Late free throws help No. 5 Purdue outlast Wisconsin, celebrate Big Ten outright title

MADISON, Wis. – Midway through the first half Thursday night, Purdue won the outright Big Ten championship when Illinois outlasted Michigan in double overtime.

None of the Boilermakers knew the outcome, but coach Matt Painter was curious. So, he asked.

“I wish I could lie to you,” Painter said after the 63-61 victory over Wisconsin.  “I’m nosey that way.”

Fifth-ranked Purdue was able to celebrate the outright championship on its own terms by hitting 9 of 10 free throws in the final 3:45 to wrestle the game away from the Badgers, whose NCAA tournament chances took a big hit with the loss.

Zach Edey, Brandon Newman and Braden Smith combined for eight free throws down the stretch. Ethan Morton made 1 of 2 with 4.4 seconds left but the Badgers’ last 3-point attempt didn’t reach the rim.

The Boilermakers continued their struggles from the 3-point line but produced enough inside the arc to keep Wisconsin from pulling away after burying 10 3-pointers. The Badgers hit Purdue with an 11-3 run to start the second half and built a 41-36 lead with 14:20 to play.

Edey finished with 17 points and 19 rebounds and Fletcher Loyer found his midrange game and totaled 13 points on 6 of 11 shooting. Edey didn’t want to know the result of the Michigan-Illinois game.

“Not at all,” he said.

Max Klesmit had 19 points, including three 3-pointers, and gave Wisconsin its last lead at 57-56 with 3:30 remaining before the Boilermakers sealed the victory at the line. Tyler Wahl and Steven Crowl combined for seven points on 3 of 16 shooting.

Painter, who was soaked with water in the locker room after the win, didn’t mention the Michigan-Illinois outcome to his players after he heard the score.

“It’s nothing you talk to your team about. Our goal was to beat Wisconsin,” he said.

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ONE YEAR AGO

From Newman’s perspective, it was fitting the Boilermakers won the conference championship inside the Kohl Center. Chucky Hepburn’s banked 3-pointer last season gave the Badgers the championship and denied Purdue an opportunity to claim the title.

“It’s a great feeling,” Newman said. “We wanted to win it on our home floor in front of our fans, but it didn’t go that way. We made a point to come out and get a win here tonight.

“A year ago, they beat us to win the Big Ten title. We were one game away from winning it. It was a blessing in disguise to lose to IU at home and come here and win it outright.”

The 20-game Big Ten season started with a pair of wins over Minnesota and Nebraska but the Boilermakers stumbled at home against Rutgers. A nine-game winning streak ensued, starting with a come-from-behind victory at Ohio State, as Purdue established itself as the frontrunner for the league title.

“You see guys like Mason (Gillis) and Brandon and guys that have been around the program that haven’t gotten one yet,” Loyer said. “To do that for them and also the coaches and then us as players, it feels good to get that done.

“It’s one goal we wanted to accomplish but we’ve got a few more games and we’ve got other stuff to win. We’re going to be ready.”

Based on the results around the league earlier in the week, the Boilermakers had already wrapped up the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tournament prior to Thursday’s game.

NEWMAN’S ENERGY REWARDED

Painter made two changes to the starting lineup after the Indiana loss.

He moved Gills into the first five and inserted Newman for Morton. Newman was coming off a energized performance against Indiana and Painter and his staff wanted to capitalize on his momentum.

“We thought we needed that,” Painter said. “Someone who going to be out there and laying it on the line competing and you saw that in the first half with a couple of those steals. He wanted the basketball at the end to shoot the free throws.”

Newman missed all five 3-point attempts but had two steals that led to layups for the junior and also pulled down five rebounds. He was part of the parade to the line, hitting a pair with 21.5 seconds to play with Purdue holding a one-point lead.

“That’s the position you want to be in,” said Newman, who finished with seven points. “That’s what you work for. I had a lot more confidence in myself at the line. I knew I was going to make both. That’s how bad I wanted to win a ring.”

‘I JUST HAD TO GET GOING’

Loyer looked comfortable from the opening tip, hitting a pair of shots to begin the trend of turning around his recent shooting performances. It was Loyer’s first game shooting 50% or better since Jan. 29 against Michigan State.

“I never lost it. I knew it was there. I just had to get going and I had to get good looks at it and just practicing,” Loyer said. “I felt good to see the first two go down and with that, no matter if I made the first two, they were going to keep swinging it to me. I’ve got to be aggressive.”

Painter ran specific actions for Loyer to allow the Homestead graduate to get to his spots where he’s comfortable.

“He’s gotten to them before and he hasn’t made as many,” Painter said. “They were in a total drop and if you can go hard off it and they drop, you’re going to be able to get to your pull-up, if we can set a good enough screen to get his man off of him. That’s the combination right there – getting that guy off with a good ball screen.”