Nov. 5, 2000
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue hit the century mark for the second time in as many outings, defeating the Mexican National Team 104-68 in an exhibition game in Mackey Arena today. The Boilermakers downed Finland's Tapiolan Honka 119-44 in an exhibition on Wednesday.
"It was good to see how some people responded when the lights went on," Purdue coach Kristy Curry said. "I'm certainly not satisfied with where we are at this point, but I am proud of the way we responded in certain situations. I was pleased with our balance offensively. I thought tonight was a better test for us than the other night. But we're just ready to move on and play Eastern Michigan."
The Boilermakers wasted little time getting started against the Mexicans, as senior Camille Cooper scored the game's first basket with six seconds elapsed. Purdue increased the lead incrementally, and led 26-4 following a bucket by sophomore Mary Jo Noon at the 12:02 mark.
Purdue's largest lead of the first half was 23, reached twice after scores by freshman Shalicia Hurns and Cooper. The Boilermakers took a 51-32 advantage into the break.
Purdue and Mexico traded blows at the beginning of the second half, but a 10-0 run capped by a steal and bucket by Hurns put the Boilermakers back in convincing command with a 29-point lead with just under 12 minutes to play.
The Purdue lead grew to 39 (97-58) after a steal and layup by freshman Cherrise Graham at the 4:32 mark. Senior Candi Crawford scored seven consecutive points to close out the contest.
Six Boilermakers scored in double figures, with Hurns the high scorer with 16. Hurns added a team-high 10 rebounds for the conventional double-double, and also picked off a team-high three steals.
Hurns, a native of Indianapolis, has impressed in her first two outings as a collegian. The 6-foot-3 forward averaged 12 points and 10.5 rebounds in the two exhibitions.
"(Shalicia) is extremely athletic," senior co-captain Katie Douglas said of her rookie teammate. "She has long limbs and can tip a lot of passes. She comes in with great enthusiasm and a great work ethic. I could tell from the preseason workouts that she was going to be special."
Hurns' classmates, Erika Valek and Shereka Wright, joined her in double figures, both scoring 13. Cooper finished with 12 and Douglas scored 11 with eight rebounds. Graham also scored 11.
Junior Kelly Komara led Purdue with six assists.
The Mexicans were led by Erika Gomez, who scored 27 points with 10 rebounds in 34 minutes before fouling out. Gomez shot 10-for-25 from the floor (3-for-5 three-pointers) and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Gomez was one of four Mexicans to foul out of the game.
Purdue shot 54.1 percent from the floor, connecting on 33 of 61 attempts. The Boilermakers went 6-for-11 from three-point range, with Valek hitting all three of her bombs. They converted 32 of 42 free throws (76.2 percent).
Mexico shot 34.8 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from three-point range and 84.2 percent from the free throw line.
Purdue outrebounded the Mexicans 43 to 30.
The Boilermakers conclude this exhibition season as the most prolific team in any set of preseason exhibition games. They averaged 111.5 points in both games, better than the 1993-94 team's two-game exhibition average of 111 points.
Purdue opens its regular season on Saturday, Nov. 11, when it hosts Eastern Michigan in the first round of the Preseason WNIT. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
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