Keady has no problems adjusting after 18 years

In the preseason, Purdue coach Gene Keady and the Boilermakers were the odds-on favorites to win their third Big Ten title in four years - the Big Ten regular season title, that is.

There's another championship to yearn for this year - the Big Ten Championship, a four-day tournament involving all 11 conference teams that takes place March 5-8 at the United Center in Chicago.

Purdue, which stands at 5-2 in the conference and in a tie for second place with Michigan, Illinois and Indiana - heads to Crisler Arena tomorrow to play the Wolverines in its only regular season meeting this season.

Ellerbe on Keady:

Once again, "regular season" should be emphasized here because the two teams could square off in the Big Ten tournament.

In his 18th year of coaching at Purdue, Keady said the inception of the conference tournament does change his thinking as a teacher.

"We've been talking about it differently and thought about it in a little different manner," Keady said. "And I think there's more talk about being better in March and not necessarily just winning the next game."

There are many pros and cons of the tournament that conference coaches have pointed out.

It helps the lower-seeded teams, the under .500 teams. If one of the lower echelon teams - such as Minnesota (1-6) or Ohio State (0-6) - gets hot, then it can quickly go from conference cellar dweller to NCAA qualifier.

And then there's the thought that if there is an on-the-bubble NCAA tournament team, an early exit from the conference tournament could dash any hopes of joining the NCAA 64-school field.

But put aside those scenarios. Four games in four days. College basketball teams rarely play two straight games, let alone four.

"We're talking now about qualifying for one of those top five spots in the league," Keady said, "so we don't have to play four games in order to go the championship game (of the conference tournament) and then be in the NCAA automatically."

For the first time, seeding is not just something that Big Ten coaches and players will find out about while watching TV on the second Sunday of March.

Big Ten teams are jockeying for one of the top five spots in the conference tournament, since a top-five seed means a bye for the first day of the tournament.

Keady on society: In today's age of sports, top collegiate players rarely stay in school for the full four years. Instead, they head to the NBA after three, sometimes even two, years of college ball.

Then there are those like the sensational Kobe Bryant who skip college altogether and jump to the pros. There's also incidents of players not respecting their coaches, highlighted by the Latrell Sprewell incident.

Times sure have changed for Keady. The coach who took the helm for the Boilermakers in the 1980-81 season has been around such collegiate stars as Joe Barry Carroll and "Big Dog," Glenn Robinson.

Keady doesn't blame today's kids for their problems. Instead, he cites today's parents.

"I don't think the kids are different, I think how they're raised is different because of one-parent families," Keady said. "Society has a lot different standards toward what is right and wrong."

"The education system is a lot different as far as discipline. I'm not blaming the children. I think it's us ... But they probably would've said the same things back in the 40s when I was in school."

How does Keady relate to today's players?

"I get along with them because I'm honest with them and enthusiastic because I love what I do," he said.

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