- Purdue improved to 15-1 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten Conference with a 76-63 win over Penn State in front of 8,722 fans at The Palestra in Philadelphia.
- Purdue became the ninth No. 1-ranked team to play in The Palestra's illustrious history. No. 1-ranked teams are now 8-1 in The Palestra.
- The win marked Penn State's first loss at The Palestra after defeating Michigan State and Iowa previously.
- Purdue is now 4-1 in the Big Ten for the first time since the 2017-18 season. It marks the fourth time in the Painter era that Purdue has started 4-1 or better in league play (2022-23, 2017-18, 2010-11, 2007-08).
- The victory was No. 399 for Matt Painter in his 18th year at Purdue. He needs just one win to become the fifth coach in Big Ten history with 400 wins at a Big Ten school (Tom Izzo, Bob Knight, Gene Keady, Lou Henson). It was also his 198th conference win.
- Purdue outscored Penn State 45-26 in the second half after trailing 37-31 at halftime. Purdue shot 18-of-27 (.667) from the field in the second half.
- Purdue is now 3-0 in road games in the Big Ten and 4-0 overall in road games. It's the longest road game win streak since the 2017-18 team won seven road games in a row.
- Purdue's 15-1 start is the best 16-game start in school history (1987-88, 1993-94, 2010-11).
- Purdue trailed at halftime in all three games this week, posting a 2-1 record. Purdue outscored its opponents 123 to 90 in the second half over the last three games.
- Purdue has won five straight games against Penn State, and 14 of the last 15 meetings. Purdue is 28-4 against Penn State in the last 32 meetings.
- The win was Purdue's sixth quad-1 win, second nationally behind Kansas (7).
- After starting 0-of-7 from 3-point range against Ohio State, Purdue has made 21-of-42 (.500) of its last 3-point attempts. Over the last two games total, Purdue is 21-of-49 (.429) from long range after shooting just 23.1 percent from deep in the previous five games.
- Purdue has held 28 straight opponents under 75 points, the third-longest streak in America (North Texas – 48; Houston – 31).
- Since the start of last season, Purdue owns a 44-9 record (.830), the fourth-most wins in America in that span.
- With the win over Penn State, Purdue has won 53 straight 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 (last loss -- March 3, 2004). The Boilermakers shot 55.4 percent from the field, 44.4 percent from 3-point range and 85.7 percent from the free throw line.
- The victory was Purdue's 100th win since the 2016-17 season against KenPom top-100 teams, ranking fourth nationally in top-100 wins in that span (Kansas, Villanova, Michigan).
- Zach Edey recorded his second 30-10 game of the season with 30 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocked shots. He is the fifth Purdue player in school history with two games of at least 30 points and 13 rebounds in a season and the first since Glenn Robinson (1993-94). Others include Robinson, Dave Schellhase, Terry Dischinger and Wilson Eison.
- Edey surpassed 600 career rebounds in the win, the second-quickest player to reach 1,000 points, 600 rebounds and 100 blocked shots in a career, reaching the marks in 80 career games (Joe Barry Carroll – 75 games).
- Edey recorded his eighth straight double-double, the fifth-longest streak in Purdue history (12 – Terry Dischinger; 11 – Dave Schellhase; 9 – Caleb Swanigan; 9 – Terry Dischinger).
- His 13 double-doubles this season are the third most for a Purdue player in the last 40 years (Caleb Swanigan – 28; Glenn Robinson – 18; Brad Miller – 14).
- Braden Smith scored 15 points with seven assists and six rebounds. In his last two games, both road wins in tough environments, Smith is averaging 15.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists, having 13 assists against two turnovers, while shooting 11-of-21 from the field and 6-of-12 from 3-point range.
- Fletcher Loyer had 17 points with two rebounds and two assists, going 4-of-7 from deep. In the last three halves, Loyer has 28 points while going 6-of-9 from long range.
- Purdue's freshman starting backcourt of Smith and Loyer accounted for 32 points, nine assists, eight rebounds, one steal and one blocked shot with just one turnover in 67 minutes. The duo shot 11-of-22 from the field and 7-of-13 from deep.
- The duo of Smith and Loyer is now averaging 22.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game, having 102 assists against 43 turnovers (2.37 ratio).
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Zach Edey scored 30 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and helped a furious 12-0 run to start the second half as No. 1 Purdue rallied to defeat Penn State 76-63 before a sold-out crowd at the Palestra on Sunday night.
Fletcher Loyer scored 17 points while Braden Smith added 15 to help the Boilermakers improve to 15-1 overall.
"We had some good looks at the basket and good looks from the perimeter," Purdue head coach Matt Painter said. "Fletcher got some really good looks in the second half after not getting good ones in the first."
Despite Jalen Pickett's 26 points, Penn State (11-5, 2-3 Big Ten) fell to 0-13 lifetime when facing the top-ranked team in the nation.
"We have to be better," Penn State coach Micah Shrewsberry said.
Edey, a 7-foot-4 junior center, was a nightmare from the start for the Nittany Lions. He scored Purdue's first six points of the game, drew double teams most of the night and was able to move the ball from the low block.
Pickett scored 18 of his points in the first half, ending the session with an up and under shovel past Edey's outstretched arms, giving the Nittany Lions a 37-31 advantage at the halftime buzzer."They were hitting really tough shots, and they were knocking them down in the first half," Edey said. "They hit those scoop shots, so we just kept playing how we wanted to play and things would get better."
Purdue took the game over in the second half, shooting 66.7% from the floor (18 of 27). Edey scored 18 of his points in the second half while Loyer had 14 in the second half.
"We just kept sticking to what we wanted to do," Edey said. "We have really good shooters, and they were going down for them. But we started to knock shots down, that opened up some things in the post and we took advantage of it after that."
The Nittany Lions shot just 11 for 30 from the floor in the second half and 2 of 10 from beyond the 3-point arc. After the game, Shrewsberry expressed frustration about the officiating, which combined to award just three foul shots to the Lions and 10 overall.
"You get frustrated after a while because it's not a one-time thing - it's an every-time thing," said Shrewsberry, who drew a second-half technical foul. "We shot three free throws. It was a really physical game and the game didn't warrant 10 free throws. Both teams were fouling and if we want to be the best league in the country, then we need the officials to be the best in the country.
"This has nothing to do with Purdue, man. Purdue kicked our (butts) in the second half. That was all them. But I'm always going to fight for my guys."
BIG PICTURE
Purdue: Any team that will face the Boilermakers will have a matchup issue against Edey, who is dominating in the middle and able to move gracefully in the paint when needed.
Penn State: The Nittany Lions' bid to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 would have received a huge boost with a win over Purdue. They have two games against ranked teams in the next nine days — at home against No. 15 Indiana and a trip to No. 14 Wisconsin on Jan. 17 — that would go a long way to helping Penn State's resume.