This guy can coach and excuses don't mean squat, "It's my fault. I'm the coach. I didn't have them ready to go. You can't play soft in this league.”
http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.d...20306/1002
Matt Painter was back firing verbal shots at his Purdue Boilermakers. The coach thought he was done with this kind of motivation, at least until next season when habits always have to be relearned. Painter had seen 10 games worth of proof that Purdue understood that nothing was more important than effort.
And yet, here he was, bracing for Wednesday's Indiana rematch in the final week of the regular season when so much is still possible if the Boilers would just rebound the bleeping ball.
So he was asked about the psyche of his team in the aftermath of losing standout forward Robbie Hummel to a blown knee and then losing to a Michigan State team that had 23 turnovers, eight by All-Big Ten guard Kalin Lucas. Painter couldn't shake the fact Purdue got out-rebounded by 26.
“I don't think I have to be worried about their psyche,” he said, “I think we have to be tougher. You can't feel sorry for yourself. This is life. Let's go fight. Let's get something done here.”
It starts with winning at least a share of the Big Ten title. That will happen if the Boilers beat IU on Wednesday at Mackey Arena and Penn State on Saturday at Happy Valley. That would give them a 14-4 conference record. Ohio State and Michigan State can match that by winning their final games.
Purdue (24-4), which dropped from third to seventh in the AP poll, will be favored against Indiana even without Hummel, who averaged 15.7 points and 6.9 rebounds.
“We have to play,” Painter said. “The other night wasdisappointing because if we can't play any harder than that…
“This is where we were at 2-3. We can play great defense, but you can't get the reward if you can't rebound.”
Painter won't let this theme go. He will hammer the Boilers about it in practice for the next few days, and it will start, and certainly not end, with his two best healthy players, E'Twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson.
“They both have to rebound better,” Painter said. “It's the same with the rest of the team. They know it. They know what I'm going to say. It doesn't matter who's not there. Anybody can box out. Anybody can get lower, get your hips lower than their hips, put contact on somebody, get your hands up and create space. That's all it is.”
When Purdue won at Michigan State, Hummel had six rebounds. Not having him didn't account for the 46-20 rebounding disparity.
“Our guys have to look in the mirror,” Painter said. “Every single one of them. We have to chase the ball. There are no excuses. We're in March now. I feel like ‘Groundhog Day' where we're back where we were before. I'm perplexed. We have guys who don't go get the ball. It's my fault. I'm the coach. I didn't have them ready to go. You can't play soft in this league.”
Figure Painter won't coach soft the next few days. Yes, IU is 9-19 with a 10-game losing streak. It plays the patsy to everybody these days with seven straight losses by at least 14 points.
But the Hoosiers pushed the Boilers hard in last month's 78-75 loss at Assembly Hall. Plus, it's Senior Night at Mackey Arena and the team wants to send Chris Kramer and Keaton Grant off the right way.
Kramer set Purdue's career steals record, with 260. The former Huntington North standout likely will make the All-Big Ten defensive team for the fourth straight year. He was the conference defensive player of the year as a sophomore.
Grant has come on strong the last few games and hit the game-winning shot against Minnesota. He's played in 96 victories, second most in school history to Porter Roberts' 98.
“Chris is a guy who will lay it on the line every night,” Painter said. “There are a lot of days where he's shown his will and toughness.
“Keaton has been up and down as a shooter, but that didn't stop him from working. That's a great attribute to have. He always comes early and stays late. He puts in the time. The fact he has not given in, that's special.”