The #13 Purdue Boilermakers defeated the Yale Bulldogs by a final score of 92-84. Purdue’s leading scorers were Braden Smith with 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists, Trey Kaufman-Renn with 17 points, 3 rebounds, and Fletcher Loyer with 14 points and 3 assists.

1st Half

Purdue’s lack of size in the paint was evident in this game. Yale attacked the paint early in this game and never stopped. Will Berg looked like he didn’t know where he was, and Burgess still needs to get used to college ball. Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer were carrying the Boilermakers in the first half. Smith looked like the Big Ten POTY, and Loyer kept his hot shooting going. This game made it very evident that the best way for the Boilermakers to go is to play a small-ball lineup. Purdue played a solid first half and took a 45-34 lead going into halftime.

2nd Half

The Bulldogs outscored the Boilermakers in the second half, that shouldn’t happen in a game like this. Yale is a solid team, but a team like Purdue shouldn’t lose a half to them. While the Boilermakers were still shooting well, the Purdue front court will be a big question this season. Smith finally took the shots that he needed to, attempting 16 shots and making seven of them. Painter made it evident that the second half would be run by Smith and Kaufman-Renn. TKR scored 12 of his 17 points in the second half, and it was clear that Painter had drawn up several plays for the junior. While the defense is still a big problem, the offense looked great. Four players scored 10+ points while two players scored nine points. Purdue still has a lot to work on before their next game, but this was a better performance.

Player of The Game: Braden Smith

Braden Smith showed out against Yale, scoring a season-high 22 points while grabbing 9 rebounds. Smith was doing all he could to help the Boilermakers win this game, he was even playing solid defense, stealing the ball five times. There’s not much more Smith could have done in this game, and this definitely puts him atop the Big Ten POTY list. If Smith can keep this up, Purdue will have a chance to be the first team in Big Ten history to have three consecutive Big Ten POTYs. The Boilermakers are going to be heavily relying on Smith for

#13 Purdue plays #2 Alabama on Friday, November 15th at 7:00 PM EST @ Mackey Arena

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