Nathan Baird

Journal & Courier

INDIANAPOLIS — Even in the initial heavy moments after a loss, Purdue men’s basketball turned its thoughts to progress.

That applied to the rally it nearly completed against Michigan State in Sunday’s Big Ten tournament championship before succumbing in a 66-62 loss at Bankers Life Arena.

It also applied to how far the team has come since a somber loss to Northwestern on senior day two years ago. Purdue rose from the Big Ten basement to come within a whisper of toppling a team some think is the best in the country and claiming its second conference tournament championship.

And of course there’s the progress still to make, both in refining a Sunday performance that was just shy of good enough and the journey the Boilermakers hope to make through the NCAA tournament bracket in the coming weeks.

“Rapheal Davis, our captain, our heart and soul, told us to keep things in perspective,” Purdue point guard Johnny Hill said of postgame remarks. “We’ve got a tournament coming up that we’ve got to be prepared for, one we can really win. That team out there is favored by some to win the whole thing. We’ve got to realize what we’ve done, some of our weaknesses, and just improve on them.”

Michigan State won its fifth Big Ten Championship and third in five years. The Boilermakers were playing in their third championship game and first since winning the 2009 title.

A.J. Hammons finished with 11 points and nine rebounds, and was named to the all-tournament team along with Vince Edwards, who scored 19. Yet after Purdue’s frontcourt bulldozed its way into the finals, Michigan State effectively limited the big men on Sunday. Hammons, Haas and Swanigan made 10 of 25 field goals.

More importantly, Michigan State became only the second team out-rebound the Boilermakers, and by a wide margin — 41-31. That included 12 offensive boards, resulting in a 14-4 edge in second-chance points. The Spartans, playing for a shot at a No. 1 NCAA tournament seed that didn’t come, played tough.

“When a good team gets off rebounding, they’re going to make you pay,” Davis said. “And they made us pay, and that was the difference in the game.”

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Had it finished off Sunday’s rally, perhaps Purdue would have improved on the 5 seed it ultimately received. Victory was there for the taking. Purdue rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to, on six occasions, have control of the ball down the stretch of a one-possession game.

With 2:50 to play, Rapheal Davis went to the line for two free throws, trailing by two. He made the first but missed the second. About a minute later, Michigan State star Denzel Valentine made a double-clutch pull-up jumper over Davis, who nearly blocked it, to put the Spartans up 64-61.

Valentine, the Big Ten Player of the Year, again approached a triple-double against the Boilermakers. His 15 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists secured tournament Most Outstanding Player honors.

“What can you do,” Purdue forward Vince Edwards asked. “He’s an All-American. He’s up for Player of the Year nationally. There’s not too much you can say about that.”

Edwards made 1 of 2 free throws with 1:26 left to make it a two-point game. After a defensive stop, Caleb Swanigan missed a 3-pointer on a possession on which Purdue star A.J. Hammons never touched the ball. Swanigan defended the choice after the game, saying he had told Hammons he would have to take a quick shot if the center didn’t get his seal.

Purdue fouled Michigan State’s Matt Costello with 19.5 seconds left, but he missed the one-and-one. At the other end, Hill drove in from the right side for a layup, but Costello redeemed himself by blocking the shot off the backboard.

Spartans guard Bryn Forbes hit two free throws with 8.6 seconds left to seal the win.

“They’re a really good team,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said of Michigan State. “They’re tough. They rebound the basketball. They have good leadership. They have good guards. And we would like to be able to face them again.

“You get in those possession games. We won the first one, they won the second one. Hopefully this game can really help us here the next couple weeks.”

THURSDAY'S GAME

NCAA Tournament

At Pepsi Center, Denver

No. 5 Purdue (26-8) vs. No. 12 Little Rock (29-4)

Time: Approx. 4:30 p.m.

TV: TBS

Radio: WYCM 95.7/Purdue Radio Network