No. 21 Purdue beats IUPUI for Painter's 300th victory (Dec 10, 2017)
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) Carsen Edwards helped Matt Painter reach a coaching milestone.
The sophomore guard scored a career-high 27 points and No. 21 Purdue beat IUPUI 86-61 on Sunday night for Painter's 300th victory.
''When you can't make a jumper, just go to the basket,'' Edwards said. ''That's what I was trying to do because I couldn't get a jumper to fall so I thought if I'd attack the basket, I'd get fouled and make some lay-ups, so I just tried to keep attacking.''
Isaac Haas added 14 points and six rebounds, and Vincent Edwards had 12 points and 12 rebounds to help the Boilermakers (10-2) win their sixth straight game.
Maurice Kirby had 16 points for IUPUI (2-6), and Jaylen Minnett added 12 points. The Jaguars who have lost four straight.
Purdue closed out the first half on a 6-0 spurt, capped by P.J. Thompson's 3-pointer just before the buzzer that made it 40-31. The Boilermakers opened the second with a 14-0 run, including seven straight points by Carsen Edwards.
Haas' layup with 16:31 to play put Purdue ahead 54-31 - before IUPUI finally scored again on a lay-up by Kirby.
The Jaguars got off to a good start, though, and took an early lead. Nick Rogers made a 3-pointer and D.J. McCall scored a lay-up - both off Purdue turnovers - and by halftime, IUPUI had 13 points off eight turnovers.
''Tonight we made a couple poor decisions to start the game and it kind of set the tone for them,'' Painter said. ''They made a couple nice plays.''
CLINE FROM BEHIND THE LINE
Ryan Cline is starting to get in a little bit of a rhythm. After a slow start to the season, the junior guard is a combined 10-of-16 from the field and 8-of-12 from 3-point range. He finished with nine points on 3-of-5 shooting, all from 3-point range, with two big 3s coming late in the first half when the Boilermakers pulled away.
`TIS THE SEASON FOR WINNING
The Boilermakers have won 13 straight games in the month of December. The last loss in December came against Butler in the annual Crossroads Classic on Dec. 19, 2015.
BIG PICTURE
IUPUI: They're 0-3 in the short series with Purdue. Against Big Ten opponents, the Jaguars' last win came against Northwestern, 56-53 on Nov. 27, 2002.
Purdue: After Thursday's win over Valparaiso, IUPUI was the second of a three-game stretch against in-state opponents. The Boilermakers have won five straight against teams from Indiana and hasn't lost to an in-state team since Feb. 20, 2016.
UP NEXT
IUPUI is off this week before heading to Washington State on Saturday for the second game three straight games on the road.
Purdue is off this week until a matchup with Butler in the Crossroads Classic at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
