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The Boilermakers made their way to the Lowcountry in Charleston, South Carolina for the Charleston Classic and took care of business in their first round match-up against Appalachian State 92-70.
The Boilers showed off a recipe they hope to follow all year: a dash of defense and a whole of Carsen Edwards to their third straight win to start the season. The #24 Boilermakers started strong, jumping out to a 23-7 lead after an Aaron Wheeler three-pointer. But it was Purdue’s defense that kept the game in double-digits for the rest of the half. Purdue forced Appalachian State into 11 first half turnovers and 10-24 shooting from the floor.
The second half started in the same way most the game went with Carsen Edwards putting on a show and making a long three from extra distance. The National Player of the Year candidate would finish the game with 25 points on on 9 of 16 shooting to go along with 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Edwards did his damage early, playing 28 minutes, but sitting the last half of the second half as Purdue built a 20+ point lead late.
Ryan Cline continues to thrive as the Robin to Carsen Edwards Batman. He knocked down two early threes and continued to be aggressive, attacking the hoop and finishing at the rim with a couple nifty left-handed layups. He would finish the game with 21 points, making 4 of his 8 three-pointers, while assisting a season-low 3 assists.
Nojel Eastern continues to bounce back from a bad first game of the season by scoring in double-digits for the second time in two games.
Matt Haarms was the only other Boiler in double figures. He scored 10 points in just 20 minutes of action. He made the most of his time on the floor defensively with four blocks, three of them coming in back to back defensive possessions. His fourth block was a volleyball style spike into the front row that sent the mostly Purdue crowd into a frenzy.
The Boilermaker victory will set up a semi-final match-up with the winner of the Wichita St.-Davidson taking place immediately after the Purdue-Appalachian State game.
Purdue will play that winner Friday, November 16th at 6:30 pm. The winner of that will play in the championship on Sunday.