Purdue guard Fletcher Loyer had a pointed message for his team following a narrow win over struggling Oregon on Feb. 7.
“We just got to be better,” he said. “More energy.”
Although the No. 13 Boilermakers collected an 80-77 overtime victory Tuesday night at No. 7 Nebraska, Loyer’s comments from the previous game could almost serve as evergreen quotes ahead of their Saturday trip to Iowa.
Purdue (20-4, 10-3 Big Ten) blew a 22-point second-half lead and could have lost in regulation if Rienk Mast had converted a free throw for the lead in the last seconds. It missed six straight field goal attempts before Oscar Cluff converted with 5.2 seconds remaining for the lead, followed by two clinching foul shots from Gicarri Harris.
While the method the Boilermakers used wasn’t one most teams or coaches would prefer, they bagged their second road win over a top 10 team, a reminder of why this team was ranked No. 1 in the preseason.
“We stayed on an even keel, even when we weren’t making our shots,” said point guard Braden Smith of the wild ending at Nebraska. “Those things happen but the big thing for us was we erased that and won.”
Smith was part of the reason why, overcoming 5-of-15 shooting to come within two rebounds of a triple-double. He finished with 13 points and 10 assists, putting him 108 shy of tying Bobby Hurley’s all-time NCAA mark of 1,076.
For the season, Smith is averaging team highs of 15.1 points and 8.8 assists per game, while Loyer is adding 13.4 ppg.
While Purdue comes into this one off a dramatic win, the Hawkeyes (18-6, 8-5) saw their six-game winning streak end in unexpected fashion as Maryland earned just its third conference win with a 77-70 upset in College Park Wednesday night.
Despite 32 points from star guard Bennett Stirtz, Iowa ate a Quad 3 loss that won’t help its NCAA tournament seeding. It still looks good for an at-large berth but it could use a win over a ranked team, something it doesn’t own in four attempts this season.
Hawkeyes coach Ben McCollum could see the result coming, even as the team was stretching its winning streak.
“We didn’t guard the ball very well, didn’t defensive rebound or do the things that we typically do really well,” he said. “It’s been snowballing on us for a couple of games; we just kind of got away with it. We just have to do a better job.”
One emphasis for Iowa figures to be rebounding. Maryland earned a 34-25 advantage on the glass, which doesn’t bode well against the Boilermakers, who frankly have bigger and better players inside. The Hawkeyes’ average of 27 rebounds per game ranks 352nd of 361 Division I programs.
Stirtz is leading the Hawkeyes with 20.4 points and 4.9 assists per game but could use a bit more help. Tavion Banks is the team’s only other double-figure scorer at 11 ppg and he’s been slowed at times by injuries.
Purdue earned a 79-72 home win when the teams met on Jan. 14, getting 16 points and eight assists from Smith.
