Zach Edey matches season-high 35 points; No. 4 Purdue beats Alabama, 92-86
Zach Edey matched his season-high with 35 points, Braden Smith had a season-high 27 and No. 4 Purdue rallied to beat Alabama, 92-86, in Toronto on Saturday.
In front of a pro-Purdue crowd that included several of his friends and family, Edey played in his home city for the first time since 2016-17, when he was a sophomore in high school.
The senior center finished 11 for 11 at the free throw line and shot 12 for 20 from the field. He finished with seven rebounds.
Smith shot 9 for 20 and had eight assists for Purdue, which has won 32 straight nonconference regular-season games.
The Boilermakers connected on 24 of 28 free-throw attempts.
Zach Edey DOMINATES with 35 points in Purdue's win over Alabama
Mark Sears scored a season-high 35 points for Alabama, going 8 for 16 from 3-point range, but the Crimson Tide lost for the third time in six games. Alabama has not won consecutive games since starting the season 4-0.
Purdue took its first lead of the game, 62-60, on a 3-pointer by Mason Gillis with 11:24 left in the second half. After Alabama missed, Smith capped a 12-0 run with another 3, putting the Boilermakers up 65-60.
Sears connected on four of six attempts from long range in the first half, when 13 of Alabama’s 15 made baskets were 3-pointers. The Crimson Tide led 49-47 at the intermission.
Alabama scored the first eight points of the game and led 19-9 before Edey converted a three-point play, his first basket of the afternoon.
Purdue made 14 of 17 free throws in the opening half, with Edey going 6 for 6 at the line and scoring 18 points to keep the Boilermakers close.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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