Saint Peter's Historic NCAA Run Continues With 67-64 Win over Purdue
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Cinderella's slipper? It still fits.
Saint Peter's, a small school from the mean streets of Jersey City, N.J., did something that no No. 15 seed has even done before in the NCAA Tournament on Friday night. They beat Purdue from the mighty Big Ten 67-64 in the East Regional semifinals at the Wells Fargo Center, becoming the first 15-seed to ever advance to the Elite Eight.
And that mighty Big Ten, the oft-bragged-about best team in the country? It's now flat out of teams in the big dance.
"We're happy, but make no mistake, we're not satisfied at all,'' said Saint Peter's guard Doug Edert, who was just 1-for-6 from the field but made 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch. "We're not finished, and we feel like we belong.
"Obviously we have a lot more fans now than we did a few weeks ago, but it doesn't change the way we play out on the floor. We didn't play any different tonight than we would have even if there weren't any fans in the building.''
It's a familiar NCAA ending for Purdue as well, as the Boilermakers lost to a lower seed for the 17th time in the event. Once again, a team that was No. 1 in the country at one point and a top-10 team all season fell short of its goal of a Final Four, an event that Purdue hasn't played in since 1980, a long 42 years ago — and counting.
Saint Peter's (22-11) won its 10th straight game in making history. After beating No. 2 Kentucky and No. 7 Murray State in the first week of the tournament, this challenge with Purdue and all of its size was supposed to be too much for them.
But these tough kids refused to back down, even while giving up eight inches or more in the post to Purdue center Zach Edey. They pressured Purdue relentlessly on defense, prodding and poking at balls all night and forcing 15 turnovers.
"Defensively, if you watch us play the last month, we've been really locked in,'' said Saint Peter's coach Shaheen Holloway, who's team hasn't lost since Feb. 20. "We had that COVID break — (from Dec. 18 to Jan 14) — and we didn't play in 28 days. It was like a minicamp for us, and it was great for me because we were able to change a lot of things up.''
Holloway kept stressing to his team to simply stay engaged, and keep the game close. They are playing with house money, and he knows the stresses that Purdue was under. It's why the Peacocks made the plays down the stretch — and Purdue didn't.
"When you're playing teams like that that are supposed to win, when you keep it tight, things can happen,'' Holloway said. "Purdue is a great team, and coach (Matt) Painter is a great coach, but I just kept telling them, keep it tight and make something happen.''
They did.
Purdue led briefly by six points late in the first half, but the second half was a war. Saint Peter's had a 10-0 run early to get ahead, as the Purdue defense struggled out of the break. Jaden Ivey attacked the rim and scored at the 14:13 mark for their first points of the half. Prior to that, they were 0-for-7 from the field, missed all five three-pointers and had four turnovers in the half, and 13 in the first 25 minutes.
Saint Peter's did a great job of forcing Purdue's bigs, Zach Edey and Trevion Williams, off the blocks. The Peacocks led through much of the second half until Purdue went on a run, getting some quicker looks for Williams. He scored on a layup to put Purdue ahead 56-52 with 5:18 to go.
But down the stretch, Purdue made a lot of uncharacteristic defensive mistakes. Sasha Stefanovic fouled Doug Edert on a three-point attempt right after that Williams basket, and he made all three free throws.
Mason Gillis dove for a loose ball and fouled Matthew Lee with 41 seconds to go, sending him to the line. He made both as well, keeping Purdue in chase mode. Jaden Ivey, who struggled much of the night, made a long three to make it 65-64, but his last 30-footer at the buzzer came up just short. Ivey finished with nine points.
Saint Peter's also made 17-of-18 free throws in the second half to close the door on the Boilermakers, who finished the season 29-8. It was their first loss to a nonconference foe all year.
"We've been in these predicaments the whole season, and coach is always preaching time and situation,'' said Lee.. "We've been through this so many times that going through it again tonight was nothing different.
"We had a great crowd tonight, and the whole environment was just unreal. We're making history, and we want to keep making history. Our whole team, we handled their pressure at the end and we made our free throws.''
The stupid fouls were tough to swallow for Painter.
"Our issue at the end, was quit fouling people,'' Painter said. "You don't go out and foul a great free throw shooter on the three-point line. You don't dive into a guy and foul.
"That's Purdue beating Purdue right there.''
The common thread through many of Purdue's losses this year was that high turnover number. That happened again Friday, committing 15 turnovers. Edey had five turnovers, and Ivey six.
"I thought they were excellent today in their effort,'' Painter said of Saint Peter's. "They beat us like they beat those other two teams. Hats off to those guys, and good luck to those guys. It's hard to put into words what these (Purdue seniors) sacrificed to get into this position. Obviously, we got outplayed by Saint Peter's, and I wish I could have coached better and we could have played a little better.
"It weighs on you, (falling short of another Final Four). We were in the Elite Eight three years ago. It eats at you, man. You work hard to represent your school and to do well. These guys win 29 games and you still feel awful. We wanted to win the big Ten, and we came up short. We wanted to win the Big Ten Tournament and we came up short in the final. We wanted to win tonight, and we didn't. We have a good program, we're successful, but we just can't get over that hurdle. I think about it all the time.''
For Purdue's seniors, it was a tough way to go out. Stefanovic, who had been in a five-game postseason slump, was tremendous in the first half, scoring 11 points, but he was held scoreless in the second half, missing all three shots.
Hunter, who played 30 minutes, didn't score a single point.
Williams led Purdue with 16 points, 14 in the second half as he tried to carry his team. He came up just short.
"I'm honestly still in shock. It doesn't feel real,'' Williams said. "I wish we could have played better. You have to give them respect, that's a real team. They just played harder than us, and they made free throws. They got some calls, and you've got to be 10 points better. I just wish we would have gotten on them earlier.''
"In the second half, I immediately thought about North Texas, (the No. 13 seed that beat Purdue in the first round last year.) I was going to do whatever it took. But they are a good team, and they've earned their way to the Elite Eight. It doesn't matter if they were a 15 seed. They're good. It sucks (to lose) no matter who it is.''
Saint Peter's will play No 8 seed North Carolina on Sunday, with a shot at a trip to the Final Four that even the best Cinderella re-write people couldn't image. The total seed number of 23 is by far the highest in NCAA Tournament history.
It's just another game to them. Big guys? Big Ten? It didn't matter.
"We just really stuck to our defensive principals,'' Saint Peter's Lee said. "We watched it all on film that when they catch the ball deep, that they are almost impossible to stop. We tried to push them out and make them uncomfortable, because they are two of the best centers in the country. Credit to our bigs. They did an awesome job on them all night.''
As with every Cinderella in the NCAA Tournament, the UCLA and North Carolina fans in the building were rooting for them too.
It's that good of a story.
"Growing up playing basketball as a kid, you dream of moments like this. The fans, ours and theirs, they were awesome,'' said guard Daryl Banks, who led the Peacocks with 14 points.
Sometimes, dream do come true. Saint Peter's knows that all too well.
Purdue knows it too, Cinderella lives for another day, at their expense.
Related stories on Purdue basketball
- LIVE BLOG: Relive all the play-by-play from Friday night's loss to Saint Peter's as it all played out in real time. CLICK HERE
- PHOTO GALLERY: The Purdue Boilermakers have arrived safely in Philadelphia and spent some of Thursday at the Wells Fargo Center, the site of this weekend's NCAA Tournament East Regional. Purdue plays Friday night against No. 15 seed Saint Peter's, the Cinderella of the tournament. Here's our photo gallery from practice and their media session. CLICK HERE
- PURDUE HEAVY FAVORITE OVER SAINT PETER'S: The biggest favorite in the regional semifinals is No. 3 seed Purdue, who's taking on the Cinderella in the Big Dance, the Saint Peter's Peacocks. Here's the opening point spread, and some amazing data on Saint Peter's and their best-in-the-nation performance vs. the number this season. They are on a real heater. CLICK HERE
- HISTORY OF NO. 15 SEEDS IN NCAA TOURNAMENT: For only the third time in NCAA Tournament history, a No. 15 seed has advanced to the regional semifinals. Saint Peter's, a tiny Jesuit school in Jersey City, N.J., knocked off blueblood Kentucky and 31-win Murray State last week, and now have a date with Purdue on Friday in Philadelphia. Cinderella stories are cute, but they don't usually last long. A No. 15 seed has never won a game in the second week of the tourney. CLICK HERE
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Tom Brew is an award-winning journalist who's worked at some America's finest newspapers, including the Tampa Bay (Fla.) Times, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the Indianapolis Star. He also owns the book publishing company, Hilltop30 Publishing Group, and he has written four books and published 16 others.