Why Matt Painter sees qualities like Robbie Hummel in this Ohio State player, seeks it in his team

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Mar 1, 2026 - 23:25

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Why Matt Painter sees qualities like Robbie Hummel in this Ohio State player, seeks it in his team

COLUMBUS, OH — Purdue men's basketball coach Matt Painter saw shining examples Sunday of the competitiveness and focus he needs from his team in Value City Arena.

He did not see enough of them in the No. 8 Boilermakers, who lost back-to-back games for the second time this season with an 84-78 loss to Ohio State. He instead saw those examples in the opposite uniform and at the broadcast table.

Painter began an answer about Ohio State's Bruce Thornton by complimenting a professional approach which dated back to high school. Painter recruited Thornton out of Milton (Georgia) High School. Thorntown stayed at OSU all four years, through a coaching change and a couple of losing seasons to become the Buckeyes' all-time leading scorer.

Now he has the Buckeyes on the bubble in pursuit of their first NCAA tournament appearance of his career. He scored 20 points in Sunday's win — only OSU's second Quad 1 victory of the season.

Painter called Thornton "what college basketball is all about."

"He has a lot of individual accolades, but I know the way he's wired," Painter said. "I know his high school coaches, and that's all they kept saying. 'This kid's the biggest winner. This kid's all about his team. He's all about Milton.'

"Now he's all about Ohio State. He just wants to win. Good for him to be the all-time leading scorer, but I know he'd trade that to get in the NCAA tournament."

Painter then transitioned into another example from his program's past: Robbie Hummel. The former All-Big Ten forward was, by coincidence, the analyst for CBS' broadcast Sunday.

"Dudes like that are gold — they are gold," Painter said. "I call them multipliers. The guy that called the game tonight for CBS is a multiplier. Robbie Hummel makes them all (better).

"He never bitched about things one time. He just wanted to win. He wanted to know why other people didn't hurt like he hurt when we lost. He said. 'Why don't they?' I said, 'Well, because they're not quite wired like you brother.' You can't get enough of that, because those dudes make everybody better."

"... The best teams are driven by the Bruce Thorntons and the Robbie Hummels of the world."

Painter did not come right out and say it, but the subtext clearly conveys he does not see those same qualities from his own team with enough consistency.

Purdue was the preseason No. 1 team and opened as the national championship betting favorite. Sunday it fell to 5-6 since starting the season 17-1.

Thornton would obviously love to be in that position. Ohio State's win Sunday certainly helped its resume, but guarantees nothing. The Buckeyes must get past Penn State and Indiana unscathed prior to the Big Ten tournament.

Painter, though, sounded like a coach longing for some of the same qualities he saw in Thornton years ago and Hummel before that to emerge on his own roster, soon.

"We have good guys in our program," Painter said. "I know every coach says that, but they're not all right. We have good guys and we vet good people. And when we vetted Bruce Thornton it's like, man, he's all about the right things.

"He's all about winning. He's not about self. He's not about fluff. He's not about attention-seeking behavior. He's about winning. He's about being a good teammate."

Purdue has one more week of the regular season and the Big Ten tournament to locate — and hold onto — some of the same qualities.

Nathan Baird and Sam King have the best Purdue sports coverage, and sign up for IndyStar's Boilermakers newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Matt Painter compares Ohio State's Bruce Thornton to Purdue's Robbie Hummel