Teams have started viewing Purdue as a favorable foe, licking their chops when they see the Boilermakers on the schedule. Katie Gearlds doesn't want that to be the narrative any longer. The Purdue head coach is dead set on putting a team on the court that opposing coaches have sleepless nights over.

"We don't want anybody look at the roster and be like, or their schedule, 'We get to play Purdue? Alright!' And I feel like that's kind of what we walked into here. So the idea is kind of flip that switch," Gearlds said.

"One thing we talk about too is I think we want people to almost like, struggle with the fact that we're on their schedule right? We want to put a team out there that's really hard to beat. Does it translate to wins? Hopefully. If we can be hard to beat, I think we're going to give ourselves a chance," Gearlds said. "I want to shake others coach's hand at the end of the game. I want them to say, 'I hate playing y'all.'"

That desire to be a headache for opponents starts on the defensive end of the floor.

Purdue was ninth in the Big Ten in points allowed per game a year ago, surrendering just over 68 points per contest. A mark that Gearlds wants to see improvement in as official practice begins in West Lafayette this week.

Gearlds pointed to the idea of taking a Shaka Smart-esque "94 feet of hell" approach on the defensive end that makes every game a dogfight for their opponents. It won't always be the most aesthetic basketball to watch, but it could lead to results and wins for the Boilermakers, if executed properly.

"I don't know that it's always going to be sexy or pretty out there. But if we can just play hungry and play dirty and tough minded basketball, we'll give ourselves a chance," Gearlds said.

Having a new cast of longer and more athletic defenders, particularly in the backcourt and on the wings, could help pave the way for Purdue becoming a defensive nightmare for teams in the Big Ten this season.

"We are just longer and more athletic, you know, across the board. I think we can play a really big lineup and pound things -- or we could go smaller and be faster, but just a little bit longer and quicker," Gearlds said.

The catalyst behind Purdue's new philosophy is a backcourt that has already flashed its defensive prowess between transfer Destini Lombard and sophomore Rashunda Jones. The two create a disruptive tandem with their length and aggressiveness.

"I would not want to bring up the ball against either one of those two," Gearlds said.

"I think me and Dez is just a start. I think on defense being able to play high pressure with both of us being on the court is crazy, because then if we do that then our team follows and our team feeds off of that. So we know that we have to be the energizers for our team," Jones said.

That duo is in addition to Mahri Petree and Amiyah Reynolds, who both bring increased length to the Boilermakers this season. But it is not just the guards and wings that are bigger this year, so too is the front court, with the additions of freshmen Lana McCarthy and Kendall Puryear. Not to mention Akron transfer forward Reagan Bass, who makes up a trio that is 6-foot-2 or taller.

Specifically adding McCarthy and Puryear in the post will allow Katie Gearlds to play around with lineups on both ends of the floor.

"Lana is big. KP is big and physical. So, it allows you to press up on the ball a little bit more and make things a little bit more difficult. I think we're quicker, we can fly around a little bit on perimeter. At the same time, we got to be disciplined in doing that kind of stuff," Gearlds said.

A new defensive approach with new players to execute it coincides with a different overall mentality for the Boilermakers with the season-opener quickly approaching. Sophomore guard Sophie Swanson sees a more motivated group as a result of last year's shortcomings, that has given the team a boost of energy for turning the tide in West Lafayette.

"Compared to last year, there's just like this different energy we have to us, which definitely helps," Swanson said. "I think it was just, we don't want a repeat of last year. It wasn't our best year. So just coming back, bouncing back from that."

Katie Gearlds has seen that mindset change as well, with the catalyst being a quartet of senior transfers entering the program and quickly establishing themselves as leaders, in Lombard, Bass, Petree and Ella Collier.

That group enters the fray, where they have gelled to pair alongside a budding core comprised of Swanson, Reynolds, Jones, Jordyn Poole, McKenna Layden and the aforementioned freshmen.

"It's really been a collective effort. You know, I would say all of our kids just have a competitive drive about them, and really, our four transfers kind of bring that naturally. I think they feel like they've got something to prove, that they actually do belong here and compete at this level. So that's carried over, and they've earned everybody's respect right away," Gearlds said.

Purdue kicked off its preseason practice this week, but are ahead of where they were in past seasons behind extended practice time as a result of a summer European trip. Gearlds sees the Boilermakers being better prepared to start the season, which will be useful with matchups against South Carolina, Notre Dame, Kentucky and others on the non-conference slate.

"I feel like we're a little bit further along than where we normally would be, because we actually practiced this summer. So practice is not like the first official day, isn't like foreign concepts. They know what to expect. They know what we're about to hit on. So the idea is, hopefully that carries over, and hopefully we're further along and ready to," Gearlds said. "Hopefully we can just start a little bit higher than what we have the past few years here.