Men’s college basketball takes center stage Sunday, and all eyes are on the Big Ten as No. 5 Purdue (25-5) plays host to Illinois (20-10) in the first matchup of the season between these two squads.
The starting five for the fifth-ranked Boilermakers was Zach Edey, Mason Gillis, Fletcher Loyer, Brandon Newman and Braden Smith. Smith and Loyer are the first freshmen to start every regular-season game for Purdue since Russell Cross in 1981, while Boilermakers center Edey — a 2023 Wooden Award finalist — leads all major conference players in points (641), rebounds (379) and 30-plus-point games (six).
On the other side, the Illini are led by guard Terrence Shannon, who is averaging a team-leading 17.2 points per game. Dain Dainja, Coleman Hawkins, Matthew Mayer, RJ Melendez and Shannon made up the starting five for the Illini.
Headed into Sunday’s tilt, the Boilermakers are 13-2 in home games, while the Illini are 11-8 in conference matchups.
It’s all going down Sunday at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Indiana — and we’ve got you covered with every must-see moment from start to finish, exclusively on FOX and the FOX Sports App.
Here are the top moments!
Illinois vs. No. 5 Purdue
Hot start!
Purdue went on an 11-0 run to start, shutting out Illinois for nearly the first three and a half minutes of the game.
Star power
Purdue shot 5-for-7 from the field right out of the gate to Iead Illinois 11-4 at the first official TV timeout.
Newman led the way with five points, two steals and an assist early.
Brandon Newman drains a triple as Purdue jumps out to 11-0 lead vs. Illinois
Seeing 3s
Trey Kaufman-Renn came off the bench for Purdue and wasted no time making his presence known.
Exhibit A:
Secret weapon?
The Illini had a few tricks up their sleeve as well, as Sencire Harris hit a wide-open 3 to get him up to seven points in just four minutes off the bench.
Purdue led 21-13 on 9-for-12 shooting near the midway mark of the first half, but Illinois kept things dangerously close. By the game’s third official TV timeout, Illinois had cut Purdue’s lead to five points, 25-20, with 7:28 to play before the half.
Denied!
Edey came up with a huge block on Dainja, whose missed jumper kept it a five-point game as the clock winded down.
Big contact
Smith hit the 3 for Purdue, while Illinois’ Harris hit the deck after colliding with Kaufman-Renn late in the first half.
What can’t he do?
Smith continued to lead the way for the home team, cashing in big before the first half came to a close.
Purdue shot 62.1% (18 of 29), including 50.0% from distance, in the first half. Meanwhile, Illinois shot just 40% (10 of 25), including 12.5% (1 of 8) from the 3-point line.
The Boilermakers led 47-26 at the break.
Stay tuned for updates!
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Illinois Fighting Illini
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