Game Preview | Yale vs #14 Purdue | Life after Jacobsen

The news was announced Sunday that talented freshmen, Daniel Jacobsenwill likely be out for the season with a broken tibia suffered a minute into Purdue’s second game of the season.

Jacobsen started both of Purdue’s first two games, and the 7-4 true freshman looked like the next in a long line of dynamic bigs for Matt Painter over the past two decades. Now a previously crowded big men’s room has even more questions as Purdue’s schedule starts to get some teeth as Purdue plays host on Monday to Yale, then #2 Alabama on Friday.

Now, Purdue must face the best player on its schedule to this point, Yale’s John Poulakidas, while not overlooking a dangerous Yale team ranked No. 2 in the nation later in the week.

With the test results showing the fracture happening on Sunday, Painter has just one day to prepare for life without the 7-4 shot blocker, but Purdue has one of the deepest frontcourts in the country. The game against Yale will be the first look at who will fill the big man role for Purdue going forward.

Yale has had a bumpy start to its season. It won its season opener handily, beating Quinnipiac 88-62 at home. Poulakidas led the way with 19 points, but it was Yale’s dominance on the glass that created the rout with Yale outscoring Quinnipiac 50-27 on the boards. Yale had 21 offensive rebounds.

Balanced scoring also helped Yale with four different players reaching double figures.

Yale didn’t have much of a day on the glass in his second game with just 6 offensive rebounds, and Yale lost on the road, 91-79, to Illinois Chicago despite shooting 11 of 24 from the three-point line.

For the second straight game, Yale struggled to hold onto the ball. Its 16 turnovers against Illinois Chicago were one more than it had in its season opener. Purdue is coming off a game where it forced Northern Kentucky into 13 turnovers.

Yale has a 20% turnover rate to start the season and has struggled to convert inside the three-point line. Yale is shooting 48% from two while making nearly 41% of its threes. The Painters’ defense has focused on not allowing teams to get into the paint through their first two games to mixed results. Teams are shooting 43.9% from two against Purdue this season.

Poulakidas enters his fourth year with Yale and his third as a starter. The sweet-shooting lefty had a coming out party last season in the NCAA Tournament, leading the Bulldogs past a talented Auburn team in the first round behind his 28 points and 6-of-9 three-point shooting.

The 6-6 wing/guard is one of the Ivy League’s top scorers and is a versatile, dangerous player with the ball in hand. He is comfortable shooting off the dribble or driving and attacking in the mid-range.

Poulakidas has been a 40% shooter the past two seasons, and this year he seemed to have an even stronger green light. He has attempted 19 three-pointers in just two games this season. Poulakidas enters Monday’s game averaging 20 points a game despite losing some of last season’s effectiveness.

That’s not something Purdue can count on to continue. Purdue has yet to be challenged by a big shooter this season. It will be an early test for wings Gicarri Harris, Myles Colvin and Camden Heide. Purdue has played teams this season with smaller guards on the wing.

Purdue’s defense has struggled at times this year to limit dribblers. Poulakidas will be a good test to see how Purdue can handle the stress of an elite shooter off the dribble as it learns to live life without Daniel Jacobsen on the floor to anchor the paint.

Especially with Alabama lurking and some of the best perimeter scorers in the country.

With Daniel Jacobsen out, the minutes are now available for Will Berg, Raleigh Burgessand Caleb Furst and Yale will be their first chance to make a good impression.

Will Berg probably takes over the starting spot with Jacobsen out. Berg started Purdue’s first exhibition game against Creighton before being replaced in the second half by Jacobsen. Berg is Purdue’s second-leading big at 7-2. The redshirt sophomore didn’t get a chance to make an impact on the floor in his first year of eligibility, but has already done some nice things for head coach Matt Painter in Purdue’s first two games. Without Jacobsen, rebounding will be an emphasis and Berg is still Purdue’s best rebounding big.

Berg had 7 points and 7 rebounds in 17 minutes of action at Northern Kentucky following Jacobsen’s injury.

Caleb Furst got on the floor for 12 minutes after playing just 2 minutes in the first game of the season. Furst made the most of the minutes, scoring 8 points and grabbing 2 rebounds. He is Purdue’s most versatile defender, and it remains to be seen how Purdue’s defense will fare without elite shot blocking.

For Raleigh Burgess, Purdue’s other true freshman, the question may be more whether he’s ready for more minutes than whether he deserves them. After a strong start to his season, one that nearly started with a redshirt, Burgess hit the freshman wall early and gassed out in the second half against Northern Kentucky. Painter said they will have to work on his conditioning before they know the extent of Jacobsen’s injury. Now, perhaps even more importantly, Burgess builds his stamina to play longer than two or three minutes at a time. Burgess offers some of the best two-way ability in Purdue’s frontcourt.

When: Monday 11 November at 8 p.m. ET

Where: Mackey Arena

TV: Big Ten Network

Radio: WAZY 96.5 FM