Purdue hands UA their first loss of the season
INDIANAPOLIS — Purdue guards Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith combined for 53 points to support big man Zach Edey as the No. 3 Boilermakers handed No. 1 Arizona its first loss 92-84 on Saturday in Indianapolis.
Loyer tied his career high with 27 points and Smith put in 26 as Purdue (10-1) built a 15-point second-half lead. The Wildcats (8-1) then went to a 2-3 zone that put a chill on the Boilermakers’ outside shooting and climbed within four points.
Edey, last season’s national player of the year, stepped up while his teammates struggled, scoring 10 of 16 Purdue points during a late stretch. Edey finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Caleb Love scored 29 points to lead Arizona, while Keshad Johnson had 24 points and eight rebounds.
Purdue won its first game against a No. 1-ranked team since beating Arizona in Indianapolis in November 2000.
Purdue took its biggest lead at 67-52 with 15:09 to go before Johnson went on a personal 7-0 run, followed by two Oumar Ballo dunks to make it 67-63.
The Boilermakers, who went nearly six minutes without scoring as Arizona switched to the zone, got back on the scoreboard when Edey hit two free throws at the 9:11 mark to stop the Wildcats’ 11-0 run.
(VIDEO): Purdue head coach Matt Painter and players react to beating No. 1 Arizona
Arizona cut the lead to four on three more occasions but Purdue had an answer every time. In an impressive offensive performance against a Wildcats team that came in allowing teams to shoot just 38.9 percent, the Boilermakers shot 53.8 percent (35 of 65).
Loyer finished 5 of 9 on 3-point shots. Smith was 4 of 7 from beyond the arc. The pair combined to make 20 of 33 shots overall.
The Boilermakers have won 33 consecutive nonconference games in the regular season, the longest streak in the country.
Arizona, playing as the top-ranked team for the second week, had an early 17-11 lead in a fast and furious first half, but Purdue was comfortable at that pace and rode Loyer’s hot shooting to a 49-38 halftime lead. Loyer scored 18 in the half, while Smith put in 14 as the duo combined to make 6 of 9 3-point shots.
–Field Level Media
