Purdue Basketball: 3 keys to Boilermakers victory over Texas A&M Aggies

For a lot of schools, it is finals week. That means unfortunately for fans, the weekday slate is rough. However, if you make it through the week, this Saturday is filled with excellent games.

One of those games features a fairly polarizing team, the eight-win Purdue Boilermakers. The Boilers started the season on a somewhat good note, beating a couple of mid majors in close games, while also taking down talented foes Alabama and Ole Miss. However, a pair of recent losses show some potential flaws in Purdue's team.

Key 1: Turnovers

That brings it to the first key for Purdue in winning on Saturday, turnovers. Purdue has 39 turnovers in their two losses. For context, Purdue had just three turnovers in its' marquee matchup with Alabama.

An emphasis for Purdue to limit these turnovers are the freshmen guards, CJ Cox and Gicarri Harris. Both have had their ups and downs handling the ball this year, and teams have started to ramp up the pressure on the two.

If Purdue can limit turnovers against an athletic and aggressive Texas A&M team, that bodes well for the Boilers.

Key 2: Perimeter Defense

Against Texas A&M the main person to stop is high-volume scoring guard Wade Taylor IV. Taylor is the leading scorer averaging 16.1 points per game, but struggles with efficiency from the field.

In likely steps Myles Colvin. Colvin has quickly stepped into a defensive stopper role, and has played in important part in stopping perimeter players such as Mark Sears and Jaylen Murray. Keeping Wade Taylor under control is important in slowing down Texas A&M.

Key 3: Rebounding

One of the most glaring weaknesses that Purdue has shown this year is rebounding. The Boilers struggle to rebound the basketball, being outrebounded in three games this year, while being tied in three others.

The Aggies feature several athletic and physical frontcourt players and will certainly be a handful on the glass. The ability for several players to rebound for Purdue will be important if the Boilers want to win on Saturday.