If anyone thinks this is just the same ol’ Purdue from a season ago, please find a replay of the second half of Tuesday night’s game at Illinois.
The Boilermakers rallied from a six-point halftime deficit to play as impressive a half as you’ll find this season in a 77-71 win over No. 12 Illinois to clinch back-to-back Big Ten titles.
It was a little of what you always expect from No. 3 Purdue — Zach Edey overpowering folks, finishing with 28 points — but it was his supporting cast that was the story of the game and why this team appears more equipped to go on a March run. Edey had room to work because the Boilermakers were red-hot from 3-point range, burying 8-of-10 3s in the second half after going just 1 of 6 in the first half.
Braden Smith made two late-clock, contested 3-pointers off the bounce, including the dagger in the final minute. Mason Gillis, now shooting 48.9 percent from deep, made 2-of-3 from 3-point range. And Fletcher Loyer, who the Illini were hunting on defense, justified his presence with five straight points late to answer an Illinois run.
The Illini, the best offense in college basketball since Terrence Shannon Jr. returned, was cooking in the first half and led 40-34 at halftime. But by trying to keep Edey in the paint as much as possible in the second half, the big fella’s rim protection helped Purdue to hold the Illini to 9-of-25 shooting in the second half.
The Boilermakers were probably already a lock to get a No. 1 seed in the Midwest, but that now feels like a certainty. They could lose this weekend to Wisconsin and drop the first game of the Big Ten Tournament, and it’s not going to matter. This team will have a No. 1 seed and is on a mission to end the narrative that Purdue cannot win in March.
Required reading
(Photo: Alex Martin / USA Today)
