Getting to know: Purdue

photo by: Nick Krug

The Purdue Boilermakers come together at half court after a practice on Wednesday prior to Thursday's game at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

photo by: Nick Krug

The Purdue Boilermakers come together at half court after a practice on Wednesday prior to Thursday's game at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

Back in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2010, Purdue’s basketball team has its eyes set on improving on one of the best seasons in school history.

The Boilermakers, known for all of their size, will tip off against top-seeded Kansas around 8:40 p.m. Thursday (CBS) at Kansas City’s Sprint Center.

Purdue, which won an outright Big Ten title, ranks sixth nationally in 3-point shooting (40 percent) and eighth in defensive rebounding.

“We have confident players,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said. “We have some guys that can really shoot the basketball.”

Interesting note: Last weekend in Milwaukee, Purdue scored 80 points in back-to-back tournament games for the first time since 1998.

Series history: Kansas leads 3-2. The last three meetings have been in the NCAA Tournament, including KU’s 63-60 win in the second round of the 2012 tourney.

Vegas says: Kansas by 5.

PURDUE STARTERS

No. 11 — G P.J. Thompson | 5-10, 185, jr.

Purdue's P.J. Thompson (11) drives against Iowa State's Donovan Jackson (4) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball tournament second-round game Saturday, March 18, 2017, in Milwaukee.

• Known for his defense and reliability with the ball, Thompson is averaging 7.2 points and 3.0 assists per game. He ranks second on the team with 33 steals.

• Thompson is second in the nation with a 4.25 assist-to-turnover ratio. In the last two seasons combined, he’s committed 47 turnovers in 1,763 minutes.

• The Indianapolis native is shooting 40 percent from behind the 3-point line and is connecting on 70.5 percent of his free throws. He was a 29-percent 3-point shooter during his freshman year.

• His father, LaSalle, played basketball at Indiana State and Ball State before playing several years overseas.

• QUOTE: “We want him to be aggressive,” Painter said. “We want him to look for his shot, drive the basketball and still take care of it. That’s what you want from your point guard…. He’s a steady hand. He gets us where we need to go on offense, but he also needs to hit that 3.”

No. 31 — G Dakota Mathias | 6-4, 200, jr.

Purdue's Dakota Mathias (31) celebrates with his teammates during the first half of an NCAA college basketball tournament second-round game against Iowa State Saturday, March 18, 2017, in Milwaukee.

• Purdue’s top 3-point shooter, Mathias has drained 45.8 percent of shots from deep, averaging 9.9 points. According to hoop-math.com, he only attempts 10.5 percent of his shots around the rim.

• Averaging 3.9 rebounds and 3.71 assists per game, Mathias has scored 12 or more points in four of the last seven games.

• Mathias posed for a picture during Wednesday’s practice with Hall of Famer Reggie Miller. Mathias says Miller is one of the reasons that he wears the No. 31 jersey.

• Pronunciation: muh-thigh-us. The Elida, Ohio native played through ankle injuries, mononucleosis and vertigo during his freshman season.

• QUOTE: “Dakota’s been great,” Painter says. “Where he’s improved the most is defensively. As a coach, you can’t have enough people you trust. A lot of times, players don’t understand that. Can the coaches trust you? Can you follow your assignment? Just be accountable. He’s gotten better. There were some tough lessons.”

No. 14 — G Ryan Cline | 6-6, 195, soph.

Iowa State's Matt Thomas (21) drives against Purdue's Ryan Cline (14) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball tournament second-round game Saturday, March 18, 2017, in Milwaukee.

• Averaging 5.3 points and 2.0 rebounds per game, Cline is almost exclusively a 3-point shooter. He’s connected on 41 percent of his shots from behind the arc.

• According to hoop-math.com, Cline has attempted a minuscule 3.1 percent of his shots at the rim. Of his 130 shot attempts this season, 106 are from behind the 3-point line.

• He was suspended for the first three games of the season after being charged with possession of marijuana during the offseason.

• His father, Michael, played basketball at Ohio State from 1976-79 and was a team captain for two seasons.

• QUOTE: “My awareness and my positioning has always been pretty good, especially coming from Carmel and coach (Scott) Heady,” Cline said. “Being able to move laterally and be able to contain my man has gone really well.”

No. 12 — F Vincent Edwards | 6-8, 225, jr.

photo by: Nick Krug

Purdue forward Vince Edwards (12) pulls up for a shot during a day of practices and press conferences prior to Thursday's game at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

• Averaging 12.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game on 49 percent shooting, which includes a 42.5 percent clip from behind the 3-point line. He makes 82 percent of his free throws.

• A strong passer out of the 4-man position, Edwards actually ranks second on the team with 110 assists this season (3.2 per game).

• On a tear at the end of the season, Edwards has scored 21 points in both of the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. He’s shooting 19-of-30 from the floor and 2-of-6 from deep.

• His dad, Bill, starred at Wright State before playing overseas. Both of his older brothers played college basketball. Bill Jr. played at Penn State and Darius was at Miami of Ohio.

• QUOTE: “I’m just playing hard,” Edwards said. “I’m just going hard. I think that’s one thing that’s changed for me is I’ve just been focused on playing hard because if I’m playing hard, everything else takes care of itself. When I get my motor going, I’m able to get myself going, offensive rebounding really helps me out.

No. 50 — F Caleb Swanigan | 6-9, 250, soph.

photo by: Nick Krug

Purdue forward Caleb Swanigan (50) pulls up for a shot during a day of practices and press conferences prior to Thursday's game at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

• A national player of the year candidate, Swanigan is tied for third in single-season NCAA history with 28 double-doubles this season. He’s averaging 18.5 points and 12.6 rebounds.

• Swanigan is shooting 52.7 percent from the field, including a 43.2 percent mark from behind the 3-point line. He’s third on the team with 103 assists and leads with 28 blocked shots. According to hoop-math.com, he’s converting on 79.2 percent of his shot around the rim.

• He declared for the NBA Draft last season, but withdrew after less-than-positive reviews from scouts. He originally committed to Michigan State in high school, but said he switched to Purdue because he wanted to play power forward instead of center.

• ESPN wrote a feature on Swanigan’s childhood, who stayed at homeless shelters before being adopted by sports agent Roosevelt Barnes, a former Purdue football standout. Nicknamed “Biggie” by his aunt after rapper Notorious B.I.G.’s hit song “Hypnotize.”

• QUOTE: “When he steps on the court, he knows without a shadow of a doubt, ‘There is not one dude out here that works harder than me. I’ve earned the right to go put up 20 and 20,'” said Josh Bonhotal, Purdue’s strength and conditioning coach.

PURDUE BENCH

No. 44 — C Isaac Haas | 7-2, 290, jr.

photo by: Nick Krug

Purdue center Isaac Haas (44) hooks in a shot during a day of practices and press conferences prior to Thursday's game at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

• From Hokes Bluff, Ala. (pop. 4,286), Haas is averaging 12.6 points and 5.1 rebounds off of the bench. He’s shooting 58 percent from the floor.

• During the NCAA Tournament, Haas is averaging 11 points and 4.5 rebounds in 15.5 minutes per game.

• Haas ranks sixth in minutes on Purdue’s roster but he’s second in free throws attempted, a credit to his ability to draw fouls. He’s a 71.3 percent shooter at the charity stripe.

• His younger sister, Erin, has epilepsy, “My sole purpose, honestly, is to help Erin have the best life she possibly can,” he said in a feature from ESPN. He originally committed Wake Forest (before Danny Manning), switching at the end because of Painter’s reputation developing bigs. He wears size 22 shoes.

• QUOTE: “I’ve done a better job growing into my body and understanding my body, the conditioning needs, the rebounding and physical aspects you have to go into detail with as a big guy,” he said. “It’s like coach always says, you don’t put regular gas in a Lamborghini. You have to use premium. It’s about the right time and work.”

No. 3 — Carsen Edwards | 6-0, 190, fr.

• Averaging 10.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game on 39 percent shooting from the floor.

• The Atascocita, Texas native combined for 21 points in 39 minutes during the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. He has 354 points on the season, the seventh-most for a Purdue freshman in school history.

• A pesky defender, Edwards leads the Boilermakers with 35 steals.

• His brother, Jai, plays football at Blinn Junior College.

• QUOTE: “I’m just trying to do my job, honestly,” Edwards said. “I’m just trying to improve on doing my job more and more every game and eliminating mistakes. I’m just going to continue to watch film and seeing what I need to continue to keep working on.”

No. 55 — G Spike Albrecht | 6-0, 180, r-sr.

• A graduate transfer from Michigan, well known for his 17-point performance in the 2013 NCAA title game (and his post-game tweet to supermodel Kate Upton), Albrecht is averaging 1.7 points and 1.5 rebounds in 12.5 minutes per game off of the bench.

• In the NCAA Tournament, he hasn’t attempted a shot in 20 minutes, dishing two assists. He shot 6-for-25 from the 3-point line (24 percent) throughout the season.

• He only appeared in eight games for Michigan last season before missing the rest of the season to rehab from double hip surgeries. He suffered from a painful genetic condition, diagnosed as a hip impingement. He played his junior season at Michigan through a torn labrum.

• First name is Michael. Nicknamed Spike after he wore his baseball spikes everywhere when he was 8 years old.

• QUOTE: “Having this opportunity to come back and play again, I may not have had the best year for me individually, but I’ve been a part of a team that’s had a lot of success with a great group of guys,” Albrecht told USA Today. “It’s everything I was looking for in a fifth year.”