2/9/2026 Boilermaker Water Cooler Chat: Romance Edition
Rants, ravings, and somewhat sensical opinions following the wild, wacky, and wide-wide world of Purdue sports.
Valentine’s day is this week, folks. Time to start making some moves… if you know what I mean.
No, weirdos. I don’t mean “putting the moves on” like the problematic, cancelled/disgraced, love starved, Looney Tunes star, Pepe Le Pew.
“Leave me out of this.” -Pepe
I am saying that Valentine’s day is the part of the season where things get serious. We are just a few weeks away from March. March is what matters. Just like putting the moves on a potential love interest, Purdue needs to be putting their moves on seeding for the NCAA tournament.
Those of us who are happily married have been trained to already be prepared for Saturday. We already have the reservations booked. Flowers are on order. Romance. Yadda yadda. Putting ourselves in best position to succeed.
There are a lot of similarities between one’s lovelife and sports. Afterall, basketball is a romantic sport. They made a movie called “Love and Basketball” in 2000. I have never seen it, but I am going to assume from the title that it proves my point. Sports have eye tests. Recruiting is flirting. The bottom line is, if you want to succeed in the dating world, or for that matter the basketball world, you have to be ready to put your best foot forward.
Purdue is still trying to play the right cards, flirt just right, and hopefully romance a good seed for the NCAA tournament. With a tough crowd of games approaching, the Boilermakers need to play their A game. Any stumbles, foibles, parsley in the teeth, mustard stains on their dress shirt… will absolutely affect which seed they end up getting married to. It all started on Saturday against Oregon.
The Game:
Oregon 64, #12 Purdue 68
Nate Bittle emerged from the locker room like the Undertaker emerging from the darkness in a WWE ring. The star had missed several weeks with an injury, and was doubtful leading into this game. He planed, and was a force to be reckoned with, scoring 23 points, and giving an overmatched Oregon squad a shot in the arm.
Fletcher Loyer scored 18 points. He hit 3 threes, including the game sealing shot late, to provide just enough fuel to nudge Purdue to a win. Braden Smith added 13 points, 4 assists, and 6 turnovers. Trey Kaufman-Renn scored 12 points and hauled in 8 rebounds. Purdue as a team shot ice cold, shooting comfortably under 30% for the game from 3, but got the rare “Purdue shot like crap but still won” victory.
Purdue – Oregon Photo Gallery: https://iscpurdue.com/purdue-mens-basketball-vs-oregon-2-7-26/
Break It Down:
Have you ever been trying to woo a love interest, and say all the right things, but don’t get a goodnight kiss? Sometimes you do everything right, and things just don’t go your way.
Have you ever made a complete fool of yourself on a date, nervously stuttered, got food stuck in your teeth, spilled your drink, broke wind during appetizers, had salsa dribbling down the shirt, and said all the awkward things… and still got a goodnight kiss? Sometimes you do everything wrong, and still stumble to success.
Yeah, Purdue was the latter on Saturday. They did not play well, and in fact, nearly lost. Oregon was winning with just a few minutes left. The good news is that “nearly lost” is a synonym for “won”.
After the game, Fletcher was not happy despite hitting the game winner. Just check out his postgame interview with Robbie Hummel. Listen to the postgame press conferences. The players were not happy. I get it. A gaggle of turnovers, a much too close for comfort victory against a suddenly quad 3 opponent, a struggle bus shooting night. Not fun at all.
Closing the deal, however, is fun. That is what matters.
Boilermakers took home the W, but by looking at Purdue fans you’d think that they lost by 30. Purdue fans’ collective attention span is quite short. Every season has a doldrum, and Purdue is in it. It happened last year too. Last season, Purdue lost 4 in a row, and 3 of 4 in another portion. In March, they were a blown call centimeter away from beating Houston and playing in the Elite 8. This team is better than last year’s team. You might not feel that way because of how the Boilers are playing right now, but your feelings don’t matter.
2022-23 U Conn lost 6 of 8 at one point and won the National Title. Relax. Hold Purdue to whatever standard you want, whatever you think is best for your psyche. Sometimes games are closer than expected. Sometimes Purdue doesn’t shoot 45% from three. Sometimes they do.
Yes, perhaps Purdue hasn’t reached their ceiling, and might not by Valentine’s Day. I’d rather they reach their ceiling at Easter. They need to put the moves on now.
What Went Well:
- Beauty: Mackey Arena is a beautiful arena, and is my happy place. The addition of the T-Shirt game added another layer of beauty. The gold & black checkering around the building popped from press row, and looked great on TV when I watched on replay.
- Hustle: Purdue brought hustle and intensity this game. They crashed the glass. They battled for position. They dove into the crowd for loose balls. Hustle wasn’t a problem on Saturday.
- Closing the Deal: Purdue ended the game by holding Oregon scoreless on their last 7 possessions. Oregon did not hit a shot for the final 4:38 of gametime. Defense sometimes lives here!
- Energy: Daniel Jacobsen brought energy filling in for Oscar Cluff. Jack Benter brought energy by drawing 2 charges and draining a timely 3. Omer Mayer stole the ball and led a flashy fast break. These are the types of contributions that the Boilers need.
Opportunities for Improvement:
- Giving: Boilermakers were in a giving mood this weekend. 14 turnovers, several of which were live-ball, zapped any offensive momentum that Purdue was attempting to build. Perfectly balanced of 7 turnovers per half, nearly matches Matt Painter’s target of 8 total turnovers for a game. Giving an overmatched opponent extra chances will bite you.
- Capitalize: Purdue had and took good shots this week. Coach Painter said in the postgame that Purdue didn’t “reward themselves” by capitalizing on these open shots. Purdue shot an ice-cold 27.8% from three. Shooting that poorly and winning is not the standard Purdue mantra. Luckily water will find level.
- Hesitation: … became a problem in this game. The FDU syndrome. Purdue was shooting poorly, then got too nervous to shoot, then passed up open shots, then had to settle for tougher shots than they saw originally. How do you break out of a slump? You have to hit one. Can’t hit one if you don’t shoot. “You miss 100% of the shots you do not take”-Michael Scott quoting Wayne Gretzky. Matt Painter doesn’t get frustrated when players miss good shots. He gets frustrated when good shots are passed on.
Big Man on Campus:
Fletcher Loyer not only hit the game winning 3 in the final moments, he hauled in a key rebound against the Oregon front court, and iced the game at the free throw line. He is the vocal leader of this team, and willed the Boilermakers to victory this week.
One More Thing:
Purdue legend, and one of my favorite players as a kid, Porter Roberts passed away late last week after a battle with cancer. He was just 51 years old.
Roberts was a 3 time Big Ten Champion, as well as the 1996 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. Known for his gregarious personality off the court and his hard nosed intensity on the court, Roberts embodied everything that it means to be a Boilermaker.
For all of us at ISC, we offer our sincerest condolences to the Roberts family and loved ones.
A Look Ahead:
When the goin’ gets tough, the tough get goin’, and Purdue is goin’ on a rough road trip. The (as of this writing) #12 Purdue Boilermakers will head westward for a Tuesday night game against (as of this writing) #9 Nebraska for a 7:00 tip (FS1). Nebraska has been a force of nature this season, with just two losses. Following this game, Purdue will travel to Iowa for a Valentine’s Day game against Iowa. 5:00 tip (Fox). I don’t know what to expect. Purdue should be slight dogs against Nebraska and slight favorites against Iowa. Sweep the week and Purdue keeps pace in the Big Ten. Drop one or both, and it could spell doom for flirting with a great NCAA seed.
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