LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Tennessee descended on Louisville on Wednesday, prepping for its Sweet 16 matchup with No. 3 seed Purdue with a berth in the Elite Eight on the line.
The two teams got to this point in dissimilar fashion. Tennessee clawed out an overtime win last Sunday after blowing a 25-point lead against Iowa. Purdue turned in one of the more impressive outings of the opening weekend, dismantling defending champion Villanova 87-61 behind 42 points from Carsen Edwards. That’s the highest individual total for any player in the tournament so far.
For Tennessee, or anyone else facing Purdue, it goes without saying that figuring out a way to contain Edwards is priority No. 1. He led the Big Ten in scoring this year, averaging 23.6 ppg game, which ranked 10th nationally.
He scores in a variety of ways but Tennessee’s first order of business will be to try and run him off the 3-point line. He was one of the most prolific long range gunners in the country this year, shooting 35 percent from three point range while making 120 threes which ranked sixth nationally.
“He's so tough to guard because he's got the green light. He can shoot it deep. I think that Purdue is a team that really understands their roles and his teammates understand what he can do for them,” Barnes said of the challenge Edwards presents.
“He can stretch your defense, he can stretch your defense by as soon as he comes across half court, whether he has ball or not, if you don't find him early, he's going to shoot that 3 in transition.
“But he is a very, very explosive guy. You know he's going to get his shots. And so you've got to be on edge. Really, from the time that he comes across half court, you better know where he is. They do a great job in their offense, running him off double, triple screen, their dribble handoff actions. He does a great job himself moving without the ball.”
You don’t have to be a master statistician to see how important Edwards is to the Boilermakers’ success. Purdue averages 73 points per game. Edwards accounts for right at a third of that. Only one other player on the team, guard Ryan Cline (11.7 ppg), averages in double figures for Matt Painter’s team.
Barnes has said this week that they’ll rotate different defenders onto Edwards but out of the gate expect Lamonte Turner to get the first crack at the Boilermakers’ star.
Turner has developed into an accomplished on the ball defender, earning an increasing amount of trust from his head coach. It seems like he’s relishing the opportunity to match up with one of the best scorers in the nation.
“Their offense revolves around him and they run a lot of different things, give him the ball in different areas. He's a great player. We matched up with him last year, so I'm a little more familiar with his game,” Turner said of the challenge.
“I’m looking forward to the match-up, being able to guard him and just to compete and get another chance to prove ourselves. I’m looking forward to it.
Offensively for the Boliermakers, it’s all about getting Edwards the ball in position to score. His teammates know that and act accordingly. Edwards put up 656 shots this season, Cline got 332 attempts. No one else on the team had even 200.
By comparison, Admiral Schofield led Tennessee with 487 attempts. Grant Williams was next with 398.
“You have to be impressed with, again, this Purdue team that they play really, really hard, great defense, bring speed to the game offensively and a team that understands their roles and play really, really well together,” Barnes said.
Edwards provides the sizzle to Purdue’s offensive attack but they really hang their hats on defense and rebounding. They’ve held opponents to 41% shooting this year and own a +5.5 rebounding edge.
They do a great job of rebounding as a team. No one averages more than Nojel Eastern’s 5.6 boards per game but seven different players average at least three rebounds per contest.
Big man Matt Haarms (7-foot-3, 250) isn’t your traditional banger in the low post but he does average 2.0 blocks per game and allows his teammates to play with some freedom on the defensive end because of his ability to erase mistakes.
“They’re big inside. They have a 7-3 guy inside and when you’ve got a big guy like that in the paint it kind of gives you a little leeway to take chances when you’re guarding the ball,” Lamonte Turner said. “Nobody really wants to go in there and have to shoot over a guy that big.
“That lets them try to get in passing lanes without worrying about anybody being able to go to the rim and finishing comfortably. That helps them out a lot. He’s a great presence inside. They’re really tough on defense and I think it all starts with him.”
No one on Tennessee’s team has been in this position before. The Vols failed to make it out of the first weekend last season as a No. 3 seed.
A win tonight would put them in the Elite Eight and match the deepest advance the program has ever enjoyed in the NCAA Tournament.
Some might look at that as a great deal of pressure. Barnes isn’t one who holds that opinion.
“They know where they are. I mean, they know it. It's something that they watched throughout their life and they know it, and I think what you do, I don't think you make it any bigger deal than it is. I think you keep them focused on what you do as a team and what you've done since November,” Barnes said of his approach.
“We got back to Knoxville (Sunday) and we came back in and started prepping just like we would if we were getting ready for a game in December, even though they know where we are. They know there are 16 teams left in this tournament.”
