WOODEN CLASSIC NOTEBOOK / JASON REID : Wildcats Get Keady’s Tongue Along With a Big Victory

To his credit, Purdue Coach Gene Keady admitted he didn’t know what he was talking about. But he didn’t have to. It was clear.

Keady thought the Boilermakers could sneak past second-ranked Villanova Saturday during the Wooden Classic at The Pond. Keady figured his guys were playing the Wildcats at the right time.

Keady and everyone else at The Pond learned otherwise. The Boilermakers couldn’t even stay close to the Wildcats. They lost, 67-50, and looked especially bad doing it.

And this from the two-time defending Big Ten champion. Any other ideas, coach?

“I really thought they were ripe for the picking,” Keady said. “I really thought we could accomplish something special because they had some close games recently, but we were the ones ripe for the picking.”

Hold on, Villanova Coach Steve Lappas said. No matter what Keady thinks, the Wildcats weren’t vulnerable.

“Well, I take a little offense to that ‘being ripe for the picking,’ ” Lappas said. “We haven’t played to the maximum of our capabilities and yet we’re 7-0. That’s got to count for something.”

Keady’s belief was based in fact. Somewhat, anyway.

The Wildcats struggled in defeating Miami, 70-68, Tuesday night. If the Boilermakers stuck to their game plan, shot fairly well and played with passion, Keady thought a victory would follow.

That seemed reasonable. However, the Boilermakers didn’t do anything Keady hoped they would.

“They could have beaten us by 40,” Keady said. “I’ve never been in a game like that.”

Lappas wasn’t worried about the Miami game and felt pretty good about beating Purdue. The Wildcats are moving in the right direction, which is enough for Lappas in early December.

“We can play a lot better than we did,” Lappas said. “Our kids don’t feel we’re playing our best and our staff doesn’t we’re playing our best, but we’re getting there.”

Yeah, just ask Purdue.

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Finally, a smile: Villanova center Jason Lawson is a large man with a bad disposition. His mood improved a little Saturday.

One of the Big East’s best post players, Lawson (6 feet 11 and 236 pounds) seemingly starts each game with four fouls. His foul problems have limited his playing time, affected his stats and hurt Villanova in the clutch.

Lawson put the bad times behind him against Purdue, staying out of foul trouble and playing more than 30 minutes for only the second time this season. He scored 17 points and kept Purdue away from the basket.

A reporter who covers Villanova said Lawson smiled for the first time this season.

“My goal was just to play 30 minutes,” he said.

Lappas was pleased as well. And a bit more expressive.

“Since the beginning of the season, it’s been our plan to be an inside-outside team,” Lappas said. “We just haven’t had [Lawson] in there long enough, and that’s put pressure on our perimeter guys. This was our best matchup of inside-outside this season.”

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The real deal: Kerry Kittles showed Purdue how All-American guards can patiently dominate games.

Kittles made several timely plays as Villanova took control early in the first half. But he kept his teammates involved, taking charge only when he sensed Purdue was ready to fold.

He helped to limit his Purdue counterpart, Chad Austin, to four points. Austin made one of 13 shots from the field.

“He’s a very good player,” Purdue forward Herb Dove said. “He’s a total team player. He deserves whatever honors he’s gotten, he proved that today.”

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No complaints: The games weren’t as good. The attendance was less, too.

Still, the event’s organizers left The Pond content and eager for next season’s Wooden Classic.

“We’re very pleased,” said John Eckel, the event’s spokesman. “We’re very excited about the future because Orange County is a great environment for college basketball and The Pond is a great arena.”

Last season’s games were both sellouts (18,307). This time, 11,582 attended the Purdue-Villanova game and the number increased to 17,330 for Maryland against UCLA.

“We really can’t be disappointed with the attendance at all,” Eckel said. “You look at the teams, and UCLA had lost a couple of games and Maryland had lost a couple games.

“Still, we had great support. Even when you compare it to last year, it’s still just splitting hairs.”