- No. 3-ranked Purdue improved to 19-1 overall and 8-1 in the Big Ten Conference with a 58-55 victory over Maryland in front of the 51st straight sellout at Mackey Arena. The win was Purdue's sixth in a row.
- Purdue became the fifth Big Ten team since 2000 to start a season 19-1 (2019 Michigan; 2013 Michigan; 2011 Ohio State; 2005 Illinois). The 19-1 record is the best 20-game start in Purdue history.
- Purdue improved to 8-5 all-time against Maryland. Of the 13 games played with Maryland, 11 of them have been decided by single-digits and eight of them by five or fewer points, including four straight contests (3, 1, 1, 3 points).
- Purdue's 58 points in a home win were its fewest scored since Feb. 27, 2020, vs. Indiana (57-49).
- Purdue has held three of its last four opponents to 55 or fewer points (Nebraska – 55; Minnesota – 39; Maryland – 55). Over the last four games, Purdue is holding foes to 53.0 points per game.
- Over the last four games, Purdue has trailed for a total of 12:41 of a possible 160 minutes. It didn't trail in wins over Nebraska, Minnesota and Maryland.
- Purdue has held every opponent to 70 points or less, one of two teams nationally that can say that (Saint Mary's).
- Purdue now owns an 8-1 record against top-40 teams in KenPom, the most wins against the KenPom top-40 nationally.
- Purdue is now 173-7 (.961) under Matt Painter when holding teams to 59 or fewer points. Purdue has won 17 straight game when holding foes to 59 or fewer points.
- The win was Purdue's 75th in Big Ten play since the 2017-18 season (75-31 record). Purdue owns the league's best record by 4.5 games in that span over Michigan State (71-36).
- Zach Edey scored 24 points with 16 rebounds, two blocks and an assist for his 16th double-double of the season. He already ranks eighth on Purdue's single-season double-double list. His 28th career double-double in ninth in school history.
- Edey recorded his 250th rebound of the season in his 19th game. Just eight players since 2010-11 have had more rebounds in their first 19 games of the year. He is the only player since 2010-11 to have 400 points and 250 rebounds through the first 19 games.
- Edey recorded his fourth 24-16 game of the season. The rest of the country has 11 and no player has more than one.
- Based on a 35-game schedule, Edey is on pace for 751 points, 460 rebounds and 82 blocked shots. The only player we can find in the Sports-Reference database with 750 points, 450 rebounds and 75 blocks in a season is Navy's David Robinson (796-455-207 in 1985-86; 35 games played). No one since 1992-93 has even done 700-400-75.
- Ethan Morton had four points, five rebounds and two blocks, but held Maryland's Jahmir Young to 4-of-18 shooting from the field.
- Braden Smith has had at least four assists in eight straight games.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Purdue coach Matt Painter kept imploring his team to focus on the simple things Sunday, like passing and catching.
It worked perfectly in the first half. Then, the Boilermakers spent the final 20 minutes scrambling to replicate it.
Zach Edey finished with 24 points and 16 rebounds and Braden Smith made two free throws with 3.9 seconds left to help No. 3 Purdue fend off Maryland's furious second-half charge for a 58-55 victory.
"It's just making good plays," Painter said after his team nearly blew a 16-point lead. "If they clamp down, pass the ball. That's all it really comes down to, just execute and take what they're giving you."
Usually, Purdue is one of America's most efficient teams. They've now won six straight to become the fifth Big Ten team to go 19-1 since 2000 and the first ever at Purdue. But on a day Edey had his 16th double-double of the season, the Boilermakers, who are 8-1 in conference play, weren't themselves.
The Terrapins routinely switched from man-to-man defense to zone and back again, while also applying full-court pressure, which caused Purdue to commit eight second-half turnovers, go 0 for 6 on 3-pointers and shoot just 26.9% from the field.
All of it led to Maryland (12-7, 3-5) nearly pulling off a stunning comeback after trailing by as many as 16 points in the first half and 35-21 at halftime.
Julian Reese scored 19 points to help the Terrapins rally, and Jahmir Young had 10 — though his 30-foot heave at the buzzer hit nothing but the backboard.
"We're pretty used to it," first-year Maryland coach Kevin Willard said when asked about the big early deficit. "We've not gotten off to good starts on the road. Being down 14, I though was a win because I knew we had a run in us."
Did they ever.
Reese spurred Maryland's 9-3 run to open the second half and his layup with 7:03 to play got the Terrapins within 52-49, the first of four times they cut the deficit to three in the closing minutes.
But in a game Purdue led wire-to-wire, Maryland made only two more baskets and couldn't get closer than three until Young made two free throws with 5.3 seconds to go. Smith answered with two more for Purdue and Young's long but off-the-mark heave had Purdue fans and Painter breathing a sigh of relief.
"Each game, especially when you have young players on your team, you have some guys who are always learning," Painter said. "We were fortunate to win this game because as I said earlier, it could have gone either way."
BIG PICTURE
Maryland: Instead of building momentum after Thursday's victory over Michigan, the Terrapins started slow again and came up short again on the road. Maryland, which once reached No. 13 in The Associated Press poll, hasn't won a true road game since Nov. 29 and must solve the road mystery to stay in the NCAA Tournament hunt.
Purdue: The Boilermakers have held 21 consecutive opponents to 70 or fewer points and are 52-5 at home since 2014-15 when classes are in session. But Purdue needs a stronger knockout punch to avoid the kind of nail-biting finishes its had in two of the last three games.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Purdue began the day as one of four Division I teams with only one loss — and the lone Power Five representative on the list. Thanks to Saturday's loss by No. 2 Kansas and Sunday's loss by No. 1 Houston, the Boilermakers should climb back to No. 1 in Monday's poll.
UP NEXT
Maryland: Returns home Wednesday to host Wisconsin.
Purdue: Visits Michigan on Thursday, its second trip north of the state line in two weeks.