LAFAYETTE WEST – Purdue basketballThe main roles of have changed in Sunday’s 104-68 rout of Nebraskabut the results remained consistent.
THE Boilermakers have won by 18 points or more in each of their five straight victories since the holidays. Trey Kaufman-Renn and Fletcher Loyer dominated early and CJ Cox lit up the second.
Purdue pretty quickly buried an opponent whose only loss since Dec. 7 was last week’s overtime loss to Iowa.
As the score indicates, high marks everywhere:
(*denotes man of the match)
ENTRIES
∎ Braden Smith: 8/10
Purdue finished the first half with 13 assists on 18 field goals, eight of which came from Smith. Not as prolific shooting, but there was no need for Kaufman-Renn to be automatic from the start.
∎ CJ Cox: 9/10
Provides an early spark at both ends. Has become a weapon that cuts off the basket on inbounds plays until opponents adjust. Put Nebraska away to start the second half, first with a transition 3 and then with a reverse layup on a break started by one of its three steals.
∎ Fletcher Rent: 8/10
It reminded everyone how much of an assassin he can be in the final seconds of the shot clock — or, if he feels like it, approaching the logo to start the second half. Maybe the Boilers didn’t need a bounce-back effort after a frigid night at Rutgers. Rent still raised them there.
∎ Caleb Furst: 6/10
You have to finish more cleanly around the rim, and the free throw funk has started to become a trend. Yet even as production dropped, effort and overall presence did not. They made a vital contribution to this winning streak.
∎ Trey Kaufman-Renn: 9/10*
Worked floaters and leaners early and emphatically ended his free throw skid by making 5 of 5. When operating at peak efficiency – 15 points on 7 of 9 shooting with seven assists and no turnovers – he can really turn his defense in on himself.
RESERVES
∎ Raleigh Burgess: 6/10
Only four minutes played in the first half with none of the frontcourt players in front of him in trouble. Aided that push for 100 with his five points in the second half.
∎ Camden Heide: 7/10
Crushed a reverse dunk on a lob for Smith’s 10th to assist. Even though there was over 12 minutes left to play, it basically served as a punctuation mark for this one.
∎ Myles Colvin: 8/10
Really helped that blistering first half with the defensive intensity and longer body he brings off the bench. If he continues to jump in 3 seconds (he hit four) without committing these technical fouls, he will be deadly.
∎ Gicarri Harris: 7/10
Maximize his role when he can affect a large portion of the box score in a short stint. In six first-half minutes, he made a 3-pointer, assisted on another bucket, had a steal and forced another turnover.
∎ Will Berg: 5/10
I played a few minutes of cleanup with victory firmly in hand.
∎ Brian Waddell: 6/10
Sent the Mackey Arena crowd home happy with this late basket – his first at home this season. Then press 3 to push the boilers past the century.
This article was originally published on the Indianapolis Star: Trey Kaufman-Renn, CJ Cox lead Purdue basketball rout of Nebraska
