The Purdue Boilermakers got back to their winning ways on Friday night at Mackey Arena by thoroughly controlling the Michigan Wolverines in all facets of the game from the very beginning. The win came after Tuesday’s loss to Ohio State, breaking their seven-game heater.
After scoring the game’s first six points and racing out to a 13-2 lead just three and a half minutes into the game, the Boilers built a lead to as much as 29 in the first half and were never threatened, defeating Michigan
The lead eventually grew to 30 in the second half, led by the all-around game of guard Braden Smith, who posted his eighth double-double of the season, scoring 24 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and dishing out seven assists–all while committing only one turnover in 37 minutes of play.
The Boilers’ defense was exceptional; they forced 22 Michigan turnovers and held the Wolverines to 20.7% (6-29) shooting from three-point range.
The loss dropped Michigan’s record to 14-5 overall, 6-2 in Big 10 play. Purdue improved to 16-5 in all games and 8-2 in conference matchups.
Michigan, who came into the game ranked #21 in the nation, posed a matchup problem with Purdue; the Wolverines’ frontcourt sports two seven-footers, Danny Wolf and Vladislav Goldin.
Immediately, the Boilermakers made that stat a non-issue.
Smith made a steal and score on Michigan’s first possession, and Trey Kaufman-Renn made a layup after a second consecutive Wolverine turnover, making the score 4-0 less than a minute into the game.
Purdue came out of the gates firing on Friday night, hitting on six of their first eight shots before the first media timeout, punctuated by a C.J. Cox shot from distance, and took a 13-2 lead with 16:32 left in the first half.
The lead grew to 29-9 after a thunderous alley-oop dunk by Camden Heide helped by Smith.
In the opening twenty minutes, Purdue took advantage of ten Michigan turnovers and turned them into 18 points. The Boilers shot a blistering 57.6% (19-33) in the first half, taking a 51-26 lead into the locker room.
Purdue’s lead never dropped below 21 in the second half, allowing them to put the Boilermaker Special into cruise control over the final twenty minutes, led by the command of their point guard Smith.
Before the game, head coach Matt Painter verbalized how valuable Smith is to everything his team does.
“He’s the head of the snake for us, both offensively and defensively,” said Painter on Smith’s impact on the Boilermakers. “We kind of go as he goes, so when he’s running well on offense, we’re right there with him.”
Alongside Smith, junior Fletcher Loyer drained five three-pointers and finished with 18 points. Kaufman-Renn chipped in 15, and C.J. Cox added 11. Purdue ended up shooting 54.8% for the game.
In the short term, it was advantageous for the Boilermakers to get back to their winning ways after their disappointing loss to the Buckeyes earlier this week. In the long term, this proved to be crucial in not only defending their home turf but also sending a message to the big boys of the Big 10: Tuesday was the exception, not the rule, and they are ready to take on all conference rivals from here on out.
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