TV Talent: Dave O'Brien (play-by-play) and Dan Dakich (expert analysis), and Andy Katz (sideline)
Radio: OSU Radio Network (60 stations)
Local Radio: WBNS FM-97.1 and AM-1460 The Fan
Radio Talent: Paul Keels (play-by-play) and Ron Stokes (expert analysis)
and Ron Stokes (expert analysis)
The No. 1 Ohio State basketball has played 20 games and has yet to suffer a loss. When facing No. 12 Purdue Tuesday night on national television, it will be hard-pressed to keep its record perfect.
The Boilermakers, backed by the Big Ten's leading scorer in JaJuan Johnson, are coming off a big win at Penn State that helped Purdue avoid a three-game losing streak.
It was Johnson, the team's senior big man, who knocked down an 18-foot jumper with the seconds ticking away that lifted Purdue over the Nittany Lions. With Purdue having suffered only one loss in conference play, Tuesday's showdown could go a long way in determining how the Big Ten race plays out.
"If you can't get fired up for this kind of game then you probably shouldn't be in our locker room," Boilermakers coach Matt Painter said.
Game Notes:
Last season Ohio State and Purdue split the season-series, and that's pretty much how the all-time series looks. The Buckeyes and Boilermakers will play in their 163rd game ever in the series Tuesday night, with Purdue holding a slight 1-game advantage. Purdue, however, is 0-3 when playing Ohio State when the Buckeyes are No. 1 in the polls.
Purdue is led by senior forward JaJuan Johnson, who has scored at least 20 points in each of his last four games for the Boilermakers. Johnson, a native of Indianapolis, leads the Big Ten Conference in points per game (20.5).
In Johnson's last four outings, he is shooting 54 percent from the floor. Johnson's last shot was a game-winning bucket from 18-feet out to knock off Penn State. Johnson is the only active Division I player who has put up 1,600 points, 700 rebounds and 200 blocks in his career.
Senior guard E'Twaun Moore became Purdue's all-time minutes leader in the Boilermakers' win over Iowa on Jan. 9. In that game, Moore surpassed Troy Lewis for the all-time program lead. Now heading into the Ohio State game, Moore's record stands at 4,029 minutes, making him the first player in program history to reach the 4,000-minute mark.
Heading into the Ohio State game, Moore and Johnson make up the nation's third-highest scoring duo. Combined the two average 38.6 points per game, which represents just over half of Purdue's total scoring averages per game on the season.
Purdue has been one of the most successful basketball programs over the course of the last three years. The Boilermakers have won 73 games since the beginning of the 2008-09 season, which is the sixth-best win total over that stretch. That win total, however, is more than any other Big Ten team has put up in that same timeframe. Duke, the defending national champs, has the most wins since the beginning of the 2008-09 season with 83.
Since the start of the 2006-07 season, Purdue is one of only five programs from major college basketball conferences to improve its win total each year. The Boilermakers join Baylor, California, Cincinnati and Duke in that elite company.
Ohio State has been successful this season because of how well it shares the ball, but Purdue has also excelled in that category, too. The Boilermakers have had 346 assists on 536 of their field goals this season, which translates into an assist on 64.6 percent of the team's buckets.
One of the Big Ten and nation's top teams in turnover margin since the beginning of the 2006-07 season, Purdue is 90-21 (.811) in that span when winning the turnover battle, while outscoring its opponents by an average margin of 6.1 points per game off of turnovers.
Eight Purdue players are currently averaging more than 10 minutes per game on the year, with all but one putting in at least 19.0 minutes or more on the court per game.
