Final Four road for Purdue began with look in the mirror and decision to stay the course (2024)

DETROIT (AP) — Instead of rebuilding via the transfer portal or overhauling the roster with some splashy NIL deals when its season came to an embarrassing halt last year, Purdue looked straight in the mirror.

Even after a loss that made them a laughingstock, the Boilermakers pretty much liked what they saw.

The result is a trip to the Final Four for a program that has dealt with change in the sport — to say nothing of its reputation as an underachiever as a team — mostly by sticking with what’s worked, and sometimes hasn’t, for the better part of the last 50 years.

The Boilermakers beat Tennessee 72-66 on Sunday to make their first Final Four since 1980. The win came a year and two weeks after Purdue became only the second No. 1 seed to fall in the first round of March Madness.

The headliner was 7-foot-4 Zach Edey, who came back for his senior season after last year’s disappointment. Sticking with it fits in nicely for a program whose roots reach down into the bedrock. Purdue has had two coaches over the last 44 seasons — Gene Keady, who was in the stands for this one, and Matt Painter, who is in his 19th season in West Lafayette.

“We’re systematic, and we evolve with our system,” Painter explained. “We evolve towards the strength of our best players. I think it’s a big fallacy in recruiting because everybody wants to play shortstop and lead off, but you’ve got one shortstop, and if Cal Ripken is there, he’s probably not going to get moved.”

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Currently, Edey is Purdue’s Cal Ripken.

Whether his last college game is Saturday against North Carolina State or next Monday in the final against UConn or Alabama, chances are Purdue won’t be searching far and wide for a new headliner. Sure, the past three years in college basketball have been splattered with big headlines about huge roster shakeups and NIL deals worth millions.

Painter viewed it as a point of pride that he’s only picked up two transfers in four years. (One of whom was Lance Jones, a somewhat quiet signing last offseason who has averaged 12 points a game.)

“I sign a lot of guys in the fall, and I stay out of the spring,” Painter said of the time when transfers find new teams. “The spring stinks. It’s all these guys are talking about. I’m not.”

It’s one thing to stand on principle. Quite another to win that way.

Purdue’s style of winning this season speaks volumes about this school’s near complete disregard for fitting in.

Edey, with his back-to-the-basket post game is considered a dinosaur in the modern game. He is the reigning AP Player of the Year, a unanimous All-American in 2024 and leads the nation in scoring. His value in the pros? Shaky, mainly because the NBA has turned to analytics and the value of the 3-pointer over grinding inside play.

Purdue views Edey in a different way. To the coach, Edey is a player, and a style, that nobody quite knows how to handle anymore. A stout defensive team like Tennessee might have had the best chance, but ultimately, it ran into the same issues that plague everyone: Foul trouble, frustration and fatigue after leaning on a guy who outweighs everyone by 70 pounds or more.

“In terms of greatness in a player, he’s very unselfish,” said Painter, who compared Edey to his own contemporary, Glenn Robinson. “So if you just get to your spots and stay with what you’re doing and they just come and get him, now we’re playing H-O-R-S-E. If they don’t, we want him to be aggressive and score.”

Edey has averaged 30 points and 16.8 rebounds over four games in the tournament.

Taking all this in from the stands Sunday afternoon was Keady.

He’s 87 years old now, and was the one who recruited Painter to Purdue. That was around 35 years ago when Keady was still getting his footing and the thought that he would never coach in a Final Four over what would become a Hall of Fame 25 years with the Boilermakers seemed impossible.

Painter said he grew up an Indiana fan, so going to the Hoosiers archrival never seemed like a move for him. Then, the recruiters started visiting. Most told him what he wanted to hear. Keady told him he’d need to get a summer job so he could learn what it meant to have to get up every morning and learn what it was like to work.

Painter talked it over with his dad.

“He said ‘That’s the only person who told you the truth. You need him way more than he needs you,’” Painter recalled.

It came as no surprise, then, to hear Keady’s takeaway after Purdue earned its first trip to the Final Four since the Carter Administration.

In a phone call with the AP after Edey had cut down the net and handed him a piece of twine, the coach said, “It shows people if you do things the right way, it will pay off.”

___

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Final Four road for Purdue began with look in the mirror and decision to stay the course (2024)

FAQs

Final Four road for Purdue began with look in the mirror and decision to stay the course? ›

Final Four

Final Four
In sports, the final four is the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Final_four
road for Purdue
Purdue
The Purdue Boilermakers basketball team is a men's college basketball program that competes in NCAA Division I and is a founding member of the Big Ten Conference.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Purdue_Boilermakers_men's_...
began with look in the mirror and decision to stay the course. DETROIT (AP) — Instead of rebuilding via the transfer portal or overhauling the roster with some splashy NIL deals when its season came to an embarrassing halt last year, Purdue looked straight in the mirror.

Has Purdue ever made it to Final Four? ›

The Boilermakers have 35 NCAA Tournament appearances and have, on 26 occasions, made the Round of 32. Moreover, Purdue has 14 appearances in the Sweet 16; six appearances in the Elite Eight; three Final Fours; one appearance in the third-place game; and two appearances in the national championship.

Who did Purdue play in the 1980 Final Four? ›

Purdue would fall short in the 1980 Final Four, losing to UCLA 67-62. It was a big disappointment because winning a national title was there for the taking.

When was the last time Purdue made it to the Elite 8? ›

Purdue is making its second Elite Eight appearances in five seasons, last making the Regional Finals in 2019 (lost to eventual National Champion Virginia in overtime). Prior to the 2019 season, the Boilermakers last made the Elite Eight in 2000. Purdue improved to 9-0 this season against nationally-ranked teams.

What's the furthest Purdue has gone in the NCAA tournament? ›

The Boilermakers have reached three NCAA Tournament Final Fours and two NCAA championship games, but have not won an NCAA Championship.

Is IU or Purdue better? ›

As mentioned above, IU is often praised for its business and humanities programs, while Purdue has a stronger reputation in STEM. In general, Purdue may have a slightly better overall reputation due to its engineering program being ranked amongst the best in the nation.

Does Purdue have a chance to win NCAA? ›

The Boilermakers have the second-best odds (2/1) of winning their first national championship.

When was the last time Purdue made it to the national championship? ›

11 seed NC State 63-50 in the Final Four, ending the Wolfpack's Cinderella run, and will face either UConn or Alabama in the title game on Monday, April 8. Purdue has not reached the NCAA championship game since 1969. Their most recent Final Four before 2024 occurred in 1980.

Who won the 1981 NCAA Final Four? ›

Who was the quarterback for Purdue in 1980? ›

Mark Donald Herrmann (born January 8, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons. Herrmann played college football for the Purdue Boilermakers, and was a unanimous All-American in 1980.

How tall is the guy on Purdue? ›

Purdue center Zach Edey is listed at 7-foot-4, which makes him among the tallest players in college basketball this year. He's the tallest player left standing in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

Is Purdue an elite university? ›

Purdue University is a public research institution demonstrating excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top four in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none.

When was the last time Purdue made it to the Sweet Sixteen? ›

Purdue has made the Sweet 16 seven times under Matt Painter (2009, 2010, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2024).

Has Purdue ever been a 1 seed in the tournament? ›

1 seed in the Midwest Region, thanks to a 6-0 record against top-4 seeds in the NCAA Tournament. The Boilermakers' No. 1 seed was its fifth in school history (1988, 1994, 1996, 2023, 2024).

Why is Purdue called the Boilermakers? ›

Purdue defeated Wabash College again in 1891, 44–0. An account of the game in the Crawfordsville Daily Argus News of October 26, 1891, was headlined, "Slaughter of Innocents: Wabash Snowed Completely Under by the Burly Boiler Makers from Purdue". Purdue became known as the Boilermakers the next year.

How many times has Purdue won the championship? ›

Purdue University Athletics

The first NCAA-sanctioned postseason tournament was not held until 1939. Three Purdue teams have captured NCAA championships - 1961 men's golf, 1999 women's basketball and 2010 women's golf - and 31 individual national championships have been won by Boilermakers.

Has Matt Painter been to Final Four? ›

With Painter at the helm, Purdue teams have won the Big Ten Conference five times, the Big Ten Tournament twice, and have reached the NCAA tournament 15 times, with seven Sweet-16 appearances, two Elite Eight appearances, one Final Four and one national title game appearance.

Has Purdue ever won a NCAA title? ›

Purdue has been to the Final Four three times, reaching the championship game once, but has never won the NCAA Tournament.

How many times has UConn made it to the Final Four? ›

UConn NCAA Tournament championship game history

The Huskies actually have a pristine 5-0 record in men's NCAA Tournament championship games. The Huskies have seven Final Four appearances, including the current 2024 run.

Has Tennessee men ever been to the Final Four? ›

Only once, under Bruce Pearl, did Tennessee reach the Elite Eight. Tennessee has never made a Final Four.

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