Purdue head coach Matt Painter said the team planned to depart on a plane at 4 p.m. Friday afternoon. A few delays later and the team sat on the runway until midnight.

Instead, the Boilermakers left on a bus from West Lafeyette, Ind., at about 4:45 a.m. Saturday.

Despite the hectic travel adjustments, Painter said the delays and little sleep didn’t affect his team’s play against the Spartans (16-4, 5-2).

“If our travel was perfect, I think the score (would be) somewhere close (to what it was),” he said. “That’s an excuse in my opinion.”

MSU head coach Tom Izzo said the effort Purdue put in at the beginning of the game was amazing considering the factors.

“Matt (Painter) deserves a lot of credit,” he said. “Coming off of a trip like that, that’s an incredible effort on their part.”

Nix continues success
Despite only playing 17 minutes, junior center Derrick Nix continued to play well in the post for the Spartans.

NIx was late for a team meeting Friday night, which resulted in his coming in later than usual and playing fewer minutes. Still, NIx scored 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting.

“I’m just going to play my role and do what i can to help us win,” Nix said. “My conditioning is getting better, I’m just growing up and staying positive.”

Izzo said it’s a result of more of the same from his end.

“We tell him everyday to continually play harder and getting more focused and he’s doing a better job,” he said. “If he learns how to really work, that too will make us a better team.”

Painter said NIx was a focal point in the scouting report because of his size and skills.

“He’s a huge factor,” he said. “Last year, we were always concerned with him, but he always played in those short spurts.

“Now he can play longer … we were trying to double (team) on the catch, I know sometimes it didn’t seem that way. We have tremendous respect for his footwork, and his ability to score down there on the block.”