Time to start the grades for Basketball, now that Football has ended.
Football has been over for a couple of weeks now, but, I see this as a great time to pick up the grading process for the Purdue Men’s Basketball Team now.
Grading Basketball is a bit different, I grade any player who enters the game, unless it is garbage time, where as in football, we do it in facets of the game, such as run game, pass game, etc.
So, shall we take a look?
The Starting 5:
Isaiah Thompson – 3 Points, 1-4 from 3, 1-4 from the field – D
Isaiah is struggling, to say the least, during B1G play thus far. He has been much less efficient. This game may have been his worse, he didn’t appear to be looking for his shot much and was a big time liability on defense.
Jaden Ivey – 19 Points, 0-1 from 3, 3-10 from the field, 13-15 FT, 8 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 2 Steals – B+
Ivey picked it up late and was very aggressive, as you can see from his FT totals. You would love to see more of his shots go down, but his efficiency at the line may have won us the game. His focus on the defensive end was maybe his best of the season, he used his athleticism to smother Illinois Guards.
Sasha Stefanovic – 22 Point, 5-9 from 3, 6-11 from the field, 8 rebounds, 2 assists – A
I think this was Sasha’s best road game of his career. People claim that he struggles on the road and stats back that up. But, he came out guns firing away in the 2nd half. His 2nd half and OT gave me some Senior Year Ryan Cline vibes – which is a great thing.
Mason Gillis – 4 Points, 0-1 from 3, 2-3 from the field, 4 rebounds, 1 assist – B
Mason Gillis is the definition of a glue guy. When called upon, he makes shots, when he is not asked too, he does everything else right. He hustles for rebounds, loose balls and makes everyone else’s life hard on the other team.
Zach Edey – 20 Points, 9-14 from the field, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks – A
I was interested in how this matchup would go, Zach Edey DOMINATED Kofi. Got him in foul trouble, posted him up with success and defended him well. Edey is coming along very well, some should start asking if he is the best big man in the conference, if he isn’t I am not sure who is.
The Bench Mob:
Trevion Williams – 14 Points, 6-18 from the field, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 turnovers, – C+
Trevion was less than efficient shooting the ball, he still got his though. People kept questioning why he was in late in the game – the answer is easy, he is our best passer, refer back to the couple beautiful passes on back cuts by EHJ.
Eric Hunter Jr – 11 Points, 3-4 from the field, 1-1 from 3, 4-4 Ft, 2 Rebounds, 2 Assists – A
Was this his best game of the season? I would say yes, yes it was. EHJ is making his case to be the starting PG over IT again. I don’t see why not.
Brandon Newman – 3 Points, 1-3 from the field, 1-2 from 2, Rebound – B-
After being a healthy scratch vs Penn State, Newman has played the last two games with much greater focus. Taking good shots, but more importantly, he has been locked in on defense, and giving great effort. Some would have drug their feet after not playing a minute in a game, Newman took it as a challenge. So far, challenge accepted.
Ethan Morton – 1 rebound – C
I mean, he did not do a whole lot on the stat sheet. But he did defend well and initiated the offense when called upon.
Caleb Furst – 3 Minutes Played- Incomplete