Tommy Luce, the son of Jeffersonville coach Joe Luce, is a junior walk-on for Purdue. Luce, who played his senior year at Jeffersonville, joined The Hoosier Report with Matt Denison on Thursday, in advance of the Boilermakers’ Sweet 16 game in Louisville versus Tennessee.
On Tennessee, the Boilermakers’ Sweet 16 opponent: “They’re very good. I remember last year we met with them in the Bahamas and they beat us in overtime, so we kind of owe them one. We’ve got to respect them because they are a good team and have a lot of good players. We’ve got. to be ready and come out and take it to them.”
On his one year at Jeffersonville High School: “Before I moved to Jeff, I really didn’t know a lot about Southern Indiana basketball because I had never lived in that part of the state. But, as soon as I started coming down in the summer and working out with guys that planned on being on the team, I could tell right away there was a really rich tradition of basketball there, no doubt. It was tough moving from Richmond because we had a successful season and I had lots of friends there and had lived there for so long. But my one year at Jeffersonville was really a special one. I felt like we kind of put Jeff back on track to be a successful basketball program again.”
On the opportunity to be at Purdue and his role as a walk-on: “Big 10 basketball — that’s something you can’t turn down if you’re given the opportunity to be part of that conference and in Division I basketball. I knew I could’ve probably played somewhere (smaller) and had a successful career in college playing a lot of minutes. I actually really enjoy my role of practicing and being part of a really good team. It’s OK that I don’t play, and I would’ve been fine going somewhere smaller. Purdue has definitely been a good experience for me and I’m glad I did it.”
On his celebrity, rock star-like status and 1980s-themed “workout videos” at Purdue: “I really appreciate all the love that I get because it’s really good to feel that support from the Purdue community and from my friends and family that let me know how I do when I get in the game and that they like the videos I do. It’s all fun doing those (workout) videos. It’s really an awesome thing that people appreciate me so much.”
On what Sweet 16 game day will be like for the Boilermakers: “We started off with breakfast and after that, watched a little bit of film. Then we got a little bit of free time. We’ll come back and have a shoot around, and that’ll take about an hour and a half. We’ll get up a bunch of shots and go over a walk through of the other team so we know how to guard them on defense and what type of plays we’ll be able to run against their defense. We’ll come back and watch some more film — we watch a lot of film. It’s definitely a long preparation process. You’ve got to be prepared for (the entire game).”
On his educational focus at Purdue: “My major is organization leadership and supervision, and my minor is communication. I’m working on getting a certificate in entrepreneurship as well.
