Purdue basketball coach Matt Painter: Samford postgame
Purdue won its season opener 98-45 against Samford at Mackey Arena.
Purdue Athletics Communications
Second-ranked Purdue basketball tipped off its season with a dominating 98-45 win over Samford.
The Bulldogs, who went 21-11 in 2022-23 and 15-3 in the Southern Conference, were no match for the reigning Big Ten champions.
Here’s how the Boilermakers fared in the opener of one of the most anticipated seasons in program history.
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Player ratings on a scale of 1 to 10.
STARTERS
∎ Zach Edey — A quiet first half for the reigning national player of the year (only two shot attempts) but the Boilers still led 51-17 at the break. He hit 5-of-6 free throws, grabbed five rebounds and erased two shots in the first half. Things came easier in the second half, with four dunks (and a free throw) for nine points in eight minutes. Edey finished with 16 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks in 20 minutes, for his 40th career double-double (third-most in program history). Rating: 7.5
∎ Braden Smith — The 2022 IndyStar Mr. Basketball out of Westfield was a scorching 4-for-4 from behind the arc in the first half and dished out three assists. But there were some worrying moments with a few turnovers in the backcourt against some full-court press, reminiscent of last year’s struggles. Smith did not score in the second half, finishing with 12 points, seven assists and four rebounds. Smith was a team best +44. Rating: 7.0
∎ Fletcher Loyer — He opened the game with a smooth stroke from behind the arc, which was a welcomed sight for Boilers fans after Loyer slumped to a 32.6% clip from deep as a freshman last season. He had four wide-open looks in the first half and hit two of them. He added two 3s in the second half, one from each corner on back-to-back possessions to restore Purdue’s 40-point lead. He finished with 12 points, two rebounds and one assist. Rating: 6.0
∎ Trey Kaufman-Renn — He picked up his second foul with 16:30 left in the first half, sat the next eight minutes and took just one shot in the first half. He opened the scoring in the second half with a corner 3 and finished with five points, five rebounds and three assists. Rating: 5.0
∎ Lance Jones — The Southern Illinois transfer went straight into the starting lineup and hit a smooth jumper to give Purdue a 6-0 lead and displayed some much-needed speed and athleticism in the backcourt. He took a long rebound and turned it into a breakout for a layup to give Purdue a 16-1 lead, and went end-to-end again for a layup later in the first half as the Boilers broke the press with ease.
A former Purdue guard was certainly impressed, too.
He was quieter in the second half (zero points), and maybe forced a shot or two. But you can see where Jones can help. Rating: 6.0
BENCH
∎ Mason Gillis — A relatively quiet 19-minute stint, he was the first sub off the bench, coming in for Kaufman-Renn, who was in foul trouble. Nothing spectacular from Purdue’s glue guy, as he finished with two points, but he was one of five Boilermakers with at least three assists. Rating: 5.0
∎ Camden Heide — Known for his highlight-reel dunks during pregame warmups, the redshirt freshman scored an easy layup for an 18-1 Purdue lead. He showed a good touch pass for an assist on a breakout to Caleb Furst and got involved in the 3-point party in the second half, hitting three shots from deep. He finished with 13 points, three rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Not bad for a guy who hadn’t played in a competitive game in nearly two years. Rating: 7.0
Caleb Furst — Evidence of the Boilers’ frontcourt depth, Furst had a ho-hum six points, four rebounds and was one of seven Purdue players to hit a 3. Rating: 5.5
∎ Ethan Morton — He started 29 games last season, but Morton was the fourth guy off the bench vs. Samford. He hit his first 3, which had to feel good after shooting 27.7% from behind the arc last year. He was active on defense, forcing a steal that led to a break-out Furst dunk and got another steal that should have resulted in another basket, but Smith missed the layup. He had five points, five assists and four steals and looked like a useful backcourt bench piece if Jones is going to start over him. Rating: 6.5
∎ Myles Colvin — As BTN analyst and Purdue alum Robbie Hummel said, “He’s not bashful.” Colvin, the son of former Boilermakers football Rosevelt Colvin and brother of Purdue volleyball star Raven Colvin, didn’t waste any time trying to endear himself to the Mackey Arena crowd. He checked in at the 10:33 mark of the first half and his first touch almost ended with an alley-oop lob from Braden Smith. He took more shots (six) than any Purdue player in the first half, hitting two 3s. He also smacked a block off the backboard which caused Hummel to say, “Multiple times tonight where we’ve been like, ‘Whoa.'” He came back in with 8 minutes left in the second half and got the alley-oop everyone was hoping for with 2 minutes left when Chase Martin hit him in transition for the first of what will be many highlight dunks for Colvin. Rating: 7.0
∎ Brian Waddell — The former Carmel standout checked in with 3:12 left in the first half and returned late in the second half. He threw down two dunks, finishing with four points and three rebounds. Rating: 5.0
∎ Will Berg — Purdue’s latest 7-footer off the conveyor belt checked in with under a minute left in the first half to a big roar from the crowd. The redshirt freshman from Sweden scored at the buzzer to give Purdue a 51-17 halftime lead. He had a putback and an and-1 dunk late in the second half to finish with seven points (3-of-4 shooting) and four rebounds in seven minutes. Rating: 6.0
∎ Carson Barrett — Came in at the under-4 minute and produced one of Purdue’s 10 blocks. Rating: N/A
∎ Chase Martin — Came in under-4 minutes, and produced the lob for Colvin’s alley-oop dunk with 2 minutes left. Rating: N/A.
∎ Sam King — Came in with 1:05 and got a block in the final seconds. Not bad for the Journal & Courier Boilers’ beat writer (I kid, I kid). Rating: N/A.
∎ Jace Rayl — The grandson of IU legend Jimmy Rayl came in with 1:05 left and didn’t take a shot, despite the Mackey crowd urging the walk-on to. Rating N/A.
∎ Josh Furst — He got a rebound in his lone minute of play. Rating N/A.
Tags: Player ratings Boilermakers win
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