WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Fletcher Loyer scored 18 points and gave the green light to 3 points with 51 seconds left on Saturday to lead No. 12 “Purdue topped pesky Oregon 68-64”. He closed out the game by making three of four free throws in the final seconds.
Braden Smith finished with 13 points, four rebounds and four assists as the Boilermakers (19-4, 9-3 Big Ten) earned their second straight victory since ending a three-game losing streak. Purdue has played just two home games since Jan. 14, and in this one, Smith reached another milestone by becoming the first Big Ten player with 1,000 points and 500 assists in conference play alone.
Advertisement
Trey Kaufman-Renn added 12 points for the Boilermakers.
Nate Bittle had 23 points to lead the Ducks (8-15, 1-11), who took a 59-56 lead with 5:15 to play. Takai Simpkins added 14, but Oregon nearly ended a losing streak that now stands at nine. The Ducks have also lost four straight road games and are just 1-9 since Jan. 2.
Purdue seemed poised to roll when it scored five straight points to take an early 21-14 lead, then extended the lead to 36-28 late in the first half.
But Oregon finished the half with eight straight points to tie the score at 36, setting up a back-and-forth second half that was decided in the final minute.
Advertisement
Loyer’s 3 with 50.3 seconds left gave Purdue a 65-63 lead and after making one of two free throws with 19.4 seconds left, the Ducks still had a chance. But Wei Lin missed a potential game-tying 3 from outside the top of the key and Kwame Evans Jr. missed the second of two free throws after grabbing the rebound.
Loyer made the final two free throws to seal the score.
To be continued
Oregon: Visits Indiana on Monday.
Purdue: Visits No. 9 Nebraska on Tuesday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Register here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll And https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
