Wisconsin uses record-breaking 18 3-pointers to beat No. 15 Purdue 97-93 in regular-season finale
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6:44 PM on Saturday, March 7
By MICHAEL MAROT
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — John Blackwell made five 3-pointers and scored 25 points, Nick Boyd added 23 and Wisconsin set a school-record with 18 3-pointers in a road game Saturday in a 97-93 win over No. 15 Purdue.
The Badgers (22-9, 14-6 Big Ten) have won three straight overall and six of their last eight after going 18 for 34 from beyond the arc. That tied the second-highest single-game 3-point total in school history, and they also set a school record with 12 3s in the first half, despite playing without forward Nolan Winter, who has an injured left ankle.
Fletcher Loyer had 23 points and six 3-pointers, making his 282nd career 3 to break Carsen Edwards' school record. Braden Smith had 20 points and nine assists, while Trey Kaufman-Renn added 17 points. Smith, Loyer and Kaufman-Renn all played their home finales.
It marked the first time in nearly 14,000 days and 135 games Purdue topped the 90-point mark and lost. The last time it happened was against Iowa State in Nov. 24, 1987.
Purdue started fast, using an early 13-0 run to take a 22-13 lead. But the Boilermakers couldn't match the Badgers barrage of 3s that helped them take the lead and thwart every Purdue charge.
And after holding a 52-47 halftime lead and watching Purdue charge back in the second half by taking a 62-61 lead on Smith's midrange jumper with 14:59 to play, the Badgers answered immediately with back-to-back 3s from Aleksas Bieliauskas to make it 69-62.
When the Boilermakers took a 73-72 lead with a 3 at the 10:04 mark, Wisconsin again answered again with a 3 — and never trailed the rest of the way.
Both teams will be waiting for the Big Ten Tournament pairings to come out Sunday to find out who and when they'll play at Chicago next week.
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