely do teams run the gauntlet of a season without losing. But judging by the way Jordan Hulls angrily wrenched away from a teammate offering to console him following his failed (wide left) last shot in Butler’s upset of Indiana Saturday, I believe that Hoosier thought his team was going to win every game.

Let’s check in, shall we, on the Hoosiers and Boilermakers. Two programs headed in different directions? That’s about to change.

Their roles will need to be more significant and their learning curve will be steeper, but the five freshmen for Purdue are actually as good as IU’s vaunted incoming class. What gives IU the edge this year is its veteran supporting cast. (Who would you take, Cody Zeller or Sandi Marcius?) But the Boiler newbies come into this season with their own pedigree.

All right, Indiana fans—let’s be realistic about things here. Before you anoint this year’s team as National Champions in the preseason, you should come to the realization that it’s just not going to happen. Sure, there will be plenty of wins and a high tournament seed, but that’s about the extent of it.