GAMEDAY INFORMATION
[1 / 1] Purdue (6-0) vs. Eastern Illinois (2-4)
Friday, November 28 | Noon ET
West Lafayette, Indiana | Mackey Arena (14,876)
TV: Big Ten Network (Jack Kizer, Bruce Weber)
RADIO: Purdue Global Radio Network (Rob Blackman, Bobby Riddell)
#1 Purdue Hosts Eastern Illinois in Final Non-Conference Tuneup
THE SCENE SETTER
• Purdue closes out the opening month of the season when Eastern Illinois visits Mackey Arena for a Black Friday tilt starting at noon. The Boilermakers are coming off a tournament title at the Baha Mar Championship in the Bahamas and are looking to continue their winning ways in Mackey Arena, where Purdue has won 35 straight games against non-conference opposition.
• Following the game with the Panthers, Purdue will open December and Big Ten play at Rutgers on Dec. 2.
THE NOTES TO KNOW
• Purdue leads the all-time series with Eastern Illinois by a 5-0 advantage, winning all five games by at least 13 points. This marks the first meeting between the two teams since Nov. 20, 2013, an 83-55 Purdue victory.
• Purdue is looking for its 10th season starting 7-0 or better since the 1938-39 campaign (first year of NCAA). Five of the previous nine occurrences of 7-0 or better have come under Matt Painter (2009-10, 2015-16, 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24).
• Purdue is the only school in America to have two players averaging double-doubles (Oscar Cluff, Trey Kaufman-Renn).
• Purdue is one-of-10 schools to rank in the top 20 in both offensive and defensive efficiency, via KenPom.
• Purdue is 93-23 (.800) during the careers of Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn. The 93 victories are the fourth-most nationally while the 80.2 winning percentage is fifth nationally (Houston, Duke, Drake, UConn).
• Purdue has won 34 of its last 35 games during the month of November (34-1, .971). The lone loss came last season at No. 15 Marquette (11-19-24). Purdue is 70-3 (.959) at home during the month of November under Painter (losses to Bucknell, Villanova, Texas).
• The Boilermakers are also 47-3 (.940) in non-conference play since the start of the 2021-22 season. No other team has fewer than six losses in non-conference play during that span.
• Purdue ranks in the top 25 nationally in assist/turnover ratio (5th; 2.09), assists per game (13th; 19.8) and 3-point percentage (16th; .414). Individually, Braden Smith is second in assists per game (8.8), Oscar Cluff is 12th in rebounds (11.0) and Fletcher Loyer is 27th in free throw percentage (.952) and 31st in 3-pointers per game (3.33).
• Braden Smith, who has 811 career assists, needs six assists to move into second place on the Big Ten career assists list. Michigan State standout Mateen Cleaves is second with 816 career assists.
• Braden Smith has led the team in assists in 101 of 116 games since he arrived on campus.
• Last season's leader in blocked shots, Trey Kaufman-Renn, had 11 blocked shots in 36 games. This year's leader, Daniel Jacobsen, already has 11 blocked shots in just six games.
• Trey Kaufman-Renn and Eastern Illinois' Kooper Jacobi were teammates on Silver Creek's Class 3A (Indiana) state-championship teams in 2019 and 2021. The duo combined for 31 points and 28 rebounds in the 50-49 state title victory over Leo.
• C.J. Cox is the only player in the Big Ten to shoot 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from deep and 100 percent from the free throw line.
• Oscar Cluff and Trey Kaufman-Renn are two of eight players nationally to average a double-double and shoot 60 percent from the field.
• Cluff and Kaufman-Renn are combining to average 27.3 points and 23.5 rebounds while shooting 66.2 percent from the field since TKR's return.
• Purdue has won 33 straight games when holding foes under 59 points. The last loss came on Dec. 8, 2020, at Miami (L, 58-54).
• Purdue has won 75 of its last 77 games when shooting at least 50.0 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from 3-point range and 70.0 percent from the free throw line (losses: Feb. 15, 2025 vs. Wisconsin; Nov. 24, 2014 vs. Kansas State).