#BoilerNotes
- Purdue won its eighth straight in-season tournament game in its 85-64 win over Utah State ... the last loss came in the quarterfinals of the 2014 EASports Maui Invitational to Kansas State (88-79).
- Purdue will play for its second straight in-season tournament title on Wednesday night ... the Boilermakers won last year's Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic after beating Old Dominion and Florida.
- Purdue improved to 10-2 against schools from the state of Utah.
- Purdue had runs of 7-0, 8-0, 9-0 and 10-0 during the game ... the Boilermakers now have four runs of 10-0 or longer already this year, compared to zero for opponents.
- Purdue made a season-high 11 3-pointers against Utah State ... Purdue is now 38-8 under Painter when making 10 or more 3-pointers in a game.
- Purdue shot 49.1 percent from the field and is now 99-13 under Painter when shooting 48.0 percent or better from the field.
- Purdue won both the rebound and turnover margin against Utah State ... Purdue is now 90-8 when winning both margins.
- Purdue's junior class accounted for 64 of Purdue's 85 points.
- Purdue has now made 79 free throws on the season ... opponents have shot 57.
- Dakota Mathias scored a career-high 25 points with a career-high six rebounds and four assists ... his six 3-pointers were also a career high, making 9-of-10 field goals and 6-of-7 from deep ... on the season, Mathias is now 13-of-22 (.591) from deep.
- Isaac Haas scored a career-high 26 points in just 26 minutes ... it marked the ninth time in his career he averaged at least 1.00 point / minute during a game ... Haas now has 81 points in 91 minutes this year and is shooting 28-of-36 (.778) from the field.
- With Haas (26) and Mathias (25) each scoring at least 25 points, it marked the first time in over six years that two players scored at least 25 points in a game ... E'Twaun Moore (26) and JaJuan Johnson (25) accomplished the feat vs. Oakland (Nov. 21, 2010).
- Caleb Swanigan recorded his 11th career double-double and third of the season with a 15-point, 10-rebound performance ... when Swanigan has 10 or more rebounds during his career, Purdue is 12-2 and 10-1 when he earns a double-double.
CANCUN, Mexico (AP) - Isaac Haas scored 26 points and Dakota Mathias added 25, both career highs, as No. 17 Purdue beat Utah State 85-64 in the Cancun Challenge on Tuesday night.
Haas and Mathias took over in the second half, when they combined for 32 points on 12-of-13 shooting to help the Boilermakers (3-1) pull away after leading 39-27 at halftime. Mathias shot 6 of 7 on 3-pointers.
Alexis Dargenton led the Aggies (3-1) with 14 points and nine rebounds. Julion Pearre added 10 points.
Caleb Swanigan chipped in 15 points and made the second of the Boilermakers' 11 3-pointers for a 19-7 lead, their biggest of the first half, with 11:43 to play.
The Aggies came back and cut the margin to 28-27 on a layup from Jalen Moore with 4:16 to go, but Purdue closed the half with 11 unanswered points.
THE BIG PICTURE
Purdue: The Boilermakers arrived in Mexico with plenty of questions after an emotional loss to defending national champion Villanova followed by a 64-56 win over Georgia State after trailing by 12. The Panthers beat the Boilermakers on the glass and stymied their 3-point shooters before Purdue ripped off a 20-point run. The Boilermakers answered some questions in this one, though, improving their 3-point shooting and first-half defense.
Utah State: The loss snapped the Aggies' most consistent run since last season when they won four straight in late December.
UP NEXT
Purdue plays Auburn (4-0) for the tournament's Riviera Championship on Wednesday.
Utah State plays Texas Tech (3-1) for third place in the tournament's Riviera Division on Wednesday.