After watching Purdue’s Jaden Ivey carve up his team for 26 points, six assists and four rebounds on Tuesday, Illinois coach Brad Underwood supplied the money quote of the evening.
“One thing Matt’s done of late is to quit screwing around, get the ball to Ivey and get everyone out of the way,” Underwood said, referring to Purdue coach Matt Painter. “Anyone who doesn’t know what a pro looks like, that’s what they look like.”
Ivey will take his pro skills to Ann Arbor, Mich., on Thursday night, when the third-ranked Boilermakers play a Michigan team desperate to make its case for an NCAA Tournament at-large berth.
Success has been all in the family for Ivey. His mom, Niele, scored 1,430 career points in 132 career games at Notre Dame, leading the Fighting Irish to the 2001 NCAA championship. She has coached them to an 18-5 record this season in her second year on the job.
The son figures to be cashing NBA paychecks sooner instead of later. A three-level scorer who is adept at passing the ball, Ivey is averaging 17.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game, while shooting 48.4 percent from the field.
“He just let it come to him tonight,” Painter said after Purdue’s 84-68 win on Tuesday. “He made great decisions and a couple of those pull-ups are shots he hasn’t even really taken this year. He’s come a long way since the start of the season.”
Not that Ivey is the only option for Purdue (21-3, 10-3 Big Ten). Zach Edey (14.8 points, 7.5 rebounds) and sixth man Trevion Williams (12.3 points, 8.1 rebounds) control the paint, while Sasha Stefanovic (11.9 points) supplies knock-down 3-point shooting and leads the team in assists at 3.7.
Michigan coach Juwan Howard already had an up-close-and-personal look at Ivey and the Boilermakers. The teams played on Saturday at West Lafayette, Ind., where Ivey stuffed the stat sheet with 23 points, seven assists and six rebounds in an 82-76 victory for Purdue.
Like the Boilermakers, the Wolverines (12-9, 6-5) played on Tuesday night. They erased an 11-point first half deficit to nip Penn State 58-57 on the road.
Hunter Dickinson notched his sixth double-double of the season with 19 points and 15 rebounds, which tied a career high. Eli Brooks added 16 points, including clinching free throws that enabled Michigan to avoid what would have been a devastating loss to a sub-.500 team.
The Wolverines are playing five games in 11 days because of multiple reschedule games that were postponed due to COVID-19 protocol. This game is their second of three in five days this week.
“We will not make any excuses,” Howard said. “We’re not the only team in the country that will have to experience this.”
A top five team when the season started, Michigan still can salvage a tournament berth. Its next four games – Purdue, Ohio State, Iowa, Wisconsin – are against Quad 1 opponents.
–Field Level Media
