No. 3 Purdue storms out of East Lansing with a 64-63 win
The Purdue Boilermakers head to the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan to take on hometown Michigan State Spartans in a showdown for first place in the Big Ten.
The No. 3 Boilermakers, who pulled off a dominant win over Nebraska on Friday night, have an impressive 16-1 record so far this season, including ranked wins over Ohio State, Duke and Gonzaga. The preseason favorites in the Big Ten enter the competition on Monday with a 5-1 record in conference, with the only loss coming at home to a surprise Rutgers team. Purdue is led by 7-foot, 4-star center Zach Edey. Edey, the clear favorite for international player of the year, is averaging more than 21.3 points and 13.2 rebounds per game before going into Monday’s matchup. Freshman Fletcher Loyer is second at the Boilers in standings, averaging 13.2 points and 2.4 three-pointers made per game. Loyer, now Purdue’s all-time record holder for a season for three-pointers made as a freshman, has made a couple of big shots for Purdue this year, including a late go-ahead three-game in Purdue’s win over Ohio State.
📈 Chart-topping night for @FletcherLoyer. pic.twitter.com/VyGqqsLWKo
— Purdue Men’s Basketball (@BoilerBall) January 14, 2023
Michigan State suffered a heavy loss in Friday’s away game against Illinois. The Spartans have played their last two games outside the Breslin Center’s friendly confines, with a win in Wisconsin preceding Friday’s loss. 4-2 in the Big Ten, Sparty has a chance to enter a tie for first place in the conference with a win on Monday, underscoring their improvement over the past few weeks in which they’ve won seven of their last eight games. Michigan State is finding success with its balanced scoring offense. They have three players (Tyson Walker, Joey Hauser and AJ Hoggard) averaging over 10 points per game and a fourth (Malik Hall) averaging 9.9 points per game.
This will mark the 44th time these two teams have met, with Michigan State leading the all-time streak 26-17, including a 15-4 Spartans home field advantage. Despite Michigan State’s overall dominance, Purdue has maintained the advantage lately, winning five of their last six encounters, capped by a 75-70 win by Boilermaker in the semifinals of last year’s Big Ten tournament.
This game is scheduled for Monday afternoon at 2:30pm ET. This weekday matinee will highlight a Martin Luther King Jr. Day chalkboard featuring three ranked teams, including Purdue in action. The game will be broadcast on FOX.
