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On Feb. 12, 2023, unranked Northwestern entered a game against No. 1 Purdue with an 0-18 all-time record No. 1-ranked teams. They changed that record to 1-18 that night.
On Dec. 1, 2023, unranked Northwestern entered a game against No. 1 Purdue with a 1-18 all-time record No. 1-ranked teams. They changed that record to 2-18 that night.
History repeated in Evanston, Illinois on Friday, with Northwestern again stunning the top-ranked Boilermakers. This time, they required overtime, coming out on top 92-88 in a wild game that saw 18 lead changes. Cue the court storm, though the students had a bit of a false start when there was still 1.3 seconds remaining.
The Wildcats appeared poised to take the game in regulation with an awkward layup by leading scorer Boo Buie:
Unfortunately, Purdue still had Zach Edey, who hauled in a long inbound pass in the paint and tied the game.
Purdue looked like the sloppier team, committing four turnovers in five possessions as the game slipped away in overtime. They finished the game with 15 assists and 17 turnovers, which isn’t a good combination when you also shoot 5-of-19 from 3-point range. The Boilermakers’ enormous size advantage was clear, outrebounding Northwestern 51-27 (with 16 offensive boards on 38 misses), but a sputtering offense did them in.
Buie finished the game with a season-high 31 points on 10-of-20 shooting, with nine assists, four rebounds and zero turnovers. Northwestern as a team combined for only three turnovers total.
Purdue is now undefeated no more at 7-1, and it still has some significant challenges in front of it. After one more conference game against Iowa, the Boilermakers will face No. 23 Alabama on Dec. 9, then No. 2 Arizona on Dec. 16.
Arizona is now on track to hold the top ranking when the latter date comes.