D.J. Byrd fuels Purdue surge by being himself

By CLIFF BRUNT ISL Editor Purdue coach Matt Painter recently said center A.J. Hammons would be better off accepting the fact that he’s an old-school, traditional big man, and that the fact that few of those exist anymore makes him a valuable commodity. In the same way that Hammons has emerged by accepting who he is, […]

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Butler success is proving ascendancy to higher class

By CHRIS GOFF ISL Correspondent The Butler Bulldogs are putting together one of the most impressive resumes in the country, and perhaps it’s time we stopped acting surprised. What’s scary about Saturday night’s victory over Gonzaga is that it had all the marks of a program’s maturation. Butler came into the season expecting to challenge […]

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Lineups in focus as Butler, La Salle clash

By CHRIS GOFF ISL Correspondent Without Rotnei Clarke, Butler will play shorthanded at guard when it visits La Salle Wednesday night. The Explorers have plenty of them, and how the two teams match up their personnel is perhaps a pivotal issue in their first-ever battle at Tom Gola Arena. La Salle (12-5, 2-2 Atlantic 10) […]

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Hoosiers try to sweep Penn State

By COLLIN O’CONNOR ISL Correspondent Fresh off of their sixth Big Ten loss in six tries, Penn State will again face the daunting task of trying to stop one of the nation’s best offenses in Indiana. The Hoosiers proved that slowing them down offensively will be tough for this Penn State team to accomplish when they crushed the […]

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Colts QB Andrew Luck heading to Pro Bowl

From the Indianapolis Colts Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has been selected to play in the 2013 Pro Bowl, which will take place on Sunday, January 27 at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. Luck replaces New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady who cannot participate due to injury. As the No. 1 overall selection in the […]

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Butler’s Rotnei Clarke to miss third straight game

By CHRIS GOFF ISL Correspondent Butler coach Brad Stevens ruled Rotnei Clarke out for Wednesday’s game at La Salle, but wouldn’t put a timetable on his recovery beyond that. Clarke, the team’s leading scorer, sat out a victory over Richmond as well as Saturday’s upset of No. 8 Gonzaga after spraining his neck Jan. 12 […]

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Brunt: West Virginia’s Huggins rips team after loss to Purdue

By CLIFF BRUNT ISL Editor WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Bob Huggins had me annoyed on Saturday. I was covering the Purdue-West Virginia game as a freelancer for The Associated Press and my deadline was approaching. West Virginia’s legendary coach was nowhere to be found after his team’s brutal 79-52 loss to the Boilermakers. (Here’s the […]

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Roosevelt Jones, Butler topple Gonzaga at buzzer

By CHRIS GOFF ISL Correspondent INDIANAPOLIS – Roosevelt Jones never had that one extraordinary moment. Until he slipped on a Butler uniform. Until Saturday night, in the first-ever matchup of top-15 teams at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse, on an occasion in which the basketball-crazed campus hosted ESPN’s College GameDay. Add yet another memory to Butler’s thrilling […]

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Purdue rolls past West Virginia 79-52

By CLIFF BRUNT ISL Editor Ok, Purdue just made a jump. This isn’t just a young team with potential anymore. The Boilermakers are good. Purdue methodically dismantled West Virginia 79-52 on Saturday in a blowout so complete that even coach Matt Painter was surprised. We know Purdue is going to defend. But even with limited offensive production from […]

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