Tuesday, November 5, 2019 // TIPOFF 2019
8B 

No. 23 Purdue
First 
order 
of 
business: 
Boilermakers? Really? I’ve just never 
understood it. Nobody mansplain it to 
me in the comments. I don’t care that 
much. 
Frankly, they’re probably going to 
be pretty good. KenPom puts them 
at No.7 overall. They’ve been a pretty 
consistent force in Big Ten basketball 
over the past few years. They busted 
up my junior-year homecoming date’s 
bracket pretty good a few years back 
when a team he told me was overrated 
made it to the Sweet Sixteen instead 
of losing in the first round, and they 
got to the Elite Eight last year before 
falling to eventual champion Virginia.
Purdue’s roster is talented enough 
to make up for the loss of Carsen 
Edwards, with players like junior 
guard Nojel Eastern and junior center 
Matt Haarms poised to step in and 
lead the team.
Honestly, that’s about it. This team 
is definitely going to be good. They 
might even be great. They’re certainly 
heading in that direction.
Nebraska
Sophomore guard Cam Mack has 
high hopes for this Cornhusker team.

“This year, this team – we can get 
to the Sweet Sixteen,” he said at Big 
Ten Media Day. “We can win a couple 
games in the tournament. We’re 
gonna shock a lot of people.”
But I’m going to be straight up with 
you here: Nebraska’s probably going to 
be a bit of a pushover this year. They’ve 
got just two returning players, only one 
of whom has even played a minute of 
Big Ten basketball. The Cornhuskers 
have 14 new faces, and two transfers 
sitting out. It’s a rebuilding year.
But they’ve got a really exciting new 
head coach in Fred Hoiberg, usually 
remembered for his unsuccessful 
tenure with the NBA’s Chicago Bulls 
rather than his imposing offense at 
Iowa State. Hoiberg used transfers 
and his recruiting talents to turn his 
alma mater into a serious tournament 
contender, and his excitement about 
Nebraska and the program he wants 
to build there is palpable. It’s hard to 
find a reason Hoiberg can’t work the 
same magic in Lincoln.
This year, the Cornhuskers are 
probably going to be a bit of an also-
ran. But with the energy around this 
program, I don’t think it’s going to be 
that way for long.
Northwestern
I wanted to write “nerds” and 
leave it at that, but my editors said 
I had to write more than that. But 
honestly, things aren’t looking great 

this year for Northwestern. The 
Wildcats made their first trip to the 
NCAA Tournament in 2017, and 
even got a first-round win over their 
fellow nerds, Vanderbilt. It looked the 
Wildcats might have finally gotten 
their heads in the game.
I don’t know what happened to 
that program, but it sure as hell hasn’t 
showed up since then. Northwestern 
went 15-17 in 2018 and 13-19 last year. 
This year doesn’t look like it’ll be 
much different. They graduated much 
of last year’s already-tepid offensive 
production. And while newcomers 
like freshman forward Robbie Beran, 
a four-star prospect, and freshman 
point guard Boo Buie show some 
potential, it’s probably unreasonable 
to expect them to contribute much 
right away.
Stick to studying, Wildcats.
Rutgers
Last year’s basketball beat wants 
me to reiterate their firm conviction 
that Rutgers will make the National 
Invitation Tournament this year. 
Other than that, there’s no way I can 
follow up Ethan Sears on Steve Pikiell 
and this program, so I’ll let him do the 
talking.
***
So there you have it: a hopefully-
not-too-painless preview of this year’s 
conference field.
Now let’s play some basketball.

BIG TEN
From Page 7B

“The off the court stuff also. 
How to dress, how to carry yourself 
and be mannered. He didn’t only 
try to make you a better basketball 
player, he tried to make you a better 
person.”
Another 
identity Howard 
has 
associated 
with 
his 
new 
team since his 
announcement as 
head coach has 
been family. He 
is a family man 
through and through as evidenced 
not only with the way talks about 
and deals with his team but through 
small acts such as bringing his kids 
to the facilities when he was in 
Miami.
Including 
his 
three 
sons, 
all 
basketball 
players, 
in 
his 
work 
undoubtedly 
grew 
their 
appreciation for the game. In fact, 
Howard’s eldest, Juwan Howard Jr. 
was even on a Heat practice squad in 
2016. The younger Howard blended 
right in, befriending the players, 
even playing video games with 
Whiteside.

During this time, Howard didn’t 
treat his son any different — mixing 
honesty and family, telling his son 
what he needed to work on, the 
lessons of his playing and coaching 
days coming into full effect.
It is these qualities that will 
perhaps aid Howard in the biggest 
adjustment to the college basketball 
coaching lifestyle: recruiting.
Howard 
is 
now tasked with 
selling 
himself 
and Michigan as a 
premier temple of 
college basketball 
development. Ask 
those who knew 
him as a coach, 
and it’s not hard to 
see what that pitch might sound like.
“I think the No. 1 thing that 
will stick out for him is that he’s a 
people person, and he’s about kids,” 
Adebayo said. “Like he doesn’t want 
anything from us. Like he’ll give you 
the shirt off his back, that’s the type 
of person he is.”
This is a man who embodies 
commitment. A man who cried 
when he was introduced as the head 
coach of the men’s basketball team. 
This is a man who would give you 
the shirt off his back, they say. And 
maybe, if you hang around long 
enough, the tooth from his mouth.

NATALIE STEPHENS/Daily
The Michigan basketball team lost all three games against Michigan State last season, putting a dour on an otherwise successful season that ended against Texas Tech in the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA 

FEATURE
From Page 4B

...he’s a people 
person, and he’s 
about kids.

