Starters: Jon Octeus, Rapheal Davis, Kendall Stephens, Vince Edwards, AJ HammonsFinishers: PJ Thompson, Dakota Mathias, Kendall Stephens, Vince Edwards, AJ Hammons

What happened?

Ok. I’m gonna try to keep it even-keeled here.

OAINUWEFVQPIRUGNFPQORGHPQORWIGJQPORIGJQF PORINFPORQGNQORUGNPQTYUN5EIWUTYHDFIGJUNW P;LEGHXDFIGNUWERGJNSLFBOVJINQ;LRJEGNPUBVSI UEGNSLOKJIGFNS;LEIGNJWUVNXZLSGNJSVUS;KLJHNS LBUSKJGNOQ;LEJIGNQLIGNZ;LNOZ;LINEOT;WIGN;XD LFKBNSOIHFUHNREJTQN;KJNXVOIRN

*deep breaths*

Let’s start over. I feel like it’s been clear, from my past gushings on the podcast and my Year In Review post, but I’ve long felt that the two non-AJ keys for success this year were going to be the returning Kendall Stephens, and the freshman Vince Edwards. And, at least for tonight, they made me sound like a freaking wizard.

The game started with Kendall Stephens being aggressive offensively, giving everyone else on the court plenty of space to work. AJ was feasting off the space, showcasing an arsenal of smooth post moves to go along with his natural passing instinct (see the linked GIFs below). After a few beastly moves, IUPUI started sending double and triple teams at him, which gave plenty of room for The Kid to work his perimeter magic. Take a look here, when IUPUI literally sends four and a half guys at AJ in the post:

Spoiler alert: Kendall hit that ridiculous three, because he’s spits hot fire.

Purdue was on a roll defensively as well, forcing two empty IUPUI possessions right out of the gate (one errant pass, one Mackey Special shot clock violation). The defensive intensity early in the game was at a level we haven’t seen in two years, which is a more-than-welcome change from the past. The help from the perimeter defenders was enough to keep AJ out of foul trouble (as he would often try to bail his teammates out by lunging at wide-open drivers). Isaac Haas didn’t come in until the 10 minute mark in the first half, which would be fantastic for later in the season against some talented lineups.

Unfortunately, a negative theme also took hold early in the first half: quick, unnecessary Purdue turnovers leading to IUPUI points. Don’t let the final score deceive you: the Jaguars are a talented team, and it showed whenever Purdue made a mistake. Shout out to the playmaking abilities of PJ Boutte (finished with 8 assists, which seems really low compared to his impact), DJ McCall (14 points, got to the rim at ease), and Leo Svete (14 points off 4-7 shooting from three). Thankfully Justus Stanback, son of former Purdue forward Ian Stanback, fouled out with 14 minutes left in the second half, allowing Purdue to continue to get the ball inside and grind out the win. (As you can tell by the finishing lineup of Thompson/Mathias/Stephens/Edwards/Hammons, this game wasn’t close to being an easy win.)

Alright.

I’ve controlled myself enough.

VINCE. EDWARDS. IS. A. GOD. AMONG. MEN.

CAN WE CLONE VINCE EDWARDS?

WILL VINCE EDWARDS BE DRAFTED FIRST OR SECOND OVERALL IN THE 2015 NBA DRAFT?

DO I GET A PERCENTAGE OF HIS CAREER EARNINGS FOR LITERALLY CONSTRUCTING THE VINCE EDWARDS BANDWAGON WITH MY BARE HANDS???

*deep breaths*

Vince was out of control. You saw the statline at the beginning of the post, but it really doesn’t do it justice. Look at the GIFs linked below, or at the video on the bottom of the page, or on my Twitter timeline for a real reflection of how awesome Vince was today. He started the game with aggression on the offensive glass, continued with some point-forward action initiating the offense while Bryson Scott was on the floor for the starting Jon Octeus, and finished with a shooting touch that has been well-beyond even my sky high expectations. Vince really was everywhere making every single play for a long stretch in the first half, culminating in this three-minute segment:

*swooooooooooooooooooon*

All in all, it was the young perimeter duo of Stephens and Edwards that propelled Purdue to a victory. This is the type of game, against a talented mid-major opponent and surrendering a slew of turnovers, that the 2013-2014 Boilermakers would have somehow coughed up. (Does anyone remember the Washington State game?) But thankfully we have 2032 United State President-Elect Vince Edwards on the roster to get the job done.

 

The game was over when…

Ian Stanback fouled out for IUPUI, triggering Purdue to force the ball down low and get the rest of IUPUI’s talent pool in foul trouble. Tentative Jaguar defense led to a ton of Purdue buckets, and that luckily trumped the Boilers’ 15 turnovers.

 

The Good: (as always, all links are to GIFs from the game)

• Vince Edwards
• Vince
• Edwards
• V I N C E  E D W A R D S
• S D R A W D E  E C N I V
• AJ’s passing after being doubled/tripled/quadrupled in the post.
• Kendall Stephens’ filthy-smooth jumper.
• Octeus continues to be manna from heaven. (I couldn’t resist.)
• Haas and Mathias have great chemistry already. Haas is as strong as an ox, and as big as an Ent, and will be a huge asset come Big Ten season.
• Coach Painter’s subtle suit border

 

The Bad:

• IUPUI’s hot-shooting from Svete and playmaking by Boute
• Like I said last game, Hammons gets easily beat when he ventures too far away from the basket along the baseline.
• All of the lazy turnovers. Kept IUPUI in the game, when Purdue should have finished them a while ago.

 

The Ugly:

• WHATEVER THE OPPOSITE OF VINCE EDWARDS IS BECAUSE HE’S A BEAUTIFUL ANGEL.
• Free throw shooting. At 19/31 (61%), the Boilers’ percentage from the stripe is still nowhere close to the percentage Purdue needs to be successful.

 

Moving Picture Thingy of the Night:

 

Tweet(s) of the night:

Vince Edwards waited a whole two games for his first 20-point performance.

— Nathan Baird (@nbairdjc) November 16, 2014

It took Vince Edwards two games into his #Purdue career to trend on @Twitter. #Trending #BoilerUp pic.twitter.com/hUAfu7O0Rl

— Purdue Basketball (@BoilerBall) November 16, 2014

 (Feature image from Paul Sadler, who you should absolutely follow immediately.)