WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - For the first time in 24 days, Purdue will play in Mackey Arena hosting Penn State on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, on the Big Ten Network. It will be Penn State's first game since Dec. 30, while it will be Purdue's first home game since beating Maryland on Christmas Day.
The Boilermakers face another grueling stretch after a schedule readjustment. After playing four straight games on the road, Purdue will now play three games in six days as it hosts Penn State on Sunday, travels to Ohio State on one-day break on Jan. 19, then hosts Big Ten-leader Michigan on Jan. 22. The Boilermakers are looking to keep its momentum going heading into another difficult part of the schedule.
THE KEY TALKING POINTS
1) Purdue leads the all-time series with Penn State by a 39-13 margin, including a 21-3 advantage in Mackey Arena. The Nittany Lions did win last year's contest in West Lafayette, snapping a 10-game Purdue homecourt winning streak in the series.
2) According to KenPom.com, Purdue ranks 326th (out of 345 teams) in experience (1.09 years). The total is 14th in the Big Ten. Indiana is the next least-experienced team in the league at 1.38 years (282nd nationally).
3) Following Sunday's game with Penn State, Purdue will have a one-day break between conference games for the first time since the 1999-00 season (Feb. 27 vs. Penn State; Feb. 29 vs. Indiana).
4) Purdue's freshman class is averaging 27.6 points per game, which at its current pace, would be the fifth-highest average in Purdue history.
5) Four of the Big Ten's top-14 freshmen scorers are from Purdue (Newman - 2nd; Edey - 5th; Ivey - 9th; Gillis - 14th). Purdue is one of eight high-major schools to have three freshmen averaging at least 6.0 PPG (Auburn, Butler, Duke, Kansas State, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Purdue).
6) A win over Penn State would give Purdue a 5-3 mark (or better) in Big Ten play for the 10th time in 16 years under Matt Painter. The previous nine teams all made the NCAA Tournament.
7) Purdue owns a 50-8 record at Mackey Arena in Big Ten games since the start of the 2014-15 season. Michigan St. has next best record (47-12).
8) With the win over Indiana, Purdue has won 18 straight games when scoring at least 80 points; 40-2 since the start of the 2017-18 season.
9) Purdue averaged 15.4 turnovers per game during the first seven games. In the last seven games, Purdue has averaged just 11.4 turnovers.
10) Purdue has won 102 straight games when scoring at least 90 points, spanning over 33 years (last loss: Nov. 24, 1987, to Iowa State).
The Boilermakers face another grueling stretch after a schedule readjustment. After playing four straight games on the road, Purdue will now play three games in six days as it hosts Penn State on Sunday, travels to Ohio State on one-day break on Jan. 19, then hosts Big Ten-leader Michigan on Jan. 22. The Boilermakers are looking to keep its momentum going heading into another difficult part of the schedule.
THE KEY TALKING POINTS
1) Purdue leads the all-time series with Penn State by a 39-13 margin, including a 21-3 advantage in Mackey Arena. The Nittany Lions did win last year's contest in West Lafayette, snapping a 10-game Purdue homecourt winning streak in the series.
2) According to KenPom.com, Purdue ranks 326th (out of 345 teams) in experience (1.09 years). The total is 14th in the Big Ten. Indiana is the next least-experienced team in the league at 1.38 years (282nd nationally).
3) Following Sunday's game with Penn State, Purdue will have a one-day break between conference games for the first time since the 1999-00 season (Feb. 27 vs. Penn State; Feb. 29 vs. Indiana).
4) Purdue's freshman class is averaging 27.6 points per game, which at its current pace, would be the fifth-highest average in Purdue history.
5) Four of the Big Ten's top-14 freshmen scorers are from Purdue (Newman - 2nd; Edey - 5th; Ivey - 9th; Gillis - 14th). Purdue is one of eight high-major schools to have three freshmen averaging at least 6.0 PPG (Auburn, Butler, Duke, Kansas State, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Purdue).
6) A win over Penn State would give Purdue a 5-3 mark (or better) in Big Ten play for the 10th time in 16 years under Matt Painter. The previous nine teams all made the NCAA Tournament.
7) Purdue owns a 50-8 record at Mackey Arena in Big Ten games since the start of the 2014-15 season. Michigan St. has next best record (47-12).
8) With the win over Indiana, Purdue has won 18 straight games when scoring at least 80 points; 40-2 since the start of the 2017-18 season.
9) Purdue averaged 15.4 turnovers per game during the first seven games. In the last seven games, Purdue has averaged just 11.4 turnovers.
10) Purdue has won 102 straight games when scoring at least 90 points, spanning over 33 years (last loss: Nov. 24, 1987, to Iowa State).