NCAA tournament games are supposed to be played on neutral floors. But the United Center is about to become a home away from Mackey Arena for Purdue.
Five days after they lost in the Big Ten tournament final to Michigan, the Boilermakers are headed back to Chicago for the Midwest Regional, which opens Friday. Purdue has played four games in the United Center already this year, getting blown out by Kentucky in December before making a three-game run in the Big Ten meet over the weekend.
For reasons unknown, the Boilermakers (26-7) drew a higher seed in the NCAA tournament (a No. 2) than they did in the Big Ten tournament (No. 3). And Purdue has a better seed and a more beneficial destination than either of the Big Ten regular-season co-champs, Michigan State and Illinois, and Michigan, which defeated Purdue in the Big Ten final.
Local fans also will recognize sixth-seeded Clemson, which meets No. 11 seed Western Michigan in the opening round. The Tigers lost to Illinois in the United Center in December.
Western Michigan doesn’t figure to be intimidated by the athletic Tigers. The pride of Kalamazoo, the Broncos stunned Michigan this year, but coach Bob Donewald feared a home loss to Miami of Ohio in the Mid-American Conference playoffs would wreck his team’s NCAA hopes.
The Clemson-Western Michigan winner meets either third-seeded Stanford or 14th-seeded College of Charleston. The Cardinal will not take the Cougars lightly, having lost to them in the Great Alaska Shootout a year ago.
Purdue’s first-round opponent, 15th-seeded Delaware, has never won an NCAA tournament game. If the Boilermakers survive, they’ll meet either seventh-seeded St. John’s or 10th-seeded Detroit.
![Residents and taxpayers of Barrington School District 220 rated safety and security, and a new auditorium at Barrington High School, as priorities for the school district, officials learned as community input was collected in preparation for a potential multi-million-dollar referendum that would be placed on the ballot in the November election. The data was shared with school board members April 2 by EO Sullivan Consulting, which was hired by the district to collect community feedback through phone and online surveys, four public engagement sessions and referendum advisory committee meetings. Information had been collected in three phases and began earlier this […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/PPN-L-bcr-district-220-feferend-002.jpg?w=390 "Residents and taxpayers of Barrington School District 220 rated safety and security, and a new auditorium at Barrington High School, as priorities for the school district, officials learned as community input was collected in preparation for a potential multi-million-dollar referendum that would be placed on the ballot in the November election. The data was shared with school board members April 2 by EO Sullivan Consulting, which was hired by the district to collect community feedback through phone and online surveys, four public engagement sessions and referendum advisory committee meetings. Information had been collected in three phases and began earlier this […]")