Hot-shooting Boilermakers cruise to 96-61 victory over Incarnate Word
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Isaac Haas scored 17 points and Purdue shot 72 percent from the field during a 53-point first half Wednesday night to rout Incarnate Word 96-61 in a Hall of Fame Tipoff game.
The Boilermakers (3-0) made 11 of their first 12 two-point attempts and finished the first 20 minutes 17 of 19 (89.5 percent) inside the arc.
A 3-pointer from Kyle Hittle with 8:54 left in the half pulled Incarnate Word (2-1) to within 22-17, but during the final 8:38, the Boilermakers outscored the Cardinals 31-7, building a 53-24 lead at intermission.
Rapheal Davis, who finished with 14, had 11 first-half points, and Haas added 10 to go with seven rebounds. Vince Edwards finished with 13, Kendall Stephens had 12 and Caleb Swanigan finished with 10.
The appearance was the first this season for the 7-foot A.J. Hammons, who was benched for the first two games for reasons coach Matt Painter would not specify. Hammons entered the game with 14:22 remaining in the first half. He had six points and four rebounds in his first six minutes.
A dunk by Edwards with 15:37 remaining pushed the Boilermakers' lead to 66-26.
Hittle led Incarnate Word with 17 points, including five 3-pointers.
Through three games, Purdue is 39 of 88 from 3-point range (44.3 percent) and is averaging 94.7 points.
TIP-INS
Incarnate Word: Before facing Purdue, Hittle was averaging a team-leading 14 points ... Six Cardinals came in averaging between 8.5 and 14 points .... In its first Division I season, Incarnate Word was 18-11, including victories against Nebraska and Princeton, and earned a spot in the College Insider postseason tournament.
Purdue: By defeating the Cardinals, the Boilermakers improved to 36-1 in November home games in Painter's 11 seasons at his alma mater.
UP NEXT
Incarnate Word: at Oklahoma on Nov. 24
Purdue: versus Old Dominion on Saturday in Uncasville, Connecticut
