Matt Painter is still talking about last year, so is Zach Edey. They both know how few chances schools get to add Big Ten Championships, and those few games that slipped through their team's fingers last season cost them another one.

And at Purdue, who has 24 of them, more than any other school in the conference, and maybe it's because they've won so many, they appreciate them all the more.

They know how difficult they are to obtain. What can be inferred, is winning a championship isn't enough for high-ranked teams, they have to defend it, each and every night as Purdue gets every team's best shots.

Because whether you'd like to admit it or not, Purdue is the best in class of the Big Ten now. They have become THE basketball program in the Big Ten Conference.

But last year's Purdue team, it could win games, a lot of them, but it couldn't defend. Not like this team.

On the road, shots fall or they don't, but defense, it travels.