Led by Braden Smith, top-ranked Purdue showcases offensive depth against Iowa

WEST LAFAYETTE – Any question if Purdue’s loss to Indiana was going to linger was answered quickly.

Despite a turnover on the first possession, freshman guards Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer delivered an early knockout punch as the top-ranked Boilermakers closed out Iowa 87-73 before another sellout crowd at Mackey Arena.

Smith and Loyer hit three 3-pointers before the first media timeout and connected on 5 of 7 field goals as Purdue built a double-digit lead. After the Hawkeyes scored after the first turnover, the Boilermakers went on a 19-2 run.

Smith finished with a career-high 24 points, including 12 of his team’s first 18 points to start the second half. Loyer added 17 points and Mason Gillis and Caleb Furst – the team’s power forwards – combined for 21 points – including three 3-pointers. Furst scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Gillis added 10 points.

“He’s terrific,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said about Smith. “Everybody else is and it’s not just him. Everybody on the team is good. Everybody they bring in is really good. That’s why they’re ranked No. 1.”

Purdue led 38-21 at halftime and thanks to Smith, it increased the margin to 21 points with 17:36 to play. The Hawkeyes, though, found their shooting touch in the second half, hitting 17 of their first 22 shots to cut the margin to 70-62 with 7:10 to play.

Purdue’s turnover issues brought Iowa back into the game, committing 12 of its 17 in the second half.

Zach Edey helped close out Thursday’s game with back-to-back baskets after the Hawkeyes pulled within 70-64. After the second basket, a dunk, Edey sprinted to the other end and blocked a shot. Edey finished with 14 points, 14 rebounds and tied a season-high with four assists.

PDF: Purdue-Iowa stats | Stat Blast | Wrap Video

‘I WISH HE WOULD SHOOT MORE’

As last year’s Indiana Mr. Basketball lined up a 3-point attempt from the wing just two minutes into Thursday’s game, Matt Painter started pumping his fist.

Painter sensed Smith was going to connect and the Boilermakers would be on their way to putting the Hawkeyes in a double-digit hole.

It was the first of four 3-pointers for Smith.

“I wish he would shoot more,” Painter said. “Since Day 1, I told him that – shoot the basketball. If they want to go under ball screens, stop and shoot it. He’s a 40-45% 3-point shooter. It makes sense to do it.”

It continued to make sense for Smith, whose second-half takeover helped Purdue expand its lead, despite running out of gas during the first seven minutes after halftime.

Smith did everything. He scored. He broke the press. He found his teammates for better shots. He attacked the rim. But was nearly running on fumes before the first media timeout of the second half.

“I think that’s how they play defense the whole game and I’ve got to get over it at some point,” Smith said. “Just trying to keep a positive mindset and trying to break that press.”

Smith was coming off a 1 of 8 shooting game in the loss to Indiana but quickly found his rhythm against the Hawkeyes. He connected on a jumper before the first 3-pointer and added his second basket from beyond the arc to give the Boilermakers a 10-2 lead.

He had 10 points in the first half but exploded for 12 points in the first five minutes to start the second half.

“I feel like I go out there and attack the game the same way,” Smith said. “Shots fell and that’s how it went. With shots being able to fall, obviously, confidence goes up a little bit and that’s what was happening.”

It’s not a negative that Smith is looking to involve his teammates in the offense as much as possible, especially with Edey dominating inside. But the Boilermakers need production from Smith and Loyer as the postseason approaches.

“Take your open shots,” Painter said. “Be aggressive with it. He likes getting everybody involved. He has really good instincts but at times he doesn’t play off his instincts and he’s just thinking about getting everyone involved.”

‘WE HAVE A REALLY DEEP TEAM’

While Edey finished with another double double, he had only four points before hitting two free throws with 8:19 to play.

Purdue had reached the 68-point mark without the leading candidate for National Player of the Year carrying the load on the offensive end. Edey did a lot of things to impact Thursday’s game but the production from his teammates is another example of how well-rounded the Boilermakers are.

“It’s cool to see but it’s not surprising,” said Edey, who was 4 of 7 from the field but 6 of 6 from the line. “They’ve been doing this type of thing all year. They want to limit my post touches, we have a bunch of guys that can step up. We have a really deep team. We have a lot of guys that can hurt you.”

Edey did a lot of other things besides score. He blocked five shots, including swatting Ahron Ulis’ jumper into the stands to force a shot clock violation, and his four assists created opportunities for everyone else.

“Be a great passer and help your team,” Painter said. “Four assists – a couple of hockey assists too, but he got it out there to make that next pass.”

Gillis and Furst stretch the defense with their perimeter shooting and Loyer has shown his versatility of scoring from outside or attacking the rim.

The Boilermakers had too much balance for the Hawkeyes, especially when they doubled Edey.

“Our anticipations and rotations were not good enough,” McCaffery said. “It’s hard. They’re a team that is very unselfish. They move it, they share it. There’s no selfishness at all with this team. You’ve got a lot of ground to cover when you’re doubling because now you have three guarding four.”

REBOUNDS OVER TURNOVERS

It’s a familiar theme when the Boilermakers face the Hawkeyes.

Turnovers against the press.

Purdue committed 17, including 12 in the second half. Two of them were 10-second violations but the Boilermakers were sloppy and careless at times. Iowa pounced on the mistakes, hitting shots and getting the opportunity to set its defense.

Although Thursday was another high-turnover game, Purdue is 3-1 against the Hawkeyes the last two seasons. The Boilermakers are averaging 16.5 turnovers in the last four meetings.

What Purdue did on the boards, holding a 43-23 advantage, trumps the turnovers.

“Not going to apologize for beating a six seed in the NCAA tournament by 14 points,” Painter said. “First thing I told our guys, ‘We outrebounded them by 20’ because everyone is going to talk about those turnovers. Sure, you don’t want to turn the basketball over but we also worked really hard to be a great position.

“It doesn’t mean we’re trying to relax. We simply couldn’t stop them, but the good news was they couldn’t stop us either.”