Age is a thing of beauty for the Boilermakers

Sporting News, The, Dec 6, 1999 by Mike DeCourcy

In the interest of saving time, the public address announcer at the next Purdue game might consider skipping the relatively redundant individual introductions and simply call out, "Yeah, them again" as the Boilermakers starters take the floor.

Surely we all know Brian Cardinal, Jaraan Cornell and Michael Robinson by now. They have played a combined 7,600 minutes in Purdue uniforms. Point guard Carson Cunningham and center Gary McQuay have been in the college game as long, just not all of it with the Boilermakers.

They may be the only college team that needs to carry Rogaine in the trainer's kit next to the ace bandages and adhesive tape. With an average age just under 23, the Boilermakers' starting five is nearly as old as some NBA teams.

"That's the reason we're able to compete and hopefully win early in the year," coach Gene Keady says. "We've always been pretty successful with this many seniors. We've got heart. We've got good kids. They want to win."

It can get a little annoying to hear college coaches complain about having young teams because the reality is nearly everyone has a young team. The champions of the Maui Invitational (North Carolina), Preseason NIT (Arizona) and Great Alaska Shootout (Kansas) have two seniors among their 15 starters.

Experience is what gives Purdue its chance to be special. The Boilermakers not only follow Keady's instructions, they understand them. In a recent Maui Invitational victory over Florida, which has seven freshmen and sophomores in its rotation, the Purdue starters were so punishingly precise that they missed only 17 of 47 field-goal attempts.

"I think we drew on that a lot in the Florida game," Cunningham says. "We know each other pretty well, and that helps us execute."

Florida entered that semifinal ranked in everyone's top 10, which made this one of those results instantly tagged an enormous upset, but Keady does not share that view. "Florida's young," he says, making the word sound almost insulting.

Purdue lost the Maui title game to North Carolina, which is nothing new for the Boilermakers. They've been beaten by the Tar Heels three consecutive seasons: in the Great Alaska Shootout, the Preseason NIT and now this. Excluding the Boilermaker Invitational, which is played on their campus, the Boilers have lost the last nine tournaments in which they competed.

Under Keady, Purdue always has been more of a long-haul kind of team. He still gets the business for not advancing further in the NCAA Tournament, even though his last two teams reached the Sweet 16 and another came within a game of the Final Four.

This team isn't built for speed, either. It probably doesn't have enough offensive threats to win four NCAA games, but it may be able to overcome that limitation with the proper draw and some minor improvements.

The bench has to get better, which may come with experience. There is not much to do about the lack of size, although 6-10 sophomore John Allison shows flashes of potential during his brief appearances.

"I'm not sure a 6-7 center can win at this level," Keady concedes, in reference to matchups against big men such such as North Carolina's Brendan Haywood or Texas' Chris Mihm. But Keady also knows McQuay's extraordinary athletic ability and deadly turnaround jumper are weapons many big centers don't own.

Robinson, who has significant one-on-one skills, needs to regain the confidence he had as a sophomore, when he shot .511 and averaged 11.3 points a game. Cornell recognizes the importance of his offensive contribution but needs to force the play less often.

What could separate this Purdue team from some of its predecessors is Cunningham. The three Big Ten champions (1994, '95, '96) in the middle of this decade did not have such a multiple-skilled point guard. He can penetrate, hit the long jumper and control the game with his ballhandling.

"I think they've got a great team," North Carolina guard Ed Cota says. "I think we just wore them down. This could be the best team they've had in the past few years. Good things should happen for them."

Cardinal remains the most important of Purdue's players. He is the best rebounder, most accurate shooter and team leader. He was influential in getting the Boilermakers to spend their summer on campus, where they gathered each morning at 6:30 for a 3 1/2-mile run and an hour's worth of weightlifting. They returned later in the day to play.

They did not commit themselves in this manner with the idea of finishing fourth in the Big Ten and losing early in the NCAAs.

In a conference loaded with fresher success stories--Michigan State, Ohio State and Illinois--the Boilermakers were widely dismissed this season as a serious contender.

But this is Purdue, remember. Keady has won six Big Ten titles in the past 15 years even though a small number of its players made a dent in the NBA. "I don't ever think we can win a game," Keady says, "but I always think we can win the Big Ten."

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