One of the main concerns for Purdue head coach Matt Painter in the early stages of this season is his team’s ability to avoid turning the ball over. On Wednesday, Painter’s worst fears came true.
The 8th-ranked Purdue Boilermakers turned the ball over 24 times, their most this season, en route their second loss of the 2024-25 season, falling handily on the road to the Penn State Nittany Lions 81-70 in a contest where the score was much closer than the battle actually was. The game was the Big 10 opener for both squads.
Boilermakers Unable To Handle Penn State’s Defensive Pressure
Penn State’s head coach Mike Rhoades must have watched the game film of Purdue’s November 19 loss at Marquette to find the blueprint in beating Purdue. Undoubtedly, Rhoades figured that ferocious pressure on defense was the key, and was he ever correct.
As Marquette’s stifling defense showed on November 19, Penn State exposed Purdue, who was ill-equipped to handle 94 feet of pressure for the entire game. Against Marquette, the Boilermakers committed 15 turnovers; on Thursday, they gave the ball up 13 times in the first half alone.
In the first 20 minutes, the Nittany Lions’ pressure was unrelenting. However, because of their aggressiveness, they committed their seventh foul of the half 11:30 remaining, allowing the Boilermakers to shoot free throws on fouls the rest of the way.
Unfortunately for Purdue, they were unable to take advantage of this opportunity, only converting on six of their nine first-half free throws.
Purdue went on more than a five-minute dry spell, going scoreless from the 14:00 mark until Trey Kaufman-Renn finally hit a jumper with 8:51 remaining, breaking an 11-0 Penn State run that made the score 18-11 in favor of the Nittany Lions.
It did not stop there. Penn State kept rolling as the first half wound to an end, and they held a 40-24 lead at intermission, by far the largest halftime shortcoming Purdue faced this season.
The Second Half Simply A Repeat Of The First
In the second half, the Boilermakers suffered through much of the same treatment they received in the first half.
During a television time out with 15:48 to go, Painter argued with the referees about the perceived lack of calls on Kaufman-Renn, Purdue’s leading scorer. In turn, the officials issued Painter a technical foul, and the ensuing free throws made the score 52-32, which at the time, tied the largest deficit encountered by the Boilers this year, matching a similar differential in the Marquette game.
See Also: Video of Matt Painter’s Technical Foul vs. Penn State
Penn State’s Freddie Dillione V nailed a jumper to make the score 65-38, and although there was still 10:26 remaining to play, the final outcome of a Nittany Lions victory was becoming increasingly clear. Only when Purdue outscored Penn State by 12 over the final 3:31 did it make the final score look a bit more respectable.
Purdue has little time to wallow in their sorrow. The Maryland Terrapins, who are flying high following a 83-59 thumping of Ohio State on Wednesday, roll into West Lafayette on Sunday for a noon tip.
