WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – An extra period of basketball, an all-around performance by Jeanae Terry and a career-high 25 points from Mary Ashley Stevenson guided the Purdue women's basketball team to a 77-72 overtime win over Illinois on Monday night. The win marked the Boilermakers' 500th victory at Mackey Arena.
Terry narrowly missed out on her third career triple-double, going for 14 assists, nine points and nine assists in a complete-game 45-minute effort. The Detroit native etched her name into the Purdue record book in multiple spots with the second most assist in a game in Purdue history. Terry became the seventh player in Purdue history to join the 500-assist club.
Stevenson had a career night in 35 minutes of action, going 8-of-15 from the floor and 9-of-9 at the line, including a pair with six seconds left in overtime to put the game out of reach. Her 25 points were the most by a Purdue freshman since Courtney Moses' 26-point outing at Texas A&M in 2010.
Caitlyn Harper was an efficient 6-of-9 from the field for 16 points, while Madison Layden added 14 points and five rebounds.
Purdue (10-12, 3-8) shot 40.8% and went 4-of-19 from behind the arc, while finishing 15-of-18 at the line. The Boilermakers matched their season high with 42 points in the paint.
On the glass, Illinois (10-11, 4-7) won the rebounding battle 47-40. Illinois grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, but Purdue's defense surrendered just eight second chance points. The Boilermakers tallied 15 points on 14 second chance opportunities.
Led by Terry's 14 helpers, Purdue dished out 19 assists on 29 made field goals. The Boilermakers committed just 10 turnovers that turned into nine points for the Illini.
The Boilermakers dominated in the opening 20 minutes shooting an even 50%. Terry nearly powered a triple-double with six points, five rebounds and seven assists in the first half. Stevenson tallied eight points and three boards.
Purdue worked the ball inside to score 22 points, while surrendering just six. Despite being outrebounded 20-17, Purdue gave up just three points on seven Illinois offensive rebounds. The Boilermakers held Illinois to just 8-of-31 shooting in the first half and 1-of-10 from behind the arc.
Fueled by 10 points, the Boilermakers built up a 14-point lead midway through the third. Illinois punched back with a 12-2 run that cut the gap to four at 48-44. Stevenson and Layden both converted contested layups to extend the lead back to 52-44 heading into the fourth.
Purdue opened the fourth on a 9-4 run to lead 61-48 with 5:57 to play. Illinois fought back with a 16-3 run to tie the game at 64-64 with nine seconds left. Terry's last-second layup attempt just missed, sending the game to overtime.
In the extra period, Stevenson scored Purdue's first four points as the two sides traded the lead. A backdoor layup by Layden followed by a corner triple from Harper put the Boilermakers up by four with 49 seconds to play. Free throws by Layden and Stevenson sealed the win late. Purdue was 6-of-8 at the line in overtime, while holding Illinois to 3-of-9 shooting.
NOTES
• Purdue leads the all-time series with Illinois 66-18. The Boilermakers are 4-0 against the Illini under head coach Katie Gearlds.
• Purdue's first win at Mackey Arena, as well as the first win in program history, came against Illinois on Dec. 2, 1975.
• The Boilermakers played their first overtime game since Dec. 5, 2022, at Michigan State, a 76-71 win.
• Purdue has won its last three Fight Like a Boilermaker Pink games.
• Terry's 14-assist performance matched Lisa Jahner's effort against Michigan in 1987.
• Abbey Ellis tallied five points to pull her within 11 points of joining the 1,000-point club as a Boilermaker.
• Terry is now 19 points away from 1,000 for her career.
• Madison Layden needs 57 points to join the 1,000-point club for her career.
• Stevenson is the first Purdue freshman with 200 points and 115 rebounds in a season since Ae'Rianna Harris in 2016-17.
• Stevenson's 9-for-9 mark at the line was the first perfect performance by a Boilermaker rookie with nine or more free throws since KK Houser went 13-of-13 at Penn State in 2010.
• Monday's game featured 10 lead changes and two ties.
UP NEXT
The Boilermakers will travel to Bloomington on Sunday to the away leg of their season series with No. 14 Indiana. Tipoff at Assembly Hall is set for 2 p.m. on B1G+.