#18 Purdue 74, #11 Nebraska 58 (Postgame Notes)
- 18-ranked Purdue moved into the Big Ten Tournament semifinals with a 74-58 win over No. 11-ranked and second-seeded Nebraska on Friday night at the United Center.
- The Boilermakers moved to 25-8 with the victory. Matt Painter now has 12, 25-win seasons at Purdue, the second most in Big Ten history behind Tom Izzo’s 16.
- Purdue improved to 5-4 this season against ranked teams, but is 5-0 away from Mackey Arena against ranked teams. Purdue is 13-3 on the season away from Mackey Arena, winning eight of the games by at least 10 points.
- The 16-point margin is Purdue’s largest in the Big Ten Tournament since a 76-59 win over Michigan in the 2016 semifinals.
- Purdue has not trailed in the Big Ten Tournament, winning both games over Northwestern and Nebraska wire-to-wire.
- Purdue is now 9-3 in the Big Ten Tournament since the 2022 event, the most wins in the tournament among all Big Ten teams (Wisconsin – 8).
- Purdue has reached the semifinals for the fourth time in the last five seasons. The Boilermakers will be making their 11th semifinals appearance.
- Purdue had 20 assists on 26 made field goals, and in two Big Ten Tournament games, Purdue has 45 assists on 56 made field goals
- Purdue trailed on the glass 15-14 at halftime, but outrebounded the Huskers 23-14 in the second half for a 37-29 advantage.
- Braden Smith dished out 10 more assists in the win over Nebraska, and now has 26 assists against five turnovers during the Big Ten Tournament. Smith has 1,055 career assists, needing 22 helpers to pass Bobby Hurley (1,076 assists) for the most in NCAA history. Smith has 44 assists in his last four games.
- Fletcher Loyer scored 19 points with four rebounds and two steals, making 4-of-9 from long range. Since the start of February, Loyer is 43-of-90 (.478) since the start of February from 3-point range.
- Oscar Cluff had 12 points and nine rebounds, going 6-of-8 from the field.
- Trey Kaufman-Renn had 10 points, nine rebounds and three assists in the victory.
CHICAGO (AP) — Fletcher Loyer scored 19 points, Braden Smith collected 10 more assists and No. 18 Purdue beat No. 11 Nebraska 74-58 on Friday night in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.
C.J. Cox and Oscar Cluff each had 12 points for the Boilermakers, and Trey Kaufman-Renn finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Smith set a Big Ten Tournament record and matched a career high with 16 assists in an 81-68 victory over Northwestern on Thursday. The senior guard needs 22 more assists to break Bobby Hurley’s NCAA record of 1,076 assists in 140 games for Duke from 1989-93.
Purdue (25-8) advanced to the Big Ten semifinals for the fourth time in the last five years, bouncing back nicely after closing the regular season with four losses in six games. It will play UCLA or No. 8 Michigan State on Saturday.
Pryce Sandford scored 15 points for Nebraska, which dropped to 6-14 all-time in the Big Ten tourney. Rienk Mast finished with 11.
The Cornhuskers trailed 48-30 with 17 minutes left, and closed within 58-50 on Cale Jacobsen’s driving layup with 6:53 remaining.
The Boilermakers responded with a 14-2 run, capped by Loyer’s 3 and a dunk by Cluff with 3:26 to go. Cox also connected from long range during the decisive stretch.
Purdue beat Nebraska 80-77 in overtime in their regular-season meeting on Feb. 10. Kaufman-Renn grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds in the victory, helping the Boilermakers to a 54-37 advantage on the glass.
Purdue enjoyed a 37-29 rebounding advantage this time around, and outscored Nebraska 26-18 in the paint.