In the latest edition of this heated in-state rivalry, Indiana got the best of No. 13 Purdue, 73-58, using a dominant stretch to start the second half to secure the victory.
The Boilermakers took a 12-point lead into halftime, but that didn’t faze the Hoosiers, who opened the second half with a stunning 28-3 run to take a 13-point lead.
From there, Indiana never looked back, cruising to its fourth straight victory over Purdue during Mike Woodson’s tenure at his alma mater.
The Hoosiers shot 28-of-54 from the field, including just 4-of-19 from 3-point range, while Purdue went 20-of-47 overall and 7-of-16 from deep.
Malik Reneau and Trey Galloway each scored 15 to lead Indiana, while Purdue’s Fletcher Loyer had a game-high 20 points in the losing effort.
This was truly a tale of two halves—Purdue controlled the first, but Indiana’s second-half explosion had Assembly Hall roaring like it hadn’t in quite some time.
With that, here’s how it happened in what turned out to be a major boost to Indiana’s NCAA tournament hopes:
IU FALLS BEHIND AT THE BREAK AFTER POOR END TO THE 1ST HALF
At the half, Indiana found itself down big, trailing the Boilermakers 37-25 after 20 minutes of play.
The Hoosiers simply couldn't find any sort of outside shot, while Purdue hit 6 of 11 3-pointers in the half, allowing the Boilers to end the period with all the momentum.
IU shot 12 of 29 for the half and made just one of its 11 3-point attempts, while Purdue shot 14 of 27 from the floor in the first.
Loyer led the Boilermakers with nine first-half points, aided by his 2-of-2 mark from deep. Myles Colvin and Trey Kaufman-Renn followed with eight points each in the opening half, while Braden Smith scored seven and dished out four assists in the first 20 minutes.
The first four minutes of the game were choppy due to a foul review involving Anthony Leal and Caleb Furst, though IU got going right after the under-16 media timeout. The Hoosiers took a six-point lead with 11:34 left in the half due to their dominance in the paint early on.
While it seemed like IU was building momentum, Purdue fought back. The Boilers tied the game just four minutes after IU took its six-point lead, silencing Indiana's home crowd after it had really started getting into it in the opening minutes.
After that, the Boilermakers kept scoring while the Hoosiers continued to struggle offensively. Indiana couldn't figure out how to score outside of the paint, and it paid for it with Purdue's 21-4 run to end the half.
Twenty of Indiana's 25 points came in the paint, and the Hoosiers found some early success getting the ball down low to Reneau and Oumar Ballo, but the Boilers caught on quickly. After that, Indiana’s first-half offense was no match for what Purdue was throwing at them.
Reneau scored a solid eight points in the first half, while Ballo contributed four in the same time frame.
The Hoosiers looked lost for the final eight-plus minutes of the opening half, while Purdue made 6 of its final 7 shots from downtown, giving the Boilers a ton of momentum heading into the second half.
HOOSIERS ROAR BACK AND DOMINATE THE 2ND HALF
Purdue may have had the momentum going into the half, but Indiana took that and made one of the most emphatic turnarounds this program has ever seen.
IU turned a 12-point deficit into a 13-point lead in just eight minutes and three seconds of game time, as both its offense and defense played the best stretch of basketball Hoosier fans have seen all season.
It started with a Myles Rice second-chance 3-pointer and back-to-back Boilermaker turnovers that led to consecutive fast-break baskets, but it didn’t stop there.
After a Purdue timeout and layup to get its lead back to seven, Galloway made a layup, and Luke Goode hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to two before the under-16 media break.
After the timeout, Indiana really started dominating, immediately tying it up with a Reneau dunk. It then took the lead on a Goode three-point play that followed a single Purdue free throw.
Now, with the lead, the Hoosiers started putting it on Purdue. They went on a run that finished as a dominant 14-0 stretch. It included layups from Rice and Reneau, followed by a three-point play by Reneau, and capped off by another Rice layup and a Goode transition goaltend basket.
This gave Indiana a 53-40 lead just eight minutes after it found itself down by double digits, with both the offense and defense responsible for this incredibly dominant stretch.
Indiana forced six Purdue turnovers that led to 14 of the 28 points scored during the Hoosiers’ 28-3 run to begin the half. The defense was sensational, swarming the Boilermakers at every turn and leaving Matt Painter’s team looking discombobulated while Indiana soared.
This run set Assembly Hall on fire and positioned the Hoosiers to cruise in the final minutes. As for that eight-minute stretch of basketball itself, it was the best Indiana has played in a long, long time.
IU CRUISES LATE, GIVES MIKE WOODSON 4-4 RECORD VS. PURDUE
With a double-digit lead firmly in hand, Indiana closed out the second half with ease, securing its fourth victory over Purdue during the four-year Mike Woodson era.
After the 28-3 run to open the half, all Indiana needed to do was control the tempo and prevent a Purdue comeback—and it did exactly that.
The Hoosiers weren’t as dominant down the stretch as they were during their explosive run, but that was expected given the magnitude of the surge and the comfortable lead they built.
Indiana led by as many as 16, holding a 61-45 advantage with 6:16 remaining, and never let Purdue threaten late.
The Hoosiers shot 16-of-25 from the field in the second half, while Purdue struggled at just 6-of-20. Three-point shooting was a key difference—after hitting 6-of-11 in the first half, the Boilermakers managed just 1-of-5 from deep after halftime.
Indiana, meanwhile, cleaned up its 3-point struggles, going 3-of-8 in the final 20 minutes, with several coming during its game-changing run.
The Woodson era has had its ups and downs, but the soon-to-be former Indiana head coach will finish his tenure with a 4-4 regular-season record against the Hoosiers' archrival.
His predecessors, Tom Crean and Archie Miller, finished 5-10 and 0-7 against Purdue, respectively, giving Woodson a significant edge in the rivalry.
This season hasn’t been pretty for Indiana, but the Hoosiers played with pride against Purdue, delivering a statement 73-58 victory.
FINAL STATS
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