Six Things That Stood Out In Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE — Purdue's off to Philly, but virtue of its wins over Yale and Texas at Fiserv Forum.

Here are six things that really stood out for the Boilermakers in Milwaukee.

Great players need to want the ball when it matters most for their teams to be as good as they can be, and in those situations, Jaden Ivey has been a killer.

He made the biggest shot of the game against Texas, and that wasn't his only clutch three against the Longhorns.

Look back at his still-young Purdue career and you see two game-winners against Ohio State and the game-tying three at Wisconsin in the final seconds.

Ivey wants the ball in those moments, and he seems to shoot better when he's just reacting to the moment, as if it brings something more out of him.

All that said, earlier in the game, he made the right plays to set Ethan Morton up for his two enormous threes, one in each half, in the face of a Texas defense that swarmed him, probably frustrated him, and forced him into some first-half mistakes.

One thing that bears mentioning, though: Ivey was a much better player and decision-maker in the second half when it mattered more and that's a sign of a great player who's able to not just play one way, who can adjust on the fly, course correct and find different ways to be great.

Through two NCAA Tournament games, Purdue's shot an average of about 40 free throws per game, much to the chagrin of sportswriters working on deadlines.

During Big Ten play, the Boilermakers averaged around 20 attempted foul shots per game.

Is Purdue playing differently?

Of course not.

All that has changed is the officiating.

That was Purdue's hope coming into this event, that departing the Big Ten Octagon would benefit the Boilermakers via referees eager to officiate games by the letter of the law as opposed to however you'd describe the occasional leniency of conference play.

Zach Edey — the poster boy for this dynamic — has drawn 14 fouls in two games and shot 22 free throws. Jaden Ivey is close behind having drawn 13 whistles, with 18 free throw attempts.

Purdue shot 46 free throws against Texas, but keep in mind that eight of them came after it led by 10 with two-and-a-half minutes to go — not counting the briefly ominous lane violation — distorting the numbers a bit.

The Boilermakers missed 13 foul shots against Texas, but their 71.7-percent shooting wound up a hair above their season percentage, which now stands at 70.8 percent.

If Ethan Morton were a Swiss Army Knife, Purdue would already have put to use everything from the corkscrew to the straight blade to that weird detachable toothpick those things come with.

The past three games, Morton's been called upon to guard Iowa All-American forward Keegan Murray, Yale scoring guard Azar Swain and Texas point guard and long-time Purdue nemesis Marcus Carr and he's done well against all three, three distinctly different players.

Texas got some buckets off Morton during that last-ditch comeback, but by and large, he did well against Carr, using his height and length to try to steer him to his left hand and challenge his shots.

Morton's guarded all shapes and sizes this season, often in pinches, and has been ready every time. From Ron Harper Jr. to Dereon Seabron to Johnny Davis to the Murrays of Iowa.

He's capable of guarding four positions, depending on matchups, and every time he's been asked to do something different, he's at the very least held up.

That's immensely valuable off the bench, and when that player makes open threes too, that's immensely valuable.

No moment has been too big for Purdue's lone freshman this season, and the NCAA Tournament obviously hasn't been.

His double-digit scoring game against Yale was one thing. There was enough garbage time in that game and enough overwhelmed matchups where statistics were largely cosmetic.

But in his nine minutes against Texas, he made a difference, a big one.

Who was it who made the shot that gave Purdue the lead back right after Texas went ahead in the second half?

Jaden Ivey? Nope.

Trevion Williams? Nope.

Eric Hunter? Nope.

It was Furst, whose three-pointer with 13:20 to play was the biggest shot of the game that no one talked about afterward because of all the key plays that followed.

That was clutch, akin to the three-pointer he made against North Carolina back in Connecticut months ago to help Purdue seal that win.

It wasn't just that Furst made that shot against Texas but rather that he was ready and willing to. A lot of freshmen might have curled up in the fetal position in that situation.

Again, though, no moment has been too big for him.

Maybe it's just the floor view that comes with NCAA Tournament media access, but probably not: Purdue seems really close as a team right now. Not that it wasn't before, but sometimes team chemistry and camaraderie are more apparent in the best of times than the worst of times, if that makes sense, and while winning, Purdue seemed to be really enjoying one another.

For the body language interpreters out there there, Purdue's players were loose and engaged with one another during their media obligations. One small example: When Sasha Stefanovic mentioned after the Yale game that he needs to keep shooting regardless of his recent slump, Jaden Ivey and Zach Edey alongside him nodded along in full support, understanding Stefanovic's gravity within their offense.

Purdue played exceptional defense by its prior standards in Milwaukee, continuing a trend from later in the season. That may be the direct result of the Boilermakers being more connected than they've ever been this season at the defensive end, a direct reflection of communication, which was not this team's strength much of the season.

Purdue's press break against Texas was virtually flawless and that has to reflect not only preparation but also some measure of cohesiveness.

That right there was the consummate Mason Gillis play, one of those moments where he just steals back a possession for Purdue and something good happens. It's this kind of stuff that represents why he matters so much for this Boilermaker team. He's a huge part of this team's will.

But behind that, Gillis was key to Purdue's virtually flawless press break against Texas, and the guy he opened the game guarding, Timmy Allen, finished with two points and five fouls. Gillis was great on the defensive glass once again, as well.

He's one of Purdue's most vocal players at the defensive end and a leader in that sense, too.

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