All Mike Davis heard all week was three-point this and three-point that. \nIU's 17 three-pointers Saturday against Illinois justified the chatter. Thursday, IU provided zero evidence it could hit anywhere close to 17 three-point buckets. \nIt didn't matter. IU rolled to a 66-52 win over rival Purdue in front of 17,456 in Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers did so with one three-pointer. \n"All I've heard since Saturday is '17 three-pointers'," Davis, IU's second-year head coach, said. "Nobody really talked about the defense."\nIU's defense did its job, holding the Boilermakers to 26.9 percent in the first half and 37.9 for the game. But that came as no surprise. The wonder came from the three-point arc. \nJared Jeffries' three pointer with 18:19 left in the game was IU's first and only three-pointer. The Hoosiers attempted eight and missed all but one. Purdue (11-12, 3-6 Big Ten) was nearly as bad, connecting on just 4 of 14. \nThe one three-pointer marked the first time since IU beat Penn State 61-54 Jan. 5 in the Big Ten opener that the Hoosiers (14-6, 7-1) have hit only one three. IU, which began the game with the Big Ten's top three-point shooting percentage at 46.2 percent, has hit at least three threes in every other game. \nThe Hoosiers didn't attempt their first three-pointer until less than five minutes remained in the first half, when Dane Fife, missed his first and only try. \nIU missed three consecutive three-point attempts during a 90-second stretch in the second half, but the damage had already been done, via Jeffries' 26-point effort and the team's 44 points in the paint. \n"They take away our three-point attempts," Davis said. "I just feel like if you take away one, we'll hurt you on the other."\nKeady said he tried to limit IU's three-point looks, but the plan backfired. In fear that IU might get hot from beyond the arc, he didn't focus on Jeffries during the week leading to Thursday's game. \n"We could have zoned," Keady said. "We tried to defend their three-point shots. If Jeffries was going to beat us, beat us on the inside, and he certainly did that."\nThe sophomore hit 11 of 19 shots, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked three shots. The style of play and lack of outside pop had Jeffries believing the Hoosiers can win in more than one way, similar to the grind-it-out manner in which IU dumped Penn State.\n"This team can play inside-out," Jeffries said after recording his fourth consecutive double-double. "Next game, if somebody worries about me, our guards are going to hit 16, 17 threes again."
Bumps and bruises\nJeff Newton took a smack to the abdomen midway through the second half Thursday and left the game for good. He played just five minutes in the second half, but Davis said the 6-foot-9 junior forward should be ready for Minnesota Saturday. \nGuard A.J. Moye again wore a brace that wraps around his right shoulder and upper arm Thursday. He began the season without it, but reverted back to it when the pain returned. \nThe sophomore suffered a torn rotator cuff and ripped ligaments that hold his shoulder in place before the season started, and anticipates off-season surgery. \n"It's like breakfast," Moye said. "I know it's going to hurt when I wake up in the morning."
Titan effort\nIU's victory gives it one more point in the Titan Series, an all-sports battle between IU and Purdue. IU now leads the contest 5-2.5. A total of 18 points can be won in the competition. \nKeady, failed to see the importance of this game over any other. \n"This game doesn't count (for) six, like our alumni think," Keady said. "It counts one"
