Gannett News Service

Throughout a January, February and March it would like to forget, the Purdue men's basketball team wallowed in mediocrity.

Sometimes, it was worse than that.

If Willie Deane's shots weren't falling, the Boilermakers usually went down for the count at the first sign of an opponent's surge.

"The biggest enemy always is self-doubt," Purdue coach Gene Keady said after a recent practice. "We've gotten after them hard these past 10 days. They've reacted in a positive way."

That seems to be the mantra for the new and improved Boilermakers, whose roster includes eight players who weren't in uniform during last season's free fall.

Miami University opens its regular season Friday night at Purdue, which plays Louisville on Nov.30 in Indianapolis and at Xavier on Dec.3.

The Boilermakers are eager to erase their most recent history - 14 losses among 20 games to close 2001-02.

"I definitely feel like we have more help," said Deane, whose 17.3 scoring average led the Big Ten Conference for all games. "Right now, I'm trying to get a feel for everybody out there ... get my teammates into a position where they are comfortable scoring. I need to know when they are in their most effective shooting range."

That might take some time, considering Keady is at least two deep at each position for the first time since the 1999-2000 season.

Brandon McKnight and Austin Parkinson are capable point guards.

Deane and David Teague are prolific shooting guards.

Darmetreis Kilgore and Kenneth Lowe bring contrasting strengths - scoring and defense, respectively - to the small forward slot.

Brett Buscher and Matt Kiefer are versatile power forwards, each with the ability to post up or make a perimeter shot.

Ivan Kartelo and Chris Booker will anchor the middle, with rebounding and defense at the core of their assignments.

Toss in freshman Melvin Buckley - he is capable of playing any position except center - and junior Kevin Garrity - he adds depth to the low post - and Keady will mix and match like nobody's business.

Certainly, Purdue has kicked its talent level up a notch. And Deane should have more than enough offensive help.

But are these Boilermakers tough enough? Will they play defense in a manner reflective of their coach's tenacity?

Opponents averaged 71.5 points and shot 47.2 percent from the field a year ago, when Purdue compiled the worst record (13-18) in Keady's first 22 seasons in West Lafayette.

"One of the signature things we lost last season is that we didn't play hard and didn't play good team defense," Keady said. "Now, hard work and conditioning are paying off. We're happy to get some things going that are positive."

Among those "positives" are the return of Lowe and McKnight, who embrace Keady's defensive principles. Lowe redshirted last season after undergoing shoulder surgery, and McKnight sat out the Big Ten season after being ruled academically ineligible for the second semester.

Without those two active perimeter defenders, Keady realized how much this past season's team wavered from the scheme for which his teams are known.

"Four or five years ago, we tried to recruit `greyhounds' with the idea of running more, pressing more and shooting 3s," Keady said. "And we took some students who weren't qualified to be here. Our halfcourt defense went out the window."

After back-to-back sub-standard seasons - Purdue was 17-15 in 2000-01 - preseason practices have centered on basic fundamentals.

"I really like the way they practice," Keady said. "I like the fact we had a chance to work with them last spring, when we installed what we wanted them to do ... reinstated what we have to do to win.

"We've also spent a lot of time on leadership, telling Willie and Darmetreis what they should be as senior leaders. They've reacted positively, and Kenny has been a real force with his enthusiasm."

Keady and his staff have stressed leadership and chemistry since May, when this team played a series of exhibition games in Europe.

Recently, Keady distributed copies of a Chicago Sun-Times feature story about Chicago Bulls rookie Jay Williams. The story centers on chemistry and leadership.

"Leadership is something you have or you don't," Keady said. "I think that's created by parents who don't teach their children to be leaders because they do everything for their children. That's something that has happened in our society that we can't control."

Kilgore, for example, came to Purdue a year ago as a junior college standout but wasn't prepared to lead a Big Ten Conference team.

"I didn't think I did a good job with Darmetreis and the new guys we got the year before," Keady said.

A year of Keady "schooling" has helped the Boilermakers' second-leading returning scorer, who averaged 9.9 points last season.

"We're making progress," Kilgore said with a smile.

Keady's newcomers - junior Booker and freshmen Teague, Kiefer and Buckley - certainly are making progress.

So much so that the 23rd-year coach won't hesitate to start any of the four. Teague scored 15 points in 16 minutes of this past Friday's exhibition victory against Team Nike.

"I'm getting more comfortable with each game," Teague said. "I was a little nervous the first game, but I told myself to calm down. I'm doing things I feel like I'm strong at. If I keep working hard on defense, the offense will take care of itself. I've been waiting for this opportunity for a long time. It has been fun and exciting."

Of the first-year players, Teague has captured senior Kilgore's attention.

"He has a lot of confidence out there," Kilgore said. "He really works hard in practice - before and after. I like him a lot. I have a lot of respect for him. I hope he continues to do that."

While the Boilermakers are confident they have enough firepower, Deane hopes Purdue isn't forced to engaged in shootout after shootout.

"Hopefully, we will be most improved defensively," Deane said. "But rebounding is just as important. Those are the major things we lacked last year. We're in the process of getting that completely corrected."