To The Tin

Hummel returned to the starting lineup and gave the Boilermakers a boost tonight.

Purdue used smothering defense and timely scoring to rout Michigan State 72-54 and pull within a single game of the Big Ten lead.

JaJuan Johnson scored 17 points and Robbie Hummel added 11 points while making his first start in several weeks.

Michigan State looked awful in the first half but was still in the game at halftime. Purdue erupted for 46 points in the second half to pull away.

Kalin Lucas, perhaps the leading candidate for Big Ten Player of the Year, shot just 2-11 from the field and committed six turnovers. MSU shot a woeful 32 percent and committed 22 turnovers in the road loss.

Like most Big Ten games, this contest wasn’t exactly a thing of beauty. But I enjoyed watching the game on ESPN, probably because Dick Vitale was suffering from a cold and kept his idiotic comments and “rah-rah” mentality under control.

Dicky V isn’t bad when he is under control and separated from his special friend Mike Patrick.

Patrick called tonight’s Clemson victory over Maryland on ESPN2 with our friend and role-model Bill Raftery.

Purdue can really d-up, but the Boilermakers don’t have much firepower offensively. Robbie Hummel looked okay tonight, but he will not be completely healthy at any point this season and may never completely recover. His chronic back injury will likely prevent him from matching the impressive numbers he registered during his freshman season.

I still love Michigan State despite tonight’s pathetic performance. Tom Izzo should look to get talented guard Durrell Summers more shots. Raymar Morgan returned to the Spartans following a stint with mono and should be 100 percent in a week or so.

As for Dicky V, his verbal ejaculation should resume on Saturday when he broadcasts the Texas-Oklahoma rivalry game in prime time on ESPN.