Coming off a tough loss to Michigan last week, the Purdue men's basketball team bounced back by grinding out a hard-fought win, 62-60, in their Big Ten home opener Thursday against 23rd-ranked Maryland.
Purdue's defense did force multiple shot clock violations down the stretch, but cold shooting on both ends of the court dominated the last few minutes of the game. Maryland did not make a field goal in the last 4:20 of the game and Purdue failed to hit one for the last 5:18.
It was not until a tough corner three-point attempt by ther Terps' Anthony Cowan fell short on the game's last possesion that the game was settled.
Purdue Junior guard Carsen Edwards lead all scorers with 20 points, making up for his poor shooting percentage from the field by going 9-9 from the free throw line. He was followed closely by Maryland's Cowan, who had 18 points to go with 5 rebounds and 6 assists.
Boilermaker senior guard Ryan Cline struggled all night long, scoring only 4 points and missing all of his six three-point attempts. But freshman Aaron Wheeler, who'd been averaging just three points a game, had one of his best performances, scoring 15 points and making three 3-pointers.
Purdue now plays four out-of-conference games before resuming the Big Ten slate, starting with a visit to the University of Texas Sunday. That game tips off in Austin at 6 p.m. Eastern Time.
