Bob's buzzer beaters | Going down with a fight

Mar. 5—Today's lesson for the Illinois basketball team: You can't spot a great team a 21-point halftime lead and hope to win.

The Illini fought back like champs to tie in the final minute. But the Boilermakers got a clutch late basket from Zach Edey and hit late free throws for a 76-71 victory Sunday at Mackey Arena.

Give the Illini a ton of credit for not giving up. Brad Underwood's halftime chat must have been a doozy.

Unfortunately for Underwood's team it was the only regular-season meeting with Purdue. My take: his guys would have won against Boilermakers had they visited State Farm Center.

Here are my thoughts after Illinois closed at 3-7 in Big Ten road games and 11-9 in conference games overall:

HOT OFF THE PRESS:#Illini nearly pull off the upset pic.twitter.com/Le5suaYfbJ

— The News-Gazette (@news_gazette) March 5, 2023

1

The Illinois coaches are going to earn their pay this week as they try to put the disappointing loss behind them. The game came after a stirring Illinois win against Michigan on Thursday. Maybe the two overtimes tired the team out. A better explanation: Purdue is really good at home. The Boilermakers hit a ridiculous 62 percent of their shots in the first half.

They cooled off after the break but the damage had been done.

PURDUE SURVIVES ‼️@BoilerBall takes down Illinois to close out the regular season. pic.twitter.com/YXU07tO6UC

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 5, 2023

2

Purdue star Edey got his. But the key in the first half were the performances of Brandon Newman and Braden Smith, who combined for 29 points and hit 11 of 16 shots. Yikes.

3

There is talk that Purdue won't get a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament when pairings are announced next Sunday. That seems wrong to me after seeing what Purdue did against an NCAA tournament team. Yes, there have been some wobbles like recent losses to Indiana and Northwestern. But Purdue also has wins against Marquette, West Virginia, Duke and Gonzaga.

An easy No. 1 if I'm doing the seeding.

4

What a great final act for the Big Ten, where champion Purdue, 13th place Ohio State and last-place Minnesota were the only knowns going into Sunday. Until all the results are in, we won't know what time Illinois plays its Big Ten tournament opener, but it will be on Thursday.

If they play the way they did in the second half, Illinois is a definite contender no matter its seed.

5

I have heard some complaints about the atmosphere at Mackey Arena. To me, the complainers are wrong. There isn't a better home court in the Big Ten. In fact, it isn't very close. The low ceiling and close-to-the-court seating help the ambience. Having good players and excellent coaching are also factors. During my time at The News-Gazette, the Boilermakers have had two leaders: Gene Keady and Matt Painter.

Keady sat courtside and received a thunderous ovation when he was shown on the video board during the first media timeout.

Later, one of Keady's former stars, Cuonzo Martin, was shown. He is the former head coach at Missouri, Cal and Tennessee.

6

Opening tip was just after noon Sunday. The Boilermaker faithful showed up early and went mostly to their seats. Thirty minutes before the start, the stands were packed. All fan bases should be like the one in West Layayette, Ind.

7

The Purdue band was playing Chuck Mangione's clasic "Feels So Good" before the Boilermakers took the court and the band switched to the school fight song. Of course, with a loud train whistle blaring. The scoreboard constantly reminded the fans "No Smoking" in the arena. Has that been an issue in recent years? For a long time, Purdue fans weren't allowed to bring food to their seats. But the concession police have lightened up.

Lots of drinks and snacks being consumed, which made me hungry. Another important reminder: Alcohol sales in the arena end at the under-12-minute timeout in the second half.

8

The pregame reception for Illinois was about what you would expect. Lots of booing and yelling. During introductions, the home fans seemed to spread the disdain evenly between all the starers. Oddly, very little noise when Underwood was introduced.

Best part of the intros came when the crowd shouted "Zach Edey" and "Matt Painter" in unison with the PA announcer. Very cool.

9

Totally fine with me if the TV folks let Jason Benetti call every basketball game. The Voice of the Chicago White Sox is the best in the business. Not only is his knowledge at a high end, he also brings a sense of joy to the broadcasts.

10

No chance former Illini Brandin Podziemski will see his old team in the NCAA tournament. His new team Santa Clara was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the West Coast Conference tournament by bitter rival San Francisco on Saturday in double overtime. Podziemski, who is having a monster year for the Broncos, did all he could. He just missed a triple-double with 22 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. Santa Clara is headed to the NIT. After that, Podziemski will need to make a call on going to the NBA or staying in college.