How to Watch Purdue Basketball's Game Against Austin Peay on Friday
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Following an 84-53 victory in its season opener against Milwaukee, Purdue basketball looks to remain unbeaten during an early nonconference stretch, welcoming Austin Peay on Friday.
The game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. ET inside Mackey Arena, with the matchup being aired live on the Big Ten Network.
- LIVE BLOG: Once the game starts, follow all the action on our live blog. We'll have news, analysis and highlights straight from press row inside Mackey Arena. To read that story, CLICK HERE.
The Boilermakers won their first eight games of the 2021-22 campaign and surged to the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press Top 25 College Basketball poll last December. The team has started 2-0 in just three of the last six seasons under coach Matt Painter but has won 15 straight games at home against nonconference opponents.
Here's everything you need to know ahead of the matchup, including TV information, a look at Austin Peay coach Nate James and three things to watch from Purdue:
How to watch Purdue Boilermakers vs. Austin Peay Governors
- Who: Purdue Boilermakers vs. Austin Peay Governors
- What: Purdue's second nonconference matchup of the 2022-23 college basketball season.
- When: 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday, Nov. 11.
- Where: Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind.
- TV: BTN
- TV Announcers: Tyler Terens and Rapheal Davis
- Radio: WAZY (96.5)
- Radio Announcers: Rob Blackman, Bobby Riddell and Wes Scott (producer)
- Last season's records: Purdue was 29-8 overall, including a 14-6 mark in Big Ten play. In the NCAA Tournament, the team defeated Yale and Texas before losing to Saint Peter's 67-64 in the Sweet 16. Austin Peay went 12-17 and 8-10 in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Governors are part of the ASUN Conference this season.
Meet the coaches
Purdue: Matt Painter is in his 18th season as the head coach of Purdue basketball. He owns a 385-192 overall record with the program, including a 194-115 mark in the Big Ten. With just 15 more victories, Painter can become just the fifth coach in Big Ten history with 400 career wins while at a conference school, joining Bob Knight, Tom Izzo, Gene Keady and Lou Henson.
Painter began his head coaching career at Southern Illinois, leading the team atop the Missouri Valley Conference with a 25-5 overall record during the 2003-04 season, dropping only one game in league matchups.
Austin Peay: Nate James is in his second season at the helm for Austin Peay. He played at Duke under coach Mike Krzyzewski from 1996 to 2001 before going undrafted and embarking on an international professional career. After his retirement, James returned to his alma mater and spent the last 14 years as a conditioning coach and then a co-associate head coach with the Blue Devils.
On April 2, 2021, James was named the 13th head coach in Austin Peay history, replacing Matt Figger.
Three things to watch from Purdue
1. Braden Smith's success on defense
First-year player Braden Smith set a Purdue freshman record with seven steals in the team's season opener against Milwaukee, and he'll look to have a similar impact on the defensive end of the court on Friday night.
Austin Peay features two guards listed under 6-foot with starting freshman Guy Fauntleroy and senior Carlos Paez off the bench. Both players are listed at 5-foot-10. As the Governors move the ball in the offensive half, Smith must choose his opportunities for forcing turnovers without over-extending and giving up easy baskets.
"Defensively, I know I have steals but also I was gambling and made mistakes as well," Smith said after Purdue's season-opening victory. "But coach [Painter] just says stay solid and your instincts will follow."
2. Dominating the offensive glass
While junior center Zach Edey didn't light up the scoreboard against Milwaukee, he came down with a career-high 17 rebounds in the victory, including 10 on the offensive end of the floor. As a team, Purdue produced 20 offensive rebounds and score 19 second-chance points.
This season, the Boilermakers have 10 players on the roster standing at least 6-foot-6, which is the most in school history. Their size will be a distinct advantage against nonconference opponents.
"At some point versus quality opponents, you're going to have to be able to steal points whether that's in transition or on the glass," Painter said. "I think we have the ability if we can sprint into some quick 3s or quick post-ups to steal some points in that manner.
"When shots go up, it's an opportunity to score for those guys on our front line and just go after the ball. We just have to stay with it in terms of playing hard and being competitive, but sprinting and rebounding are so important."
3. Availability of David Jenkins Jr. in the backcourt
Utah transfer guard David Jenkins Jr. was unable to make his Purdue basketball debut on Tuesday against Milwaukee after suffering a friendly-fire injury in practice leading up to the matchup. With the veteran out of the lineup, Smith played a team-high 30 minutes at point guard while starting guards Ethan Morton and Fletcher Loyer also saw an increased role in the win.
Jenkins is a crucial piece for the Boilermakers as a ball-handler off the bench. In the team's exhibition win over Truman State before the start of the season, he logged 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting — including three 3-pointers — in 18 minutes while also recording five assists.
Smith, Morton and Loyer combined for 13 assists and only six turnovers for the Boilermakers against the Panthers, but the team will look to get Jenkins back in the rotation as early as Friday night.
Related Stories on Purdue Basketball:
- Stefanovic Predicts Loyer "is Going to Crush" 3-Point Record: Former Purdue sharpshooter Sasha Stefanovic saw just one game from Fletcher Loyer before taking to social media to rave about the freshman guard. Loyer led the Boilermakers with 17 points and went 5-for-12 from the 3-point line in an 84-53 win over Milwaukee to open the 2022-23 college basketball season. CLICK HERE
- Myles Colvin Signs National Letter of Intent: Myles Colvin is a four-star recruit out of Heritage Christian High School in Indianapolis and the first commitment for Purdue in the class of 2023. The rising junior averaged 18.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per game last season as a sophomore. CLICK HERE
- Camden Heide Waiting to Make Redshirt Decision for 2022-23 Season: Freshman forward Camden Heide didn't play in Purdue's season opener and is a candidate to redshirt alongside first-year center Will Berg. He was a four-star recruit from Minnesota and logged 10 minutes in the team's exhibition win against Truman State. CLICK HERE
- Loyer, Smith Lead Purdue Past Milwaukee for 85-53 Victory: Fletcher Loyer paced Purdue with 17 points and was 5-of-12 from the 3-point line while Braden Smith notched seven steals. The two freshmen help the Boilermakers brush off a slow start en route to a victory in their 2022-23 season opener. CLICK HERE
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.