Boilermakers Country

LIVE BLOG: Follow No. 3 Purdue Basketball vs. Nebraska in Real Time

No. 3 Purdue basketball (15-1, 4-1 Big Ten) returns home for a matchup with Nebraska (9-8, 2-4) on Friday night at Mackey Arena. Here is our live blog, which will keep you up to date on all the news in real time, straight from press row.

D.J. Fezler

In this story:

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The No. 3-ranked Purdue basketball team is back at home inside Mackey Arena, welcoming Nebraska on Friday night for a 7 p.m. ET tipoff. This is the second meeting of the season between the two teams, with the Boilermakers escaping Lincoln, Neb., with a 65-62 overtime win back on Dec. 10. 

Welcome to our live blog, where we'll keep you updated in real time with all the news and views as they happen, straight from press row. We'll add highlights and opinions as well. The most recent items are on the top, so just keep refreshing.

We do this every game, so make sure you bookmark BoilermakersCountry.com, our Sports Illustrated/FanNation site that provides coverage of Purdue basketball and more. It's all free too; there is no paywall or subscription.

It's another Purdue basketball game day in West Lafayette, so be sure to follow along down below: 

8:50 p.m. ET, FINAL — Purdue 73, Nebraska 55 

Fletcher Loyer finishes with a career-high 27 points on 8-of-15 shooting, including 6-of-12 from the 3-point line. 

8:41 p.m. ET — Purdue has a commanding 69-47 lead with 4:00 left to play. Braden Smith is the third Boilermaker to reach double figures on the night. He has 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting. 

8:31 p.m. ET, UNDER 8 — Purdue has a 60-43 lead over Nebraska with 8:00 left in the game. A well-rounded scoring effort so far for the Boilermakers in the second half, and Fletcher Loyer is leading the way with a team-high 24 points. 

8:30 p.m. ET — Fletcher Loyer knocks down a pair of free throws, setting a new season-high with 24 points. Purdue leads 60-43 with just over eight minutes to play. 

8:29 p.m. ET — Purdue now with 10 3-pointers as Mason Gillis buries a deep shot. The team set a season-high with 13 in its win over Ohio State. 

8:27 p.m. ET — Brandon Newman having a rough stretch for Purdue in the last minute. He turns the ball over and is called for a pair of fouls that were questionable. 

8:24 p.m. ET — Purdue is in the bonus with just over 11 minutes left to play. Free throws coming up for Mason Gillis. 

8:20 p.m. ET, UNDER 12 — Purdue has a 20-point lead over Nebraska with a 53-33 advantage. Fletcher Loyer's 22 points are tied for a career-high, and there's still 11:58 left to play in the game. 

8:17 p.m. ET — Confidence has to be at an all-time high for Fletcher Loyer, who drills his fifth 3-pointer of the game to bring his scoring total to 22 on the night. He also has four assists with just one turnover. 

8:12 p.m. ET, UNDER 16 — Purdue has a 48-28 lead over Nebraska with 15:00 left to play in the game. The Boilermakers opened the second half with 11 straight points before the Cornhuskers could answer back. 

8:05 p.m. ET — Fletcher Loyer hits a tough pull-up jumper to give Purdue a 42-24 lead, and Nebraska calls a timeout after seeing the Boilermakers score seven straight points after halftime. 

8:03 p.m. ET — The 3-pointers continue to rain down in Mackey Arena as Ethan Morton takes advantage on the perimeter. He is the fifth different Purdue player to hit on a shot from the 3-point line. 

7:44 p.m. ET, HALFTIME — Fletcher Loyer gets a layup as the final basket of the first half, and Purdue goes into the locker room leading 35-24 over Nebraska. Loyer leads all scorers with 16 points. The Boilermakers scored seven 3-pointers before the break. 

7:42 p.m. ET — Nebraska calls a timeout with 50 seconds left as Purdue takes a 33-24 lead. Zach Edey has seven of the Boilermakers' last 12 points. 

7:37 p.m. ET — Fletcher Loyer finds Caleb Furst in the corner for the team's seventh 3-pointer of the game. Nebraska's Keisei Tominaga responded with a deep shot of his own. 

7:34 p.m. ET, UNDER 4 — Purdue leads Nebraska 25-17 with 3:56 left in the first half. Zach Edey now with four points and four offensive rebounds. The Boilermakers have just six points in the paint so far before halftime. 

7:33 p.m. ET — Zach Edey on the board for the first time all night. He nabs an offensive rebound and puts a dunk through the rim on the way down. 

7:28 p.m. ET — Brandon Newman nails a 3-pointer just before the shot clock expires. Purdue has six 3-pointers in the first half. 

7:27 p.m. ET — Zach Edey has yet to record a shot attempt in the first half. Nebraska is focusing heavily on mitigating his scoring, forcing other players to have to knock down shots. 

7:24 p.m. ET, UNDER 8 — Purdue's lead is dwindling as Derrick Walker now has eight points for Nebraska. The Boilermakers lead 18-12 with 7:37 before the break, but outside of Fletcher Loyer, the team is 2-of-12 from the field. 

7:21 p.m. ET — Not much going for Purdue outside of Fletcher Loyer, but after a missed 3-pointer, Mason Gillis comes down with an offensive rebound and scores beneath the rim. Loyer is 4-of-8 to start the game, and the rest of the team is 2-of-11. 

7:15 p.m. ET, UNDER 12 — It's been the Fletcher Loyer show tonight as the freshman guard opens with 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the 3-point line. Purdue has a 15-4 advantage over Nebraska with 11:44 left before halftime. 

7:10 p.m. ET — Fletcher Loyer is shooting lights out to start the game. He already has nine points on 3-of-4 shooting, all from the 3-point line. 

7:06 p.m. ET, UNDER 16 — Purdue leads Nebraska 9-2 with 15:52 left to play in the first half. Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer have combined for a trio of 3-pointers while the Cornhuskers are just 1-of-7 from the field. 

7:04 p.m. ET – Braden Smith ends a scoring drought of more than two minutes for the Boilermakers, sinking the team's second 3-pointer of the night. On the very next possession, Fletcher Loyer puts in another shot from beyond the arc to give Purdue a 9-2 lead. 

7:03 p.m. ET — A breakdown defensively for Purdue leaves C.J. Wilcher with a wide-open layup underneath the basket, but he misses the shot. A rough stretch for both teams to start the game. 

Tipoff — Zach Edey wins the tip for Purdue, and Fletcher Loyer drills his first 3-point attempt of the game. 

Purdue starters: 

  • Freshman guard Braden Smith
  • Freshman guard Fletcher Loyer 
  • Junior guard Ethan Morton 
  • Sophomore forward Caleb Furst 
  • Junior center Zach Edey

Pregame — According to a report from Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, Nebraska guard Sam Griesel is out for tonight's game against Purdue. He's averaging 11.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game this season. 

Related stories on Purdue basketball

  • How to Watch Purdue vs. Nebraska: No. 3 Purdue basketball (15-1, 4-1 Big Ten) hosts Nebraska (9-8, 2-4) at 7 p.m. ET on Friday night inside Mackey Arena. Here's how to watch the game, with all your TV information, top scorers, coaching bios and more. CLICK HERE 
  • What Matt Painter Said Ahead of the Game: Purdue basketball coach Matt Painter met with the media Thursday ahead of the team's home game against Nebraska. The two programs are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. ET on Friday inside Mackey Arena. CLICK HERE
  • Purdue's Game Against Penn State Reflected as Road Win: Purdue's 76-63 win over Penn State at the Palestra on Sunday brings the team's Quadrant 1 record to 6-1 on the season, which ties Kansas for the best in college basketball. CLICK HERE
  • Purdue Drops to No. 3 in Latest AP Top 25 Poll: Purdue basketball suffered its first loss of the season last week before earning back-to-back wins away from West Lafayette. The Boilermakers are 15-1 overall and 4-1 in Big Ten play, coming in at No. 3 in the latest AP Top 25 poll. CLICK HERE
  • Zach Edey Named Big Ten Basketball Player of the Week: Purdue junior center Zach Edey averaged 21.7 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists in the team's last three games, which included a pair of victories away from home. He garnered his fourth Big Ten Basketball Player of the Week award of the season. CLICK HERE

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You can also follow D.J. Fezler at @DJFezler on Twitter.

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D.J. Fezler
D.J. FEZLER

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. 

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