Purdue walked into a roaring Coleman Coliseum and walked out with its most complete effort of the young season, an 87–80 win over No. 8 Alabama that left Matt Painter sounding both relieved and proud.
“I thought our centers did a good job,” Painter said. “Between them they had 18 rebounds in 40 minutes. Then obviously TK (Trey Kaufman-Renn) got 15 in 34 minutes. When you have four more turnovers than them and 24 more rebounds, you’re putting yourself in a pretty good position.”
Painter repeatedly returned to the possession battle, but his tone made it clear this was bigger than math. “It’s just the possessions,” he said. “Who normally wins the possession war?”
But the emotional weight came out when he talked about how his team responded.
“They were great, man. They really responded,” he said. “We haven’t played great here…but when you’re losing you’ve got to move on. Someone’s in foul trouble, someone’s hurt, [it’s] tough. The next guy’s got to step up and play.”
MORE: Smith goes off for 29 in Purdue win
Trey Kaufman-Renn’s return injected life back into the entire roster. “Obviously he gives us that dynamic,” Painter said. “His ability to drive the ball and then make those intermediate shots…he did it for us in the first half. He was really, really good.”
Then Braden Smith closed it out. “Braden obviously carried it for us in the second half,” Painter said. “You’ve got to be able to make shots and keep them at bay.”
Painter also lit up when talking about his bench, especially Omer Mayer. “He handled it when Braden was out,” Painter said. “He’s had a great attitude. He’s happy in that locker room. That’s what you need.”
He admitted the journey isn’t simple. “Everybody wants a better role. Everybody wants to shoot the ball more,” he said. “They want to win, but they want to win a certain way. You’ve got to work through some of that role definition.”
Defensively, Purdue executed the plan. “Not letting (Latrell) Wrightsell get going is big,” he said. “He’s a flamethrower.”
By the end, Painter sounded more satisfied than anything.
“We showed some resiliency today,” he said. “We were quicker to the basketball. We played much better. That was good to see.”
More college basketball news:
- Caleb Wilson channels Michael Jordan
- Darryn Peterson on tough night in Chapel Hill
- AJ Dybansta makes debut for BYU
- Loyola to honor Sister Jean with jersey patch