As the second half began there was only one question floating around, “Can Purdue continue to play this way and hold on for the win?” Purdue starts the half with the ball and Lewis Jackson scores easily as the defense parts around him. The game feels a little more frantic, whether that’s because it’s fresh out of the half, or maybe OSU is feeling the pressure to catch up as they should? Jared Sullinger seems to be the only Buckeye capable of getting to a comfortable spot getting to the line. Then boom, E’twaun flushes another three and the crowd is alive again! He takes another on the next possession and is just short. Looking at the box score though….. at this point in the game E’twaun is 5/8 from three, and he finishes the game 7-10. So from the 17-minute mark to the end of the game, both three attempts find the bottom! That’s exciting to remember going forward!

So with 16 minutes to play, OSU has pulled back to within 2 and the score sitting 44-42 Boilers when Kelsey Barlow receives a slick pass from DJ Byrd and the lead is back to 4! Then Moore shows his defensive skills with a nifty steal and behind the back pass to Terone Johnson for an easy layup! Mackey erupts! Feeling like a pattern is developing here…. The lead swells to 8 and the crowd are doing all it can to push Purdue even further ahead! We’ve all experienced this moment when watching a game. The moment where you can your team on the edge of breaking the game wide open. OSU isn’t just any team though, they get every team’s best effort every time they step on the floor. They respond with some physical defense that throws Purdue out of rhythm offensively. The momentum is waning and the Boilers need a bucket badly to keep pushing. Who else but E’twaun Moore to provide that spark! A reviewed shot by Moore gives the students a moment to bring the energy up as the lead grows to 10. Unfortunately, Sullinger gets a physical bucket inside to try and take the lid off for Ohio State.

After the U12 timeout, the Buckeyes forget about the smallest man on the court as Lewis Jackson strolls down the lane for a very easy layup! These are the moments you look for to show that a team is confused on defense. It shows that their eyes are elsewhere, worried about something else and that meant the guy with the ball(!) gets to walk to the basket for 2. With 10 minutes remaining, Aaron Craft drives the lane before stepping on the baseline for OSU’s eleventh turnover of the game giving the fans another chance to give some appreciation for the defensive effort of Purdue.

Even knowing how this game ends, I feel I’ve been conditioned to expect the run from Ohio State. The inevitable run that would pull OSU back into the game causing all fans to get a little nervous as to whether or not this effort would be enough in the end. When that happens every mistake by Purdue always feels like the trigger, the moment that it would all come crumbling down. I believe that every fan in Mackey this day was feeling that as well. You can hear it every time something happens against Purdue, you can hear the complaints raining down around the officials in a wave of incredulous noise. With 7:15 remaining in the game the Boilermakers still hold a 6 point lead but with OSU going to line to try and complete a 3 point play (he does). 7 mins remaining and the lead is down to 5. The Boilers immediately turn it over. You can feel the tension in the gym even through the screen. But a post turnaround by Moore gets the lead back to 7. He has 26 points up to this point.

Another side note I always marvel at is just how physical teams were allowed to be back in the early 2010s. I would love to see a game like this officiated today. I’m sure it would look very different!

As we near 6 minutes to play, another highlight play all of us have seen. An almost over-and-back turned highlight 3 by E’twaun. Then a turnover by OSU and a foul 35 feet from the basket by Aaron Craft gets a roar out of the crowd and Purdue fans are on their feet again! It’s those moments that get the crowd roaring that I watch these games again for. For the moments where you feel the energy, you feel the intensity. The under 4 media timeout comes and Purdue has pushed the lead back to 8! E’twaun sits with 31 points and is carrying the load for Purdue doing seemingly everything. 3 minutes remaining, 6 point lead. A Sullinger breakaway dunk brings the lead down to 4. Then, another Moore moment, after bobbling a dribble handoff Moore gathers and steps back to take a very contested three that finds the bottom of the net. An improbable shot that makes opposing fans throw their hands up in frustration.

Lewis Jackson scores again to push the lead to 9, a defensive stop gets the crowd at it’s loudest! With 48.5 seconds left they can feel it! E’twaun Moore goes to the line for 2 shots and caps off his 38 point special….. Then that’s when the real dagger comes. An errant pass leads to a breakaway reverse jam by JaJuan Johnson to seal the victory and puts the icing on top!

I mean, just listen to this and tell me it doesn’t give you goosebumps every. single. time.