Purdue Within Striking Distance of Big Ten's Top Spot After USC Beats Michigan State
Even after losing the two-time National Player of the Year, the Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year and a starting guard from last year's team, Purdue is within striking distance of the top spot in the conference. The Boilermakers are now just a half-game behind Michigan State in the league's standings.
Purdue clawed to within a half-game after a thrilling 81-76 victory over Indiana on Friday night. Then, on Saturday, USC handed Michigan State it's first Big Ten loss of the season. At 9-1 in league play, the Spartans remain in first place, though the Boilers are sitting at 9-2.
B1G W for No. 10 @BoilerBall 🙌#B1GMBBall pic.twitter.com/wMSSH9eClQ
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 1, 2025
At 8-2 in conference play, Michigan is just one game behind Michigan State. Maryland, UCLA and Wisconsin are all within 2.5 games of the lead.
USC hands No. 7 Michigan State its first B1G loss ✌️#B1GMBBall pic.twitter.com/6hcWGCr0PS
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 1, 2025
"You're trying to position yourself as you get to that midway point, are you going to be in position to try and win a Big Ten title? Where are you going to be from an NCAA standpoint? We already lost a home game and you just have to be able to hold serve at home and win," Purdue coach Matt Painter said after the win over Indiana.
"Just trying to get another win in the Big Ten and keep our positioning where it is. Obviously, we have nine more games to play, but this was a huge win for us."
Purdue and Michigan State don't play until Tuesday, Feb. 18, a 7 p.m. ET tipoff aired on Peacock. It's the only meeting between the two programs, and it will be hosted in East Lansing at the Breslin Center.
There will be a lot at stake in East Lansing later this month.
Purdue lost a lot from last year's national runner-up squad. Zach Edey, Mason Gillis and Lance Jones are no longer on the roster, but the Boilermakers returned guards Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and forward Trey Kaufman-Renn. They also brought in a strong recruiting class.
The Boilermakers were picked to win the league during the preseason, so many expected Painter's team to be in this position. But it's still incredibly impressive to be in the hunt for a third straight Big Ten title, a feat that would be incredibly rare in college basketball.
Related stories on Purdue basketball
PAINTER EXPLAINS BURGESS TECHNICAL: Purdue coach Matt Painter was asked about the technical foul assessed to freshman Raleigh Burgess. He says he's still not sure what actually happened between Burgess and Indiana's Anthony Leal. CLICK HERE
WHAT PAINTER SAID: Purdue escaped Friday night with an 81-76 win over rival Indiana. Here's everything Boilermakers coach Matt Painter said after the win over the Hoosiers. CLICK HERE
PURDUE PASSES IU ON WINS LIST: Not only did Purdue pick up a rivalry win over Indiana on Friday, the Boilermakers surpassed the Hoosiers on college basketball's all-time wins leaderboard. CLICK HERE
KAUFMAN-RENN PROVES INVALUABLE: Trey Kaufman-Renn hit the game-winning shot, but his value in Purdue's win over Indiana extended much further than the final 15 seconds on Friday night. CLICK HERE
