Purdue Basketball to Host Incarnate Word December 21

Welcome home, Dr. Carson Cunningham! Also, welcome home, Ryne Smith.

The latest Purdue non-conference game for 2020-21 has been announced, and it will have some familiar names involved with it:

Head coach Matt Painter has announced that the Boilermakers will host Incarnate Word on Dec. 21, 2020, in Mackey Arena – Purdue’s final game before the Holiday break.

The Cardinals went 9-22 a year ago, but returns almost every key player from last year’s team. Their two leading scorers last season were freshmen, including Granger, Indiana, native Drew Lutz (11.6 PPG, 108 assists).

Incarnate Word’s head coach is former Purdue point guard Carson Cunningham (1999-01), while he is assisted by Ryne Smith, who played at Purdue from 2009-12.

The bitter, bitter rivals of Manifested Paragraph, Incarnate Word is still relatively new to Division I, having only moved up 2013. Carson Cunningham is only in year two with the Cardinals.

Purdue has played Incarnate Word before, beating them 96-61 during the 2015-16 season. Purdue had great balance that night with five players scoring in double figures. Isaac Haas had 17, Raphael Davis had 14, Vince Edwards had 13, Kendall Stephens had 12, and Caleb Swanigan had 10.

Incarnate Word fills the ninth known slot of the 11 non-conference games during the 2020-21 season. We know for sure there will be an ACC/Ten Challenge game, likely on the road since Purdue hosted Virginia last season. The 11th and final slot will almost certainly be a home game, either a buy game against a mid- to low-major or a home game in the Gavitt Games. Purdue has one game remaining on the Gavitt Games contract (it was originally for two home and two road games in 8 years) and it has already played its two road games (at Marquette in both 2017 and 2019). We basically have three years left to get the remaining game at home.

TBD - Rider

TBD - Yale

TBD - ACC/Big Ten Challenge (likely road game)

TBD - Potential Gavitt Games (home game)

November 10 vs. Evansville

November 13 vs. Indiana State

November 24 vs. Illinois State, Clemson, or Mississippi State (Cancun Challenge)

November 25 vs. Illinois State, Clemson, or Mississippi State (Cancun Challenge)

December 13 vs. West Virginia (Barclay’s Center, Brooklyn, NY)

December 19 vs. Notre Dame (Crossroads Classic, Bankers Life Fieldhouse)

December 21 vs. Incarnate Word