No. 5 Purdue will try to remain unbeaten when it travels to Florida State on Wednesday night during the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Boilermakers jumped 19 spots in the polls after winning the Phil Knight Legacy tournament. Florida State has gotten off to a disastrous start this season, picking up just one win in its first eight games.
No. 5 Purdue made a major statement over the weekend, taking down West Virginia, No. 6 Gonzaga and No. 8 Duke en route to winning the Phil Knight Legacy tournament. The Boilermakers jumped 19 spots in the polls after that event in Portland. They received eight first-place votes as well, which was warranted after how dominant they were in those games. Purdue won by a combined 37 points in its games against Gonzaga and Duke, who are both viewed as national title contenders. Big man Zach Edey was named the tournament MVP after averaging 22.7 points and 10.3 rebounds over those three games.
.@BoilerBall freshman Fletcher Loyer is the very deserving @CBSSports/@USBWA Freshman of the Week.
Our full frosh rankings through three weeks are here: https://t.co/PerZTRc5iN
— Kyle Boone (@Kyle__Boone) November 29, 2022
Guard Ethan Morton was also named to the all-tournament team after averaging 6.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game, finishing the event with a 19-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Edey has been the team’s best player this season, averaging 21.7 points and 12.0 rebounds. Freshman guard Fletcher Loyer is the only other player scoring in double figures, averaging 11.3 points per game. Purdue’s offense ranks fourth in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency ratings, shooting an effective field goal percentage of 52.9 and ranking No. 15 in offensive rebounding percentage. Florida State is outside the top 190 defensively in field goal percentage, turnover rate and offensive rebounding rate.