After a great November the #1 Purdue Boilermakers enters the tough December schedule which starts with two Big Ten Conference matchups. Starting with Friday’s game at Northwestern. This game will tip off at 9:00PM EST on Friday, December 1st. Purdue vividly remembers what happened last year when we strolled into Evanston.

Northwestern enters the contest with a 5-1 record with their lone loss being at a neutral site against Mississippi State 66-57. Boo Buie finished the loss with just 9 points. If Buie doesn’t get things going any night, Northwestern doesn’t look like a super competitive team. On the other hand, if he’s hot, especially at home, they look tough to beat. Could the Wildcats fans rush the court again Friday night?

Matthew Nicholson is a 7’0 center for Northwestern who is the starting 5, yet only plays on average 22 minutes per game. He played 27 minutes on Monday against Northern Illinois and scored 15 points. in the Wildcats lone loss, Nicholson was in foul trouble and finished the game with 1 rebound, 1 assist and 0 points. This will be an interesting matchup for Purdue to attack as anyone who guards Zach Edey is nearly guaranteed three plus fouls.

Player to watch : Obviously we know Boo Buie is going to be the best player on the court for Northwestern, but Lafayette Indiana native Brooks Barnhizer is our player to watch. It’ll be interesting to see how Purdue defends Barnhizer, and he’ll likely play more of the 4 position, with Trey Kaufman-Renn as the starting 4 for Purdue. Once he goes to the bench, will they put Furst or Gillis on Barnhizer will be where this game will be decided. If Purdue can completely shut down Barnhizer, I believe Purdue can win this game by 20+ points even on the road.

What will work : Everything. When scouting Purdue you have to pick which area of their game you want to stop, which opens doors for other areas. I believe Purdue will be able to dominate points in the paint, but I assume that’s what Northwestern will target, and attempt to draw Edey away from the paint on both ends. I would like to see Purdue make 5-6 threes in each half. I do not want to see 6 or 7 threes in the first half, and less than three in the second. The win is obviously the most important aspect of the game, but I really want to see Purdue have success early and late in the first half, and continue that into the second half. I want the Boilermakers to play just more of a complete game.

How to watch : 9:00PM EST on Big Ten Network

Radio : 96.5 Wazy FM

Check this out!

Boiler Insider Podcast – Purdue @ Northwestern Game Preview –