Purdue 81, Indiana 69 - Assembly Fall, Again

Trevion Williams might just marking himself as one of the best big men in Purdue history.

Coach Painter might just making himself a marked man in Bloomington. The Purdue coach continued his southern dominance by winning his fourth straight in Assembly Hall, as the Boilers win 81-69 on a night where they finally got hot from behind the arc.

It was a welcomed sight and a winning formula, the Boilers knocked down 11 of 17 three-pointers after struggling for much of Big Ten play with the long ball.

Eric Hunter Jr. led the way with three threes on four attempts after struggling mightily over the last few games. Jaden Ivey, the true freshman who hadn’t hit a three since Christmas knocked down both of his attempts.

Purdue’s two sharp shooters, Sasha Stefanovic and Brandon Newman, also knocked down two three-pointers.

Indiana was able to keep it closer than it probably should have been. The Hoosiers struggled from the field, making just three 3 pointers on 18 shots, and shot 43.9 percent overall, but Purdue continued to give the ball up, a lot, and it led to a monster 23-9 points off turnover advantage for the Hoosiers.

But Hoosiers had no response for Trevion Williams and very little offense besides Trayce Jackson-Davis.

Williams continues his absolute steamrolling of the Big Ten. The big man dropped 22 points while notching 10 rebounds for another double-double. He needed only 15 points and would have had an even bigger night if it wasn’t for a 4-9 performance from the free throw line.

Jackson-Davis was everything he was billed to be, using his left-hand and quick feet to get by Williams and drop 25 points.

But Purdue found a balance scoring attack that was enough to respond to any Hoosier run and make up for the turnovers. Brandon Newman had 12 points and knocked down all 6 of his free throws, including clutch late ones that helped close off the game. Eric Hunter Jr. dropped 11 points and turned his recent poor shooting performance around, adding in 4 assists.

Jaden Ivey had his first taste of the in-state rivalry and the true freshman showed the flashes of brilliance that might help sway the rivalry going forward. He had 13 points while taking just four shots, knocking down both of his three-pointers - both clutch late pull up threes that kept Purdue’s lead intact and extending it in the second half. He attacked the basket continuously, getting to the line 7 times.

It will be a disappointing loss for IU that hasn’t won against their in-state rival. This is now 8 straight wins and 11 of the last 12 for Purdue. Archie Miller has continued to stay winless against Coach Painter and the Boilers.

Purdue has now racked up two big wins in a row in the Big Ten with a winnable home game against Penn State on Sunday at Mackey Arena.