Purdue basketball was able to take care of Miami in the second round of the NCAA tournament, defeating them 79-69. It was a dominant showing by Purdue, and they joined an exclusive March Madness club with their efficiency on offense, according to Jared Berson.
“Purdue in today’s win over Miami: 53.2% from the field (25-47), 57.1% from 3 (8-14), 95.5% from the line (21-22). The Boilermakers are the 3rd team in NCAA Tournament history to shoot 50-50-95 in a game, along with Marquette in the 2003 R32 and Syracuse in the 1996 R64,” Berson wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Though Purdue trailed going into halftime, it was the second half where they made their mark in the game, as they outscored Miami 41-29.
Purdue has dominated through two games of the tournament, and it started when they defeated Queens NC 104-71. It was Fletcher Loyer who led the way for the team in that matchup, as he finished with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting and 4-of-8 from the three-point line.
After the game, head coach Matt Painter spoke highly of Loyer, especially for his shooting ability.
“Like we got the best shooter from three that we’ve ever had at Purdue in Fletcher Loyer,” Painter said.
They were able to come into their next game against Miami and handle business, and now they'll be advancing to their third straight Sweet 16, which is a big accomplishment for the program. Their next matchup won't be easy as they go up against Texas on March 26, but they've shown through the tournament and entire season that they have what it takes to make a deep run.
