Welcome to The Sports Bank’s second annual college basketball season preview series. Last year we looked at 99 teams in 99 days. This year, we are being slightly more aggressive and expanding to 111 teams in 111 days. We will rank the 74 power conference teams and top 37 mid-majors in reverse power ranking order. We’ll break down rosters, non-conference schedules, and pick a player to watch for each team.
JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore played such an enormous role in the Purdue Boilermakers success last season that replacing their production will be a huge challenge for Matt Painter, who nearly bolted for Missouri this off-season. The return of Robbie Hummel will certainly help, but does Purdue have enough pieces around the returning senior?
PURDUE BOILERMAKERS
Last Season: 2nd, 14-4 in Big Ten, 26-8 overall
Predicted Big Ten Finish: 6th
Projected Depth Chart
F/C: Sandi Marcius (So)/Travis Carroll (So)
F: Robbie Hummel (Sr)/Jacob Lawson (Fr)
F: D.J. Byrd (Jr)/Donnie Hale (Fr)
SG: Ryne Smith (Sr)/Terone Johnson (So)/John Hart (Jr)/Anthony Johnson (Fr)
PG: Lewis Jackson (Sr)/ Kelsey Barlow (Jr)
Gone: SG-E’Twaun Moore, F/C JaJuan Johnson, PF-Patrick Bade (playing football)
2011-2012 Outlook:
You couldn’t help but feel terrible last year when Hummel suffered a second torn ACL in nine months. The first cost him the end of his junior season while the second happened last October during Purdue’s second practice. Hummel’s return will provide a huge boost in leadership and scoring, but I am definitely skeptical of whether or not he can return to his old form and play at the high level we are used to seeing.
The only returning frontcourt player to see significant minutes last year is D.J. Byrd who is physical and can shoot the ball from the outside, but incredibly under-sized at 6-5. Sandi Marcius and Travis Carroll played sparingly last season, combining to average just 2.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and .4 blocked shots per game. Now as they sophomores, they will battle for minutes in the middle and will be lucky to combine for half of the production Johnson accounted for a season ago.
Freshmen Donnie Hale and Jacob Lawson will try to provide some depth off the bench. Hale has a game similar to Hummel; a taller forward, versatile, and can shoot it from the outside. Lawson is more suited to play on the inside and will be a factor early in his career because of his rebounding and shot blocking since his offensive game is still raw.
As big as the loss of Johnson is to the frontcourt, Moore’s absence will be felt in the backcourt. Lewis Jackson returns to run the point. He is a solid defender and passer but not much of a shooter. Ryne Smith will have to increase his scoring load and become more than just a three-point assassin; an area where he excelled last season as he connected on 44.1% of his three-point attempts.
I expected Kelsey Barlow to take a bigger step than he did last season but his development from his freshman year was somewhat disappointing. Terone Johnson was a solid contributor and John Hart saw decent minutes off the bench. All three guards will take on larger roles this season while redshirt freshman Anthony Johnson will try to work his way into the rotation.
Purdue has not finished worse than second in the Big Ten the past four seasons as Painter has found a way to maximize his team’s potential. Expectations will be lessened in 2011-2012 as the Boilermakers try to fill the void left behind by Johnson and Moore. If Hummel does not return to his old form, Purdue could be in jeopardy of missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time in five years. But if Painter once again works his magic, expect the Boilers to be dancing.
Player to Watch: Kelsey Barlow
At 6-5, Barlow has a unique skill set for a bigger guard. He can play the point, handle the rock, and cause problems on defense due to his length. Barlow still struggles with his outside shot and has yet to truly look comfortable at Purdue, but could be a x-factor for the Boilermakers this season if he starts to figure it out.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/17 vs. Iona (Puerto Rico Tip-Off)
11/18 vs. Temple/Western Michigan (Puerto Rico Tip-Off)
11/20 vs. Alabama/Maryland/Wichita State/Colorado (Puerto Rico Tip-Off)
11/29 vs. Miami, FL (Big Ten/ACC Challenge)
12/3 at Xavier
12/17 vs. Butler
OTHER 111 IN 111’S:
#44 BYU Cougars
#45 Kansas State Wildcats
#46 West Virginia Mountaineers
#47 Virginia Cavaliers
#48 George Mason Patriots
#49 Old Dominion Monarchs
#50 VCU Rams
#51 Kent State Golden Flashes
#52 Arkansas Razorbacks
#53 St. John’s Red Storm
#54 Northwestern Wildcats
#55 Georgetown Hoyas
#56 Miami Hurricanes
#57 Nevada Wolfpack
#58 Detroit Titans
#59 UCF Knights
#60 Long Beach State 49ers
#61 Virginia Tech Hokies
#62 Clemson Tigers
#63 New Mexico State Aggies
#64 Tennessee Volunteers
#65 Iona Gaels
#66 Murray State Racers
#67 N.C. State Wolfpack
#68 Fairfield Stags
#69 George Washingon Colonials
#70 Indiana State Sycamores
#71 Oklahoma State Cowboys
#72 Indiana Hoosiers
#73 UAB Blazers
#74 Iowa State Cyclones
#75 Creighton Bluejays
#76 USC Trojans
#77 Weber State Wildcats
#78 Maryland Terrapins
#79 Tulsa Golden Hurricane
#80 Minnesota Golden Gophers
#81 Western Michigan Broncos
#82 Dayton Flyers
#83 Stanford Cardinal
#84 Yale Bulldogs
#85 Georgia Bulldogs
#86 Rutgers Scarlet Knights
#87 Richmond Spiders
#88 Ball State Cardinals
#89 Utah State Aggies
#90 Arizona State Sun Devils
#91 Marshall Thundering Herd
#92 Oregon State Beavers
#93 Washington State Cougars
#94 Iowa Hawkeyes
#95 Ole Miss Rebels
#96 Nebraska Cornhuskers
#97 Oklahoma Sooners
#98 South Florida Bulls
#99 LSU Tigers
#100 Colorado Buffaloes
#101 DePaul Blue Demons
#102 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
#103 Wake Forest Demon Deacons
#104 Seton Hall Pirates
#105 Providence Friars
#106 Auburn Tigers
#107 South Carolina Gamecocks
#108 Texas Tech Red Raiders
#109 Penn State Nittany Lions
#110 Boston College Eagles
#111 Utah Utes
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft on the web.
You can follow him on Twitter at DavidKay_TSB.