Big Ten Daily (Dec. 17): Purdue Keep Delivering in Big Moments, Takes Down No. 1 Arizona

Thanks to a huge boost from Fletcher Loyer on Saturday, No. 3 Purdue took down No. 1 Arizona in Indianapolis. The Boilermakers have now won 33 straight non-conference regular season games.

Everyone knew Purdue returned one of the top teams in college basketball entering the 2023-24 season. Yet when you looked at the non-conference schedule, a 10-1 start seemed slightly ambitious.

That's exactly where the Boilermakers sit, though, following another massive win on Saturday. Third-ranked Purdue knocked off No. 1 Arizona 92-84 in the Indy Classic, thanks to huge outings from Zach Edey, Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer.

Loyer, who has struggled with consistency this season, put together a stellar performance. The sophomore scored 27 points while making 11-of-18 shots from the floor, which included five of his nine attempts from 3-point range.

Smith added 26 points and Edey scored 22 and collected nine rebounds in the win. As for the rest of the Boilermakers? They combined for 17 points.

Sometimes, you just have to ride the hot hands. 

Taking down Arizona — Purdue's first win over a top-ranked team under Matt Painter — was the latest accomplishment in this impressive 2023-24 campaign. The Boilermakers now have wins over Xavier, No. 10 Gonzaga, No. 12 Tennessee, No. 7 Marquette, Alabama and Arizona.

“Obviously proud of our guys. We were able to take each one of these games as challenges and at times we weren’t great in every area, but we’ve been resilient, we’ve hung in there,” said coach Matt Painter. “I thought Fletcher (Loyer) made some really great plays tonight, against Tennessee I thought he made some really physical plays. 

"We’ve had some other guys step up for us, but it’s hard… It’s not easy. It’s really really hard, so just proud of those guys to be able to win those games non-conference.”

With Saturday's win, Purdue has now won 33 straight regular season non-conference games. The Boilers have two remaining this year, with contests against Jacksonville and Eastern Kentucky on the docket.

If Purdue wins both, it will mark the third straight year in which it will end non-conference play without a loss. This season, without question, has been the most impressive.

Michigan State Embarrasses Baylor

Is Michigan State starting to figure it out? After a 4-5 start and opening Big Ten play with an 0-2 record, it felt like this might be a year in which Tom Izzo's team would fall short of expectations.

Then Saturday happened. The Spartans outclassed No. 6 Baylor, posting an 88-64 victory at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. It was the first time this season that Michigan State looked capable of running with the upper echelon of the Big Ten.

In Saturday's win, Michigan State corrected so many of its flaws. It shot 63.3% from the floor and connected on eight-of-12 shots from behind the 3-point line. The Spartans won the rebounding battle and forced Baylor into 21 turnovers.

"We did something we haven’t been doing. We gotta get back to who we are. We were so worried about our shooting, and I probably did a poor job of talking about it a lot, too. I didn’t want to, but I did," Izzo said. "And yet, for 29 years, we’ve defended, rebounded and ran. That’s what you gotta do. And if you’re running game starts going, then you defend better, and some good things happen offensively."

Michigan State continued to get production from its most talented players. Tyson Walker scored 25 points and A.J. Hoggard added 14. Tre Holloman gave the Spartans 11 points off the bench.

The Spartans we saw through the first nine games looked like a team that would finish in the middle of the pack of the Big Ten. The team we saw on Saturday? It's easily one of the four-best teams in the conference.

Juwan Howard Returns

For the first time this season, Michigan had its head coach running the show. Juwan Howard was cleared to return to his full-time role on Saturday, after undergoing heart surgery in the offseason.

It was a successful return, too. The Wolverines posted an 83-66 victory over Eastern Michigan, improving to 6-5 on the season. 

“It’s a blessing, truly a blessing,” Howard said after the game. “I have to thank God, first, also giving a big, big shoutout to University of Michigan Medical, my doctors, Dr. Patel and his crew, the nurses. … Also I’d like to thank my wife. That’s the best nurse that I have. I didn’t know that she went to medical school, but she was with me from the first day, all day."

For Howard, Saturday was a return to the thing he loved doing most. And, at one time, he wasn't sure if he'd ever get to do it again.

 "To be there yelling and shouting, calling timeouts, drawing up plays," Howard said after the game. "I remember the times I was sitting in my hospital room thinking, 'Would I ever have that opportunity again?'"

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