Purdue 105, SIUe 74: The Season Opens

Ask our friends down south, you just want to survive your first game of the season.

The Purdue Boilermakers did more than that with a 105-74 win over SIU Edwardsville. After a slow first couple minutes, Purdue’s offense kicked into gear and proved too much for the Cougars. It was a balance attack from the start with 8 players scoring in the first half. The versatility went beyond scoring, with 8 Boilermakers finishing with an assist in the game as well.

Balance was key, between young and old. Five Boilermakers scored in double figures. The Boilers made 9 of their 19 three-point attempts while holding the Cougars to 38% shooting from the floor.

Julian Torres led the Cougars with 20 points by knocking down all four of his three point shots before fouling out.

Purdue started off sloppy, turning the ball over six times in the first half and giving up 17 offensive rebounds. They would finish with 11 turnovers for the game and losing the rebounding game 40-39.

Dakota Mathias led the team with 18 points, making both his three points attempts and all six of his free throws - tying a career high in attempts all in the first ten minutes of the game.

Isaac Haas and Carsen Edwards would add 16 points a piece, and Vincent Edwards would score 14 points.

Haarms is ahead of schedule:

The Dutch freshman did not appear to have any nerves in his first collegiate action. In fact, he looked like he’s ready to provide big minutes off the bench for this Boilermaker team from day one. He connected on his first five shots from the field, including a turn around bank shot and a catch and drive that he finished with his off-hand. Haarms finished with a unicorn like state line: 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks and 2 steals.

The Other freshman is pretty good, too:

Nojel Eastern is unlike anything we’ve seen at Purdue. The 6’6 freshman led the team in assists with 8. He scored 8 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. His length was a constant pest to opposing guards and he was able to create easy looks for his bigs inside. He made both of his free throws and pushed the ball up the floor on a team that’s going to want to run this year.

In Edwards we trust:

The not brothers Edwards, Carsen and Vincent, continue to lead the way for the Boilermakers. Carsen had 16 points on 11 shot attempts and got the line 7 times. He recorded a highlight block in the first half and had a steal, got two assists, and knocked down 2 of his 5 three-pionters. Vincent had 15 points, made 1 of his two three-point attempts and connected on all five of his free throw attempts. They played 23 and 24 minutes respectively.

Can someone just grab a rebound?

The Boilermakers struggled on the defensive glass. Int he first half alone, SIUe had 17 offensive rebounds. The Boilers would tighten up ship in the second half, but rebounding is the major concern for this team. Their inability to grab a defensive rebound late was a major reason they were unable to grab gold in the World University Games. SIUe would outrebound Purdue 40-39 overall for the game.

Purdue will play Chicago State Sunday at 4 pm, November 12th.