A six-game losing streak to Ohio State came to an end last night for the Purdue men’s basketball team.
The Boilermakers beat the 20th-ranked Buckeyes 60-58 at Mackey Arena to extend their winning streak to four games, including three against Top 25 teams.
Purdue led by nine with 2:16 to play, but allowed one last Ohio State rally.
A three-point basket by Buckeye leading scorer D'Angelo Russell with 31.2 seconds left cut Purdue’s lead to 58-56.
A free throw by John Octeus put the Boilers back up by three, but Russell responded with two made free throws to make the score 59-58.
Kendall Stephens added another free throw to put Purdue up by two, and a last second three by Russell missed the basket by a wide margin to give the Boilers the win.
Junior guard Rapheal Davis led Purdue with 20 points. He also grabbed six rebounds.
Davis says the win is important, especially since the team struggled offensively at times.
“Obviously beating three top 25 teams in a week’s span is really good for us and our university,” says Davis. “But we can get better in a lot of areas, so that’s encouraging for us being able to get these wins but also knowing we can get better.”
Head Coach Matt Painter called the game a “Big Ten grinder” and says his team was lucky to escape with a win.
“To get into these games like Iowa and Ohio State and be able to get these wins is huge for our confidence,” says Painter. “The defensive end is where we’ve made strides. We have to get better offensively if we expect to win, especially on the road.”
Senior guard Jon Octeus had 14 points and seven rebounds for the Boilers.
Junior center AJ Hammons added seven points, seven rebounds, and seven blocked shots.
Purdue improves to 15-8 overall, 7-3 in the Big Ten.
The Boilers play at Minnesota Saturday.
