GAMEDAY INFORMATION
[2 / 1] Purdue (3-0) vs. Akron (3-0)
Sunday, November 16 | 7:30 p.m. ET
West Lafayette, Ind. | Mackey Arena (14,876)
TV: BTN (Jack Kizer, Rapheal Davis)
RADIO: Purdue Global Radio Network (Rob Blackman, Bobby Riddell)
#2 Purdue Hosts Akron For Lone Home Game in 3-Week Stretch
Sunday's game is Purdue's lone home game between Nov. 7 and Nov. 28.
THE BIG NUMBERS
499
Matt Painter needs one win for 500 as a collegiate head coach.
5th
Purdue is fifth nationally in assist / turnover ratio (60 assists, 22 turnovers; 2.73).
95.0
For the second straight games, Purdue faces a team averaging over 95.0 points per game (Akron - 99.3).
4-0
Purdue is looking for a 4-0 start or better for the fifth straight season.
18.0
Purdue's two centers of Cluff and Jacobsen are averaging a combined 18.0 points and 15.0 rebounds per game.
THE SCENE SETTER
• The No. 2-ranked Purdue continues its difficult stretch, returning home for the first time in nine days to host 2025 NCAA Tournament participant and MAC Champion Akron. From Nov. 8 to Nov. 27, the Boilermakers will have just one home game, coming Sunday vs. the Zips. It marks the first meeting with Akron since the 2000-01 season.
• Of Purdue's remaining 28 games, just eight of them will now come against teams ranked below 50 in the KenPom rankings.
THE NOTES TO KNOW
• The Boilermakers are looking to start 4-0 or better for the fifth consecutive year.
• Purdue has won 34 straight non-conference home games, dating to Nov. 9, 2019 (Texas). It's the longest streak in school history.
• Purdue is 19th in the country in turnover percentage (11.0 %), and 30th in assist rate (A / FGM --> 65.9 %). Purdue is fifth nationally in assist / turnover rate (2.73; 60 assists, 22 turnovers).
• For the second straight game, Purdue will play a team that enters the contest averaging over 95.0 points per game. Alabama entered Thursday's game averaging 97.0 points per game. Akron enters Sunday's contest averaging 99.3 points per game.
• In the win over Alabama, Purdue had four players (Trey Kaufman-Renn, Oscar Cluff, Braden Smith, Daniel Jacobsen) with more rebounds than Alabama's leading rebounder (4).
• Purdue ranks 26th nationally in 3-pointers made per game (11.7) and 37th in 3-point percentage (.412).
• Purdue is 109-5 under Matt Painter when scoring at least 80 points. Purdue has won 34 of its last 36 games scoring 80 or more points.
• The win was the 90th since the start of the 2022-23 season, and this year’s senior class now owns a 90-23 career record.
• Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer started their 113th consecutive game on Thursday, setting a new school record for consecutive starts.
• Braden Smith is currently ranked No. 2 early in the KenPom Player of the Year race, behind Duke's Cameron Boozer. Smith is the first player since Oklahoma's Buddy Hield (Jan. 4, 2016) to have at least 29 points, seven rebounds and four assists in a road game at a top-10 opponent.
• Smith moved into third place on the Big Ten's career assists list with 782 helpers. Next on the chart is Mateen Cleaves (816 assists).
• With Fletcher Loyer scoring 30 points in the opener, Purdue now has four active players with 30-point games (Smith, Cluff, Kaufman-Renn).
• Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Purdue's 119 victories rank third nationally (Houston - 135; Duke - 124).
• Purdue's 14 weeks ranked No. 1 in the AP poll since the 2021-22 season are the most in the country (Auburn - 11; Houston 11; Gonzaga - 9).
• Purdue had four players (Smith, Loyer, Kaufman-Renn, Cluff) nominated by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame for their position awards. Purdue is one-of-five schools to have at least four players nominated (UConn, Houston - 5; Purdue, Duke, Florida - 4).
• Braden Smith has been named as the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year, while Trey Kaufman-Renn joined him on the first team.
• Braden Smith is already the only player in Big Ten conference history to amass 1,400 points, 775 assists and 550 rebounds and 175 steals. He is one of seven players in NCAA history to reach those marks.
• Purdue signed four players on National Signing Day (Luke Ertel, Jacob Webber, Sinan Huan, Rivers Knight) from the Class of 2026. According to 247Sports, Purdue's class ranks second nationally behind Kansas.
• Matt Painter ranks fourth on the Big Ten's list for career wins with 474, trailing only Tom Izzo (740), Bob Knight (662) and Gene Keady (512) in Big Ten history. Painter has 499 career victories and with four more victories, Painter will become the seventh-fastest active coach to reach 500 wins (Few, Calipari, Self, Pitino, Izzo, Bennett).