WATCH: Purdue Coach Matt Painter Reacts to Loss at Northwestern
EVANSTON, Ill. — No. 1 Purdue basketball failed to capitalize on its opportunities down the stretch in a 64-58 loss on the road against Northwestern on Sunday at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
The Boilermakers turned the ball over 16 times and gave the Wildcats an open invitation for a strong run in the final minutes. Northwestern closed the game with a 12-1 run over the final three-plus minutes, and Purdue gave the ball away five times in that same stretch.
Head coach Matt Painter met with the media to discuss what went wrong in the second half. Listen to everything he had to say during his postgame press conference with the complete video attached to this article.
"You have to be able to get good shots right there," Painter said after the game. "And then if you can get good shots, obviously if you don't make it, you have a chance to rebound. Just have to show more poise and toughness than we did."
After starting 5-of-9 from the 3-point line in the first half, the Boilermakers missed their next 13 shots from deep. Poor shooting allowed the Wildcats to collapse on junior center Zach Edey in the paint in an attempt to limit his scoring opportunities.
Edey led the team with 24 points on 7-of-10 shooting and went 10-of-13 from the foul line. Freshman point guard Braden Smith also scored in double figures by making seven free throws.
Purdue attempted 24 shots from the foul line in the loss, but Painter said he felt as though the game was officiated differently in each half. Both teams finished with 17 fouls called against them.
"But that's basketball and that's being on the road," he said. "It's our job to adjust. We didn't adjust, and we weren't very tough — both mentally and physically."
-----
Keep up to date on everything at BoilermakersCountry.com by liking and following our Facebook page: Purdue Boilermakers on Sports Illustrated/FanNation.
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.