Time: 7:01 p.m. ET (West Lafayette time)

Date: Wednesday, Dec. 9

Place: Mackey Arena (capacity 14,123)

TV: The game will be televised by the Big Ten Network (Wayne Larrivee has the play-by-play, Bob Ford provides the analysis)

Radio: The Purdue Sports Network (play-by-play Larry Clisby, color commentary Ralph Taylor and Rob Blackman handles the pregame show); the flagship station is WSHP-FM (95.7, Lafayette).

The game is also available on satellite radio (XM channel 196).

Series: Purdue leads its all-time series against Valpo 13-1, having won the last eight encounters.

Did You Know?: The Boilermakers' lone loss to Valparaiso came Dec. 22, 1965.

The Game:

The Boilermakers are off to their best start in more than 15 years and will look to keep their seven-game winning streak alive as they host instate rival Valparaiso tonight.

"It's a very dangerous game for us because these guys have been on the road to Michigan State and on the road against North Carolina," said Coach Matt Painter, whose fifth-ranked Boilermakers improved to 7-0 this season following a 101-65 home victory over Buffalo Saturday. "They played Butler tough the other night in Hinkle Fieldhouse."

Valparaiso trailed the 23rd-ranked Bulldogs by just six points at halftime before falling 84-67. The loss dropped the Crusaders to 3-5.

Butler used an 11-0 run early in the second stanza to seize control against Valpo.

"They've added a couple of very good scorers in Cory Johnson and Brandon Wood," said Painter about the Crusaders.

"They play small in terms of the guys they put on the court, but they put five guys out there that can score and really put you in a bind."

After tonight's game, Purdue will head to Alabama for its first true road game of the season. The Boilermakers will face the Crimson Tide at 9 p.m. Saturday, in a game that will be televised by ESPN2.

* Next season the Boilermakers will play at Valparaiso, a game that was primarily schedule for Robbie Hummel, who will be returning to his hometown as a senior.

* Valparaiso has faced a brutal schedule thus far. This will be the fourth top-25 team the Crusaders have faced, three of which have been in the top-five at game time.

Valpo lost to then-No. 6 North Carolina, 88-77, in Chapel Hill, fell at No. 2 Michigan State, 90-60 and at Butler.

* Purdue is 81-23 all-time against teams from the Horizon League.

* Hummel has hit his last 12 free throws.

* No. 10 Purdue beat Valparaiso, 59-45, last season.

* Like Purdue, Valpo takes good care of the basketball as it averages just 13.1 turnovers per outing (Purdue turns it over 12.7 times per game).

* Point guard Lewis Jackson will be out of action tonight due to a broken foot and forward Sandi Marcius is also sidelined with the same type of injury.

However, Marcius is getting closer to returning as he's expected to be running this week.

Painter says he'll have a better idea of when exactly Marcius will be available for his first game action of the season once he returns and is further evaluated.

* Painter is 90-50 in five years as Purdue's head coach. He's 115-55 in six seasons as a college head coach.

* Valparaiso coach Homer Drew is in his 21st season at the northern Indiana school.

He ranks seventh among active Division I head coaches with 602 career victories.

* The Sporting News predicts Valparaiso to finish last in the 10-team Horizon League.

* G/F: 4 Robbie Hummel - 6-8, 208, Jr., 13.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.0 apg

* F: 25 JaJuan Johnson - 6-10, 215, Jr., 14.0 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 0.3 apg

* G: 5 Keaton Grant - 6-4, 201, Sr., 6.3 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.3 apg

* G: 3 Chris Kramer - 6-3, 214, Sr., 6.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.7 apg

* G: 33 E'Twaun Moore - 6-4, 184, Jr., 16.4 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.6 apg

* F: 4 Cory Johnson - 6-7, 225, Jr., 16.0 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.5 apg

* G: 10 Brandon McPherson - 6-1, 210, Sr., 13.1 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 3.4 apg

* G: 23 Matt Kenney - 6-3, 205, Fr., 3.5 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 2.4 apg

* G: 32 Brandon Wood - 6-2, 190, So., 21.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.3 apg

* G: 45 Ryan Broekhoff - 6-6, 185, Fr., 4.1 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 1.0 apg

* Kramer tied for team-high honors with 14 points against Buffalo. He hit all six of his shots from the floor.

* In two games last week, Kelsey Barlow averaged seven points and 5.5 rebounds.

* Moore equaled Kramer's offensive production with 14 points against the Bulls and added six rebounds in 23 minutes.

* Wood, a junior college transfer from Kokomo, Ind., leads Valpo and the Horizon League in scoring.

He scored 30 points in a loss at North Carolina and 39 at Georgia Southern. The 39-point outburst was a Valpo Division I record.

Wood, however, failed to reach double figures in scoring for the first time this season against the Bulldogs.

* Painter expects Johnson to be a match-up problem. He'll look to take bigger guys off the dribble and with his quickness and strength.

Johnson led the Crusaders with 17 points against Butler as he hit 6-of-8 shots from the field. He also had a team-high five rebounds.

* McPherson, who played his high school basketball at Indianapolis Lawrence North, was hurt when Purdue faced Valpo last season.

He's sizzling from the outside as he's burying 52.6 percent of his three-pointers (20-of-38).

The Boilermakers want to head to Alabama undefeated and the Crusaders are the only team that stands in their way of being a perfect 8-0.

Purdue did a good job of crushing Buffalo and needs to continue to send the message that it won't only beat inferior teams, but will blow them out in the process.

* The Boilermakers need to start strong, something they didn't do against Buffalo. Will they this time out?

* Purdue started showing signs of breaking out of its three-point shooting slump in the second half of the Buffalo game. Against Wake Forest and in the first half of the Buffalo game, the Boilermakers were a dismal 2-of-23 from beyond the arc. However, they hit 11-16 in the second half of the game against the Bulls.

Will the Boilermakers continue to have a hot hand from the outside?

* Hummel hit his last three-pointer against Buffalo after missing 12 straight in the Wake Forest and Buffalo games. Will he start knocking down the long-range shots like everyone knows he's more than capable of?

* How will Purdue shoot at the free throw line? In the last three games, the Boilermakers have made 80.5 percent of their freebies (62-of-77).

* Will Barlow give his team another big boost coming off the bench?

* Will Johnson be unstoppable, especially since the Crusaders start four guards and no one taller than 6-foot-8?

* Teams are finding it awfully difficult to score against the Boilermakers. Purdue's last two opponents have averaged just 61.5 points, shooting 38 percent from the floor (45-of-119), and committed an average of 22 turnovers. Will the Boilermakers' defense continue to cause foes fits?

* Will Purdue's defense shut down Valparaiso's offense? The Crusaders lead their league in scoring, averaging nearly 76 points per game.

Valparaiso could provide a decent challenge for 20 minutes or so, but Purdue has too much talent and its defense will wear the Crusaders down and as the game progresses.

Boilermakers win and do so in a big way.

LAST PICK: Purdue 81, Buffalo 55 (actual score Purdue 101-65)

NOTE: Be sure to check GoldandBlack.com tonight for a full report on the game.

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