WATCH: Purdue Coach Matt Painter Discusses Preparation for Big Ten Tournament
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — After wrapping up the regular season, Purdue heads into the 2023 Big Ten Tournament in Chicago with the No. 1 seed and a double-bye. With it comes two extra days to prepare for its next game.
From here on out, the stakes are elevated and every contest is win or go home. The Boilermakers get their first taste on Friday at the United Center before the NCAA Tournament. In the meantime, the team will utilize its practice time to focus on itself.
"You just want to put your best foot forward," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "Like, what are you playing for? You're playing to beat the guy in front of you. Don't overthink it."
A strong push in the conference tournament could solidify Purdue's spot as a No. 1 seed during March Madness, but Painter is reinforcing the idea of taking things one step at a time to simplify preparation.
It will play the winner of a matchup between Michigan and Rutgers, which is scheduled for noon ET on Thursday. The Boilermakers suffered their first loss of the season back on Jan. 2 inside Mackey Arena at the hands of the Scarlet Knights in a one-point decision.
They also met with the Wolverines once during the regular season, winning on the road at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor 75-70 as part of a nine-game win streak. Purdue's quarterfinal matchup is set for noon ET on Friday.
"We will work on a couple different things from Rutgers and a couple different things from Michigan, and just kind of discuss that with our guys," Painter said. "Not a lot of stuff because, first of all, you don't want to waste time. And then second of all, it's just one of those things where you're working on yourself and trying to get better."
Last year, the Boilermakers made it to the Big Ten Tournament championship game before losing 75-66 to the Iowa Hawkeyes. Under Painter, Purdue is 13-15 overall in conference tournament games.
The program is looking for just its second league tournament title after winning its first back in 2009. The team is 16-23 overall since the annual event started in 1998.
"Obviously, you want to win them all," Painter said. "But you can't do that unless you win the first one."
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.