Thursday's Purdue women's basketball report: Observations from first summer practice, evaluation period starts and more

Takeaways from Tuesday's workout, where is Katie Gearlds headed this weekend and what I learned from the NCAA president in Las Vegas

A few items of interest as the Boilermakers hold their first summer workout and another recruiting evaluation period commences:

PRACTICE NO. 1

Katie Gearlds and the coaching staff put the 2024-25 team through their first summer practice on Tuesday. It lasted two hours - as mandated by NCAA rules. The Boilermakers will likely practice twice a week but will pick up the pace in preparation for the European trip in August.

I was only able to watch the first hour since I had another obligation.

• Lots of conditioning training at the start.

• Freshman Jordyn Poole wore a green mesh jersey during team drills. She was injured (face/head) over the weekend and missed Saturday’s Indiana-Kentucky All-Star game. Poole participated in everything during the first hour. It appeared to be more of a precaution. The green jersey - they’re usually red - is a sign to avoid contact with the player.

• UTEP transfer Mahri Petree didn’t participate. Was told Petree went home to attend an event.

NEWCOMERS: How Purdue filled its needs through transfer portal

• Akron transfer Reagan Bass looks the part. She’s physically developed, which you would expect for a player entering her fourth season, and brings a high level of maturity. Bass should hold her own at both ends, but her ability to stretch the floor gives the Boilermakers plenty of versatility on offense. Bass can play power forward and center.

• Which position may depend on how quickly freshmen Lana McCarthy and Kendall Puryear adjust to the college level. We’ve seen pictures and videos of the pair, but the two bring plenty of size and strength. There’s more to do on the strength front, but McCarthy and Puryear occupy a lot of space. Listed at 6-foot-4, McCarthy moves well for her size.

• Sophomore McKenna Layden will see time at power forward. She worked with the posts during an early drill. Layden certainly has the height - she’s listed at 6-2 - and can take defenders out on the perimeter, but how does she hold up defensively?

• You can see why Destini Lombard thrives on the defensive end - long arms and quick feet. Lombard was the WAC Defensive Player of the Year at Stephen F. Austin last season.

• Amiyah Reynolds, who redshirted last season and is expected to play point guard, was quick to get into her jump shot during one drill. She’s smooth.

Chad Krockover Photography

IBCA/IHSAA SHOWCASES

On Thursday, more than 100 players from the 2025, 2026 and 2027 classes will show off their skills at Ben Davis in Indianapolis. College coaches are able to attend, and Gearlds, along with assistants Mark Stephens and Alex Guyton, are expected.

The event features individual drills and scrimmages and is scheduled to run from 1-5:30 p.m.

Purdue targets expected to attend include Noblesville’s Meredith Tippner (2025), Homestead’s Myah Epps (2026), Hamilton Southeastern’s Kennedy Holman (2026), Munster’s Gracyn Gilliard (2026), Silver Creek’s Brooklyn Renn (2026), McCutcheon’s Lillie Graves (2027) and Eastern Hancock’s Kenzie Koch (2027).

The IBCA/IHSAA Team Showcase event will be held on Friday and Saturday at Hamilton Southeastern and Mt. Vernon (Fortville), featuring some of the same players.

Gearlds will leave the showcase at Ben Davis and travel to Connecticut to watch 2025 prospect Kaelyn Carroll, one of the top players in her class. Carroll attends Tabor Academy in Massuchuets.

NON-BASKETBALL TIDBITS

• The Big Ten released the Big Ten volleyball schedule on Wednesday. UCLA visits Purdue on Oct. 17, and USC comes to Holloway Gymnasium on Nov. 23. The Boilermakers end the regular season by traveling to Oregon and Washington during Thanksgiving week. Interesting to note - Purdue plays 18 of its 31 matches away from home and has a string of 24 straight days without playing at Holloway Gymnasium in September. The Boilermakers are scheduled to host Michigan on Nov. 10, the same day the women’s basketball team is expected to host Notre Dame. It’s not uncommon to play volleyball and women’s basketball on the same day, but we’ll see what happens if TV gets involved.

• After 11 seasons, men’s golf coach Rob Bradley is leaving for the same position at South Carolina. The Boilermakers appeared in four NCAA Championships, including last season, and nine regionals. Bradley also served as Director of Golf for the men’s and women’s programs. Women’s coach Zack Byrd is a candidate to take over the Director of Golf position, and men’s assistant Andrew Sapp is in line to replace Bradley.

• On Monday, I had a chance to listen to NCAA President Charlie Baker speak at the NACDA (National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics) Convention in Las Vegas. In fact, I saw a poster board promoting his speech, walked into the massive conference room, sat down and listened.

As you know - or at least you should - college athletics is undergoing a massive transformation. The transformation is already underway with the transfer portal, NIL, etc. - but the NCAA and its membership are trying to make this whole thing work and put plans together for the next decade. First, the NCAA must settle antitrust cases against the organization to move forward. A lot of the framework has been agreed to - at least some of the financial settlements - but it still needs the blessing of Judge Claudia Wilken.

If approved, the injunction will provide back pay to student-athletes dating back to 2016 over lost NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) revenues, a future revenue-sharing model that will allow schools to pay athletes directly along with scholarship limits and gain tighter control over NIL.

Of the reported $2.7 billion settlement, the NCAA will pay $1.2 billion, and the Division I schools will chip in a combined $1.5 billion over a 10-year period. Baker said he wasn’t going to dwell on a lot of the misinformation that’s out there about the terms and conditions but is aware of the financial hardship a lot of athletic departments are going to face if this settlement is approved.

Baker doesn’t want student-athletes to become employees, but the NCAA needs help from Congress. A hearing is scheduled for Thursday to continue the process.

Other highlights:

• When Baker started to talk about sports betting, he couldn’t believe he was bringing up the subject in Las Vegas.

“I kind of wish sports betting would’ve stayed in Vegas,” he said.

But the NCAA is taking a hard line on prop betting in college sports. One example of a prop bet is placing wagers on individual performances - points, rebounds, etc. - but those situations can be manipulated. And fans are harassing players on social media if the wager doesn’t go their way. Of the 38 states that have licensed sports betting, Baker said 20 permit prop betting on college sports.

“This remains a major problem,” he said.

Baker added the social media traffic directed by angry betters at athletes, coaches, and officials is “brutal.” The NCAA hired a company to track and report negative social media traffic and encourage athletes to block those accounts.

• Baker said the recently signed deal with ESPN to broadcast nearly all of its championships is an $80 million increase in revenue - or three times more than the previous agreement. The women’s basketball tournament saw an increase of six times more than the previous deal and will start a units program similar to how the NCAA distributes revenue from the men’s tournament.

• Baker said a series of core guarantees start during the 2024-25 academic year - scholarships, health and wellness benefits, including mandatory mental health support and an injury protection program. The injury protection program provides two years of health insurance coverage to athletes who are still being treated for an injury that occurred while competing.

• Regarding NIL collectives, Baker said athletes and parents would much rather have a relationship with the school than a third party. He added the message from schools was the same.