Third-ranked Purdue pulls away from Wisconsin on Senior Day

Pregame festivities began Sunday with a twist—” O Canada,” paying tribute to Purdue’s favorite Canadian, who appeared in his last game at Mackey Arena.

Zach Edey was stoic as he looked at the arena’s videoboard showing the Canadian Flag, no doubt bursting with pride inside and reflecting on his journey to college basketball stardom before making his 100^th career start.

Here is Gene Keady proclaiming Mackey Arena, “Home to 26 Big Ten Championships,” during the hype video, acknowledging the latest title secured one week ago against Michigan State and finalized Tuesday by winning the outright crown at Illinois.

And it was Senior Day for the program’s six seniors, who have helped take the Boilermakers to new heights and destinations, including the No. 1 ranking for the first time.

With the conference title wrapped up, the No. 1 seed in the upcoming league tournament, and a top seed in the NCAA tournament coming soon, Sunday was about maintaining the momentum built up during one of the most successful regular seasons in program history.

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While the 78-70 victory over Wisconsin had its rough and uncomfortable moments, the physical battle was sloppy at times but provided enough highlights to springboard the third-ranked Boilermakers into the postseason.

The Badgers wouldn’t go away until Caleb Furst, Mason Gillis, Fletcher Loyer and Lance Jones connected on key – and timely – 3-pointers in the final 9:21. Jones’ 3-pointer with 2:24 to play gave Purdue a 76-62 lead provided the final dagger but the long-range shots from Furst, Gillis and Loyer prevented Wisconsin from closing the gap.

Braden Smith, who rolled his ankle and was helped off the floor but returned, flirted again with another triple-double, totaling 10 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.

Loyer continued his recent string of solid shooting, scoring 12 first-half points, including a four-point play that pushed Purdue to a 44-33 halftime advantage. The sophomore was 5 of 5 from the field, including two 3-pointers, and finished with 15 points.

And Edey brought the Boilermakers to the finish line with another double-double (25 points, 14 rebounds) to close out his tenure at Mackey Arena.

“I’LL REMEMBER FOREVER”

The Canadian National Anthem didn’t happen by accident.

“I’ve been trying to get them to do that for four years,” Edey said after the Senior Day ceremony where most of the 14,876 remained in their seats. “It was real cool. I had all my friends from Toronto, their first game here and they all got to experience it and share that with me. It’s something I’ll remember forever.”

Here’s something else to remember – Purdue’s senior class won its 59^th Big Ten game, tying the most league wins by a single class. They also finished 59-4 in Mackey Arena, including a 16-0 mark this season. The Boilermakers also set a program record with their 17th Big Ten victory.

It’s been a special journey, and not just for Edey.

Gillis planned on playing baseball growing up – he played in the Little League World Series in 2012 – but discovered his passion for basketball and developed into a high-level Division I player who is one of the nation’s top 3-point shooters. He was forced to redshirt his first season due to a knee injury in high school but maximized his time as a Boilermaker.

“A lot of people told me I should’ve stuck with baseball, I should’ve done this and that and the other,” Gillis said. “Those are the people that drove me. It was the people having my back but a lot of people telling me I can’t do this, I can’t do that.”

There’s Jones, the transfer from Southern Illinois who brought the Boilermakers more speed and athleticism during this championship season, an element missing last year.

But the human side of Jones was on display during the Senior Day ceremonies. He brought a picture of himself and his dad, Robert Jones, who passed away on Aug. 29, only a few months after joining the Boilermakers.

“I’m going to try and say this without getting emotional,” Jones said. “He’s the reason for everything. He wasn’t able to make it to my Senior Night last year due to him being sick. I wanted to honor him in a certain way. I know he’s with me in spirit, but it was something I had to do.”

For Edey, though, the day continued to get better.

His jersey number will now hang from the ceiling in Mackey Arena, along with other Purdue greats. The ceremony usually occurs after the player graduates and returns in a year or two.

Sunday was the right moment to unveil the honor.

“WE HAVE CLOSERS”

In the last two games, the Boilermakers have showcased a championship mindset.

At Illinois, Purdue made numerous big shots in the final minutes to overtake and hold off the Illini. On Sunday, the Boilermakers piggybacked one another with 3-pointers in the last nine minutes to prevent the Badgers from staging a comeback.

“We have a lot of guys that can lock in down the stretch,” said Edey, who rolled his ankle in the first half. “That’s the difference between good teams and great teams. We have closers. Everybody wants to take a shot at the end of the game, everybody wants the ball in their hands at the end of the game. No one is scared of the moment. That leads to separation at the end of the game.

“It was cool to see the way we showed our veteran abilities and pulled away.”

Furst’s basket put Purdue up by seven, Gillis’ 3 pushed the lead to eight, Loyer’s 3-pointer increased the margin to nine and Jones capped the barrage, giving the Boilermakers a 14-point lead.

On the surface, Purdue didn’t have much to play for Sunday. However, that wasn’t the case, knowing another sellout crowd—the 73rd straight—assembled for one final time this season.

“When you say we haven’t lost at Mackey, we did need this game,” Jones said. “We just want to have the right mindset and the right momentum going into the postseason. We have a goal that we’re working toward, but day in and day out, we have to put in that effort. I’m confident with our results.”

“THOSE 3s WERE BIG TIME”

Two sequences stand out in a game that had plenty.

But the first-half play was when Myles Colvin made a steal and flipped the ball to Gillis, who pushed it ahead to Smith, who found Loyer on the wing. Loyer drained the 3-pointer and was fouled, completing the rare four-point play. Purdue’s lead was eight before Loyer’s shot and eventually extended to 14 before the end of the first half.

Furst’s 3-pointer from the corner in front of the Purdue bench started the closing stretch. On the 3-pointer, the Badgers loaded up trying to defend Edey, leaving Furst open.

The left-handed Furst, who was 2 of 10 from 3-point range and 0 of 3 in Big Ten games, didn’t hesitate before the squaring up.

“That was great. Happy for Caleb that he made that shot. That’s what we’ve gotten sometimes when they overdo things. Those shots were huge. Getting a steal and leading to (Loyer’s 3) and Caleb making that. Those 3s were big time.”