Feb. 01--At first glance, it might appear easier to find similarities between a liberal and a conservative than between the University of Wisconsin and Purdue men's basketball teams.

Mention Purdue and you think of lots of points and possessions because the Boilermakers lead the Big Ten Conference in scoring offense. Mention UW and you think of fewer points and possessions because they lead the league in defense.

But from how the teams are structured on the floor this season through injuries to key personnel and to the four-year development of their star players, the two teams playing each other in a Big Ten Conference game Tuesday night at the Kohl Center are remarkably similar.

Much of the focus on Tuesday night's game will be on the leading scorers for both teams. Purdue senior forward JaJuan Johnson leads the Big Ten in scoring (21.3) in conference games and UW junior guard Jordan Taylor is second (20.3). UW senior forward Jon Leuer is fifth (18.1) and Purdue senior guard E'Twaun Moore is eighth (15.4).

Johnson and Moore take 53 percent of the Boilermakers' shots and have scored 49.2 percent of their points in Big Ten games, while Taylor and Leuer take 53.8 percent of the Badgers' shots and have scored 57.8 percent of their points.

Moore and Jordan are both strong guards who can burn opponents in a myriad of ways. Ditto for Johnson and Leuer, who can score with jump hooks, jump shots and 3-point bombs and put the ball on the floor.

UW coach Bo Ryan said Johnson and Leuer may have developed the most among Big Ten seniors and he credited their programs' systems for allowing it to happen.

"Both of those guys are in programs where they are allowed to expand their games and do things for the betterment of the team," Ryan said. "It isn't just, 'Here, let me let you do this so you can look good but maybe it hurts the team.' No. In both programs, you have two guys who developed within systems where they get a chance to showcase their talent. I think that's a pretty good thing."

Both programs also stress the value of every possession. The Badgers and Boilermakers rank first and second, respectively, in assist-to-turnover ratio and turnover margin among conference teams. Taylor ranks first individually in assist-to-turnover ratio, while Moore is second.

There is common ground among the supporting casts, too. Both teams start a freshman and both have strong upperclassmen that are third scorers. Purdue goes eight deep and UW goes seven deep.

They also dealt with an injury to a key player last season. But that is where the similarities end.

Leuer missed nine games in the middle of the Big Ten season after he broke a bone in his right wrist during the Badgers' 73-66 win over the Boilermakers at the Kohl Center.

Purdue's Robbie Hummel tore up his knee at the end of last season and it cost the Boilermakers a deep run in the NCAA tournament. Hummel is missing this season, too, after injuring a knee on the first day of practice this season. Television cameras never fail to show Hummel every game.

UW coach Bo Ryan prefers to have injuries on his team handled differently.

"I didn't want Jon Leuer shown during the games on the bench because then it looks like you're whining. So I don't get into any of that stuff," Ryan said.

So Ryan shed no tears for the Boilermakers.

"Ours happened at a crucial time in the Big Ten, not even before the season started basically, so I think there's a difference there," Ryan added. "And if you have two first-team All-Americans (Johnson and Moore), I think they'll be OK."

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