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Purdue-IU: Mackey Memories

The cover of Gold and Black in 2007, after Purdue's 13-point win over Indiana in a game postponed 24 hours by weather.
The cover of Gold and Black in 2007, after Purdue's 13-point win over Indiana in a game postponed 24 hours by weather.

Having seen Purdue-Indiana games dating back to the first one back in 1968, Tom Dienhart and Alan Karpick share their memories of the top three games they have seen in the facility.

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Tom take: The 1990s

There is nothing quite like a Purdue-Indiana basketball game to heat things up on a cold winter day.

I am lucky to have witnessed many of these games live and on TV over the years. And Saturday’s edition figures to add to the lore of this storied rivalry.

But it may have a tough time living up to a few of the beauts between these foes I have seen in Mackey Arena over the years. My two favs:

1992: Beating Indiana is always fun for Purdue.

But to cost the Hoosiers (who would finish 23-6 overall and 15-3 Big Ten) a Big Ten title and No 1 NCAA seed in the process is even more memorable for Boilermaker fans. That’s exactly what Purdue did in this epic 61-59 win vs. the No. 4 Hoosiers on Senior Day in Mackey Arena vs. an IU team that had beaten Purdue by 41 earlier in the season in Bloomington.

This was a pedestrian Purdue squad that would go 16-14 overall and 8-10 in the Big Ten and head off to the NIT. But seniors Woody Austin (a Richmond, Ind., native) and Craig Riley (a Ft. Wayne, Ind., native) went out in style vs. their in-state rival, watching students storm the court after Purdue upset an Indiana team that would go on to the Final Four. Austin paced the Boilers with 20 points, while the muscular Riley added 17 with seven boards. And a redshirt freshman named Cuonzo Martin tallied 12 points and seven rebounds while shadowing Hoosier All-American Calbert Cheaney.

1994: Big Dog reins

Another doozy occurred during Glenn Robinson’s junior—and final--season in West Lafayette. Purdue was heading toward what would be the first of three Big Ten crowns in a row. Along the way, the Boilermakers took down No. 8 Indiana in Mackey, claiming an 83-76 OT decision in January to improve to 15-1 overall and 3-1 in the league. In this clash, No. 9 Purdue was riding high behind the “Big Dog,” who would earn national player of the year honors and lead the nation in scoring. Robinson looked like an All-American in this game, tallying 33 points and 12 rebounds. Sidekick Cuonzo Martin poured in 23 points with seven boards as the Boilers rallied from a 10-point hole in the second half. Purdue lost by two at IU later that season. Still, the Boilermakers were kings in this game. The Boilermakers won the league outright and went on to finish 29-5 overall and 14-4 in the Big Ten, advancing to the Elite Eight. Robinson later was the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft.

Alan's take--Learning in losses

First: Let’s talk about the weather. One Purdue-IU game that stands out for me was in 2007, a contest that was actually postponed 24 hours after a double-digit snow fall blanked West Lafayette the day the game was scheduled.

At that time, second-year coach Matt Painter was looking to build momentum for his program. It was coming as he had recruited Robbie Hummel, JaJuan Johnson, E’Twaun Moore, but they were all high school seniors.

On that evening, it was seniors David Teague and Carl Landry that wreaked havoc on IU resulting in a 13-point win. It was key for Painter to earn a level of credibility by getting a commanding win over Indiana and ultimately a trip to the NCAA in just his second year. The rousing win over IU helped.

While 81-68 win in ‘07 was memorable, it was two losses to Indiana that were formative to my experience of growing up and watching Purdue sports.

For much of the first four decades of Mackey Arena’s existence, the Purdue-Indiana rivalry boiled down to the appearance of IU coach Bob Knight in the den of Gold and Black. The most anticipated moment of the Purdue sports year was almost always the instant Knight walked down the north tunnel and onto the Mackey Arena court to take his place on the IU bench.

So my most profound memories often stem from Purdue’s great battles with Knight’s teams. For much of the 1970s the Hoosiers were on top of the college basketball world, and two of the greatest games every played in Mackey Arena history were both narrow IU wins.

In 1975 and ’76, Indiana was riding a 36-game Big Ten winning steak, a record that hasn’t been close to being topped in the league since. In the ’75 game, Purdue’s fearless freshman trio of Eugene Parker, Walter Jordan and Wayne Walls, along with standout veterans John Garrett and Bruce Parkinson, came within a point of beating Indiana. The following year, the Hoosier snuck out of Mackey with a three-point win en route to a perfect season and national title.

The game on the court was one thing, but it was the atmosphere, the intensity, in Mackey Arena that I haven’t seen quite at that level before or since.

As a collective, Purdue fans hated Knight. His antics, yes, but most of all it was the fact that the Boilermakers’ program was really good in those days, but still overshadowed by the Hoosiers.

And that ire focused on the Cream and Crimson manifest itself in these ways over 40 years ago: The building was full an hour before tipoff, Students constructed sheet signs the size of upper-arena sections. When the game was over, fans were left to feel like they had literally played in the game. The contests were emotionally exhausting, and in the end heartbreaking if you were a high-school aged, and sometimes immature, Purdue fan. Which I was.

The genesis of the “IU Sucks” (not one of my favorites by the way) chant at Purdue, emanated from those days and those colossal contests. Before it was Knight vs. Keady, it was Knight vs. Fred Schaus and the Knight vs. Lee Rose. For Purdue fans and observers who are nearing their seventh decade (that’s me) on this planet, there was nothing quite like it.

In an era before the marketing and video sizzle one experiences today in Mackey Arena and most college venues, it was truly an amazing sporting experience.


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