COLLEGE BASKETBALL / NCAA MEN’S TOURNAMENT : SOUTHEAST REGIONAL / AT LEXINGTON, KY. : Robinson Gets Help From His Friends

Glenn Robinson and his supporting cast, that’s Purdue.

In the final 15 minutes Saturday, Robinson needed support in the top-seeded Boilermakers’ 83-73 victory over Alabama at Rupp Arena in the second round of the NCAA Southeast Regional.

“We had to step up as a team, and we did,” Purdue guard Matt Waddell said.

Robinson, the nation’s leading scorer, finished with 33 points, but had only six in the final 15 minutes and only two in the last four minutes while his teammates put the Crimson Tide away.

Purdue (28-4) appeared to have control at halftime, leading, 40-31. Robinson had scored half of the Boilermakers’ points. Alabama (20-10) started the second half with a 13-2 run to take a 44-42 lead with 16:40 to play.

“We always tell the team to set the tone in the first five minutes of a half,” Alabama Coach David Hobbs said. “We’ve been behind before and didn’t think it would be be very difficult to catch up.”

It wasn’t. Staying ahead was another matter, though.

Purdue regained the lead for good, 47-46, with 15:10 left on a layup by Robinson, who scored the Boilermakers’ first seven points of the second half.

Then his teammates took over because Alabama shut Robinson down, usually with a shorter defensive player.

Waddell and Cuonzo Martin each had 11 points for the Boilermakers and Waddell added eight assists.

“This is not to disrespect Glenn Robinson, but we didn’t come out in awe of Glenn Robinson,” said Jamal Faulkner, who led Alabama with 25 points and 11 rebounds. “We had to contend with Purdue as a team, and they beat us as a team, not one man.”

Still, the perception exists as Purdue heads for a game against Kansas on Thursday in the region semifinals.

But not in the mind of Hobbs.

“We’d have won, 73-33, if we just played Glenn Robinson,” he said. “Everybody’s got good players at this level. To make it Glenn Robinson and nobody else, that’s a bunch of bull.”