What Did We Learn: Purdue

Welllllllllllllp that sure did suck.

• Purdue has answered all lingering questions. The Boilermakers have been gaining steam since before their first win over Indiana, but bracketologist and national writers, alike, wanted to see them take the show on the road against someone with a pulse. They had beaten Northwestern and Rutgers in a pair of ugly games, but a win over a (likely) tourney-bound squad in Bloomington gave them the missing piece of their résumé. They still don't possess gobs of wiggle room due to a horrific non-conference, but they're well on schedule for a top four conference finish.
• You have to get a better look with the game on the line. I wanted Yogi to take the big shot and I don't even think he needed to give the ball up before doing so, but there was plenty of time to work the perimeter and get a soft spot in the mid-range or an open look from the perimeter. He got a decent look, but there were better ones to be had. Yogi somewhat carried the team to the point of even getting a shot to win / tie at the end so it's hard to get too upset about the shot itself, but it was frustrating.
• The inevitable implosion of our universe has not occurred and Indiana can still play their remaining conference games. I know y'all are upset. You'll probably be more upset because I'm basically gonna sit here and be like "have some chill, friends" but a sweep by Purdue does not make you ineligible for postseason play. 12-6 is still achievable and none of the remaining teams on the schedule present NEARLY the matchup nightmare that Purdue does. You bum out over a loss like this for too long and guess what you've just lost to Rutgers.
• This team, apparently, doesn't get psyched up for playing Purdue. Look at Purdue in the last three matchups, look at Indiana in the last three matchups. Hell, look at the crowd at Mackey compared to the crowd at Assembly. There are two incredibly distinct attitudes / atmospheres and it's a poor look that the Hoosiers have been unable to match the Boilermakers' intensity for three straight games. This rivalry is incredibly important to me, growing up equidistant from both campuses, and it'd be cool if the team's effort could reflect that again.
• Hit your damn free throws. Jesus.