- No. 3-ranked Purdue improved to 2-0 with an 87-57 win over Morehead State on Friday night in Mackey Arena.
- The win was Purdue's 26th straight regular-season, non-conference victory – a new school record. The streak is now almost double the second-longest, active streak nationally (UConn – 13).
- Purdue has also won 22 straight at Mackey Arena against non-conference foes, spanning over four calendar years (Nov. 9, 2019 vs. Texas).
- The Boilermakers have won 16 straight games in the month of November – the second-longest streak in the country (Arizona – 24).
- Purdue's next nine games are the following: Xavier, vs. Gonzaga, vs. Tennessee or Syracuse, vs. Kansas, Marquette, UCLA or Chaminade, Texas Southern, at Northwestern, Iowa, vs. Alabama and vs. Arizona.
- In the win over Samford to start the season, Purdue jumped out to an 11-0 and 21-1 lead. In the win over Morehead State, Purdue jumped out to a 15-0 lead.
- Purdue has won its first two games by at least 30 points for the first time since the 2017-18 season. The Boilermakers have also shot at least 54 percent from the field in the first two games for the first time since that 2017-18 season.
- Through two games this year, Purdue has 48 assists against 23 turnovers.
- Through the first two games, opponents are shooting just 12-of-62 (.194) from 3-point range, and 29.6 percent overall.
- Purdue had three runs of at least 7-0 in the win over Morehead State, and now has 11 runs of 7-0 or longer this season. The opponent's longest run this season has been five points.
- Purdue has won 51 straight games when scoring at least 80 points, dating to Dec. 2018.
- Since the 2015-26 season, Purdue has won 34 games by 30 or more points, now the fourth-highest total in the country.
- Zach Edey moved into 21st on the school's career scoring list with 1,567 points after 18 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocked shots in the win over Morehead State.
- Edey also moved into sixth place on the school's career rebounds list (866 rebounds).
- Edey now has 34 points, 19 rebounds, 7 blocks and 5 assists in 44 minutes this season. He has scored 34 points on 14 field goal attempts and drawn 16 fouls.
- Braden Smith narrowly missed a triple-double, tallying 11 points, 11 assists, 8 rebounds and 3 steals in just 29 minutes in the win over Morehead State. He became the first Boilermaker with a points-assists double-double since Lewis Jackson in March 2012.
- In two games this year, Smith has 23 points, 18 assists, 12 rebounds and 4 steals (11.5 PPG, 9.0 APG, 6.0 RPG, 2.0 SPG).
- Lance Jones tallied 15 points, five rebounds and three assists in the win.
- Smith and Jones combined for 26 points, 14 assists, 13 rebounds and 4 steals in the victory.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Zach Edey started fast again Friday night.
Then the reigning national player of the year enjoyed watching his teammates put away the victory.
Edey finished with 18 points and eight rebounds, Lance Jones scored 11 of his 15 points in the second half and Braden Smith nearly delivered his first triple-double as No. 3 Purdue ran away from Morehead State 87-57.
"His size is unique in itself, but he's a great player," coach Preston Spradlin said after his Eagles struggled to match up with the 7-foot-4 Edey. "At 6-11, he's good enough to be the best player in the country. He's that good with the skill set and all of those things, so he's a huge challenge."
Edey is one of many problems the Boilermakers pose with a focused, deep and talented roster.
Purdue (2-0) broke the school record for most consecutive regular-season wins against non-conference foes with its 26th in a row. The previous mark stood since November 1994. Purdue's streak, the longest active one in Division I, began following a loss at Miami in December 2020.
And it wouldn't have been this easy without Jones or Smith, who had 11 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds.
"You see Lance's ability to pressure the basketball and how that really helps us," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "And then you see when Braden pushes the ball and how it finds him, whether he's shooting or driving the ball, how it helps us."
Riley Minix led the defending Ohio Valley Conference regular-season champions with 18 points. Jordan Lathon had 12 for Morehead State (1-2), which has lost to Alabama and Purdue.
Edey spurred Purdue's opening 15-0 run with four points, four rebounds and all three of his assists in the first five minutes. And after the Eagles cut the deficit to 26-17 midway through the first half and 42-29 at halftime, Jones made sure they didn't stand a chance in the second half.
After Kalil Thomas made a 3-pointer to trim the margin to 10, Jones scored eight points in a 15-5 spurt that gave Purdue a 57-37 cushion. Morehead State never got close again.
"Over the past couple days, I've kind of been hard on myself about my shooting," Jones said. "You're just taking your shot, so I just let it run tonight."
BIG PICTURE
Morehead State: There's a reason the Eagles were a near-unanimous favorite to win their second straight league crown. But with only one player taller than 6-foot-8 to match up with Edey, they had no chance against Purdue.
Purdue: Beating Samford and Morehead State may not look impressive on paper. Yet both are coming off league titles and could contend again this season, so it might be a better start than some think.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Two blowout wins to open the season should be enough to keep the Boilermakers among the top five in an 18th consecutive AP poll.