MINNEAPOLIS — Purdue was considered the heavy favorite to win the Big Ten title entering the 2021-22 college basketball season — and nothing in the first half Wednesday against Minnesota proved otherwise.
The No. 4 Boilermakers, who had the most efficient offense in the country, took a 15-point lead into halftime while shooting 60% from the field.
First-year Gophers coach Ben Johnson seemingly had no answer for the inside-outside tandem of 7-4 Zach Edey and explosive guard Jaden Ivey, who combined for 27 points in the first half.
As overmatched as the Gophers were Wednesday, they managed to cut an 18-point deficit in half in the second half to engage the home crowd before falling, 88-73, at Williams Arena.
Payton Willis had 24 points and 10 assists for the Gophers (11-8, 2-8 in the Big Ten), but they lost for the seventh time in the last eight games.
The Gophers were as healthy as they've been on their home court in more than a month, but that depth wasn't enough to slow down one of the nation's deepest teams.
In the previous two games, the Boilermakers (19-3, 8-3) had the luxury of bringing Ivey, an All-American and Big Ten player of the year candidate, off the bench as he got comfortable coming back from a hip injury.
Ivey returned to the starting lineup Wednesday to lead Purdue with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Edey had 12 of his 14 points in the first half, to go with 12 rebounds.
A 6-4 sophomore guard, Ivey was showing signs of being fully recovered when he had 21 points in Sunday's win against Ohio State, including the game-winning jumper in the waning seconds.
On Wednesday, the Gophers were building momentum at the end of the first half following a dunk from Jamison Battle, but Ivey beat the halftime buzzer with a 3-pointer for a 51-36 advantage.
Sasha Stefanovic's 3-pointer to open the second half extended the lead to 54-36, but the Gophers wouldn't allow the Boilermakers to pull away.
Dealing with foul trouble for most of the game, Minnesota's big men Eric Curry, Charlie Daniels, and Treyton Thompson all finished with four fouls on the night.
Curry, who returned from injury to start in Sunday's 66-60 loss at Wisconsin, played 14 minutes with two fouls in the first half, but he and Daniels both were called for their fourth fouls early in the second half.
That forced Johnson to bring in his tallest player, 7-foot freshman Thompson, who provided a spark with five straight points midway through the second half. The Glenwood, Minn., native's layup cut it to 63-56 with 11:36 to play, but the Gophers wouldn't get any closer.
The Boilermakers, who shot 12 for 24 from 3-point range, got 20 points from Eric Hunter, who averaged 4.3 points this season.
Battle, who extended his double figure scoring streak to 33 straight games, finished with 21 points. The Gophers had 11 3-pointers Wednesday, but they lost the rebounding battle 39-23 and were outscored 40-20 in points in the paint.
