The Daily Roundup: Day 73

History has been made, the nine-game losing streak is over, Indiana has finally beaten Purdue. The Hoosiers pulled off the upset to headline Thursday night in College Basketball. This game will headline the roundup but there will be a few other matchups to break down as well, so let’s dive into the daily roundup. 

Indiana gets signature win, beats rival Purdue in upset

While there were many reasons the Archie Miller didn’t work out, a major one was losing twice a year to Purdue every year in his tenure. It had been simply too long since the Hoosiers won, as Purdue won the previous nine matchups between the schools, but for Indiana, they made sure the number stopped there as they pulled off the upset of Purdue. Coming into the game, the route towards winning seemed to be through a good game from Trayce Jackson-Davis, but he was in foul trouble all game and only played 11 minutes. Instead, it was through Rob Phinisee, who came off the bench and stole the show, carrying Indiana to a monumental win. 

Purdue got out to a good start and it seemed like one of these games where the Hoosiers just were going to fall behind and not catch up, but Rob Phinisee was determined not to let that be the case. Phinisee scored Indiana’s next 13 points and cut a 16-8 lead to 22-21, while the Hoosiers followed that run by going on a 16-4 run to close out the first half and take a commanding lead into the second half. While Indiana led much throughout the second half, you could feel it was not safe, especially with Jaden Ivey making big play after big play to keep them in it. Ivey hit the game-tying jumper with three minutes left and Trevion Williams found Mason Gillis for an open layup to give Purdue the lead. That’s when Rob Phinisee, the four-year Hoosier drilled the go-ahead three to put Indiana up 66-65 with 16 seconds left. Jaden Ivey had a look to give Purdue the lead, which was blocked by Trayce Jackson-Davis, and one that spun off the rim to force overtime, which missed and led to the court storm. 

Indiana has not had it easy as of late. They haven’t been to the NCAA Tournament since 2016, they haven’t beaten Purdue since 2017, and while the Hoosiers have work to do to secure that Tournament bid and they certainly aren’t where the program expects to be, this win goes a long way towards changing both. Purdue will be fine, this was a tough game against their rival, who needed the win more than Purdue did, the Boilermakers will still be a high seed and contend for a National title. 

Gonzaga pulls away from San Francisco

Let me start out by saying, we always do this. Whenever Gonzaga gets down in WCC play, we start to imagine the upset, but at the end of the day, Gonzaga is still Gonzaga and they continue to run this league. San Francisco is a good team, probably the toughest matchup for Gonzaga in the league, but at the end of the day, it wasn’t quite enough. Jamaree Bouyea had an impressive 25 point performance, they got a good Khalil Shabazz game, but there was no matchup for Timme and Chet and that is the story. Drew Timme dropped a game-high 23 points and was dominant in the post against San Francisco, Chet Holmgren had 22 but mixed that in with some blocks, tough defense, and his usual visual presence led San Francisco towards struggling offensively. Gonzaga isn’t as good as they were a season ago offensively (not many will ever match that), but that defense is much improved and the offense is starting to find a rhythm as Chet and Timme are finding a groove playing alongside each other. 

Shaver sends Boise State into the field

Coming into the day, Boise State was one of my first four out, and a big reason why was their lack of quadrant one wins. Well, now they have one, and they also are now in the field of 68, as the Broncos slipped past Utah State on the road 62-59 thanks to a game-winning three by Marcus Shaver Jr. There is a long way until Selection Sunday, but the Broncos can rest assured that they are squarely in the mix for a Tournament birth. 

Let’s get WAC-ky

How about the WAC, Grand Canyon, and New Mexico State have both been fantastic this season and are chasing down Tournament bids, and the league depth is fantastic, which showed Thursday. Both Grand Canyon and New Mexico State, who are the premier programs in the league took matching 71-46 losses to their opponents. First, Grand Canyon lost by that score at Stephen F Austin, while New Mexico State took their loss to Sam Houston State. Every night in this league will be a battle and these WAC powerhouses were shown firsthand that this league is no longer a cakewalk like it maybe has been in the past. 

How useful was this post?

Click on a star to rate it!

Average rating 0 / 5. Vote count: 0

No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.

As you found this post useful...

Follow us on social media!