Good as gold

You made it to the weekend, which is filled with ranked matchups from tonight through Sunday. You’ve earned it.

But first, let’s dive into Thursday’s news.

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1. Purdue rides its stars for Top 10 win vs. ‘Bama

Purdue entered this season as the favorite to win it all because of its returning talent, headlined by All-Americans Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn.

They sure looked the part in Thursday’s 87-80 win at No. 8 Alabama.

Smith scored 29 points, including 21 in the second half. He did his damage from outside (5-of-10 from deep), the free-throw line (10-of-12) and by controlling the tempo for much of the game.

Kaufman-Renn, who missed Purdue’s first two games due to a hip injury, was excellent early with several buckets in the first few minutes. He finished with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists, making him just the third player in the last 30 years (Joe Forte and Tim Duncan) to have that kind of stat line in an AP Top-10 matchup.

Not that Purdue (3-0) had it easy.

The lead changed 21 times, and both teams had runs in the second half, and Alabama (2-1) even tied the game with 1:42 remaining on a Houston Mallette 3-pointer. But Smith scored on a driving layup, then added a couple free throws for some breathing room.

Hot shooting kept Alabama within range. It was 10-of-21 from deep in the first half (check their shot chart; it’s all 3s and layups). But the Tide struggled as the game wore on, making just 6-of-23 as Purdue forced them into mid-range shots.

There was another issue for the Tide: rebounding. Purdue dominated the glass, grabbing 19 offensive boards (47.5%!) and limited Alabama to just 7 offensive rebounds (.17.5%) As a team, they were out-rebounded 52-28. Coach Nate Oats was annoyed afterward that Smith (7) out-rebounded his starting frontcourt (6) of Taylor Bol Bowen and Aiden Sherrell. 

Still, considering the rebounds, the poor second-half shooting and starting guard Labaron Philon finishing with just 11 points, it’s notable that Alabama had a chance to win. We’ll see how they adjust for Wednesday’s game vs. Illinois.

And Purdue? Expectations still remain Final Four or bust.

2. Mountaineers dominate Backyard Brawl + other results

West Virginia’s annual rivalry game with Pittsburgh hasn’t been kind to the news coaches over the previous two seasons. Thursday was different for new boss Ross Hodge.

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