On paper, it was the game of the weekend — a top-15 matchup between two teams led by reigning conference players of the year. In reality, it was more lopsided than most buy games.
Final score: Purdue 86, Texas Tech 56.
The Boilermakers led by 23 points at the half, increased that advantage to 33 after the break and won the game by 30. It was as dominant of a performance as anybody has produced against a ranked opponent this season. For the game, Purdue shot 59% from the field and 57% from 3-point range. At one point, the Boilermakers were on a rare-in-basketball 20-0 run.
“They didn’t score to start the second half for a while, and Oscar [Cluff] is just getting every rebound, and that’s demoralizing to the other team when they’re struggling, and now they can’t get some second-chance opportunities,” explained Purdue coach Matt Painter.
With the win, Purdue is 6-0, with two victories over top-35 KenPom.com teams, and still second in Saturday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, where Arizona remains No. 1 for the third consecutive day. Arizona is 5-0 — but the Wildcats have better victories, specifically three wins over top-20 KenPom teams, namely UConn, Florida and UCLA.
If you require an explanation for why I have Arizona ahead of Purdue, that’s it. But here’s a prediction: On Monday, I’m assuming the Boilermakers will keep their No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25 poll following their 30-point beatdown of Texas Tech. And though that obviously wouldn’t line up with the Top 25 And 1, to be clear, I have no issue with it whatsoever. Purdue is great, and there is nothing silly or misguided about having the Boilermakers ranked first anywhere even if, yes, at this moment, it’s pretty clear Arizona has the sport’s best body of work.
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Now back to Purdue.
In addition to dominance, and excellence, the Boilermakers showed real balance against Texas Tech. With a little more than 11 minutes remaining, and the score sitting at 61-36, Purdue’s five starters had the following point totals:
By the time it was over, seven different Boilermakers had scored in double-figures. Cluff, the transfer from South Dakota State, led everybody with 15 points and 15 rebounds, seven of which were offensive. Two more offensive rebounds, and he would’ve matched the number Texas Tech’s entire roster recorded in the game.
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