Who’s Playing
Texas A&M Aggies @ Purdue Boilermakers
Current Records: Texas A&M 8-2, Purdue 8-2
How To Watch
What to Know
The Purdue Boilermakers will face off against the Texas A&M Aggies at 12:00 p.m. ET on Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The Boilermakers are strutting in with some offensive muscle as they’ve averaged 78.3 points per game this season.
Purdue’s offense will try to repeat the strong performance it gave on Sunday, when they got past Maryland’s usually-dominant defense. Purdue came out on top against Maryland by a score of 83-78.
Among those leading the charge was Braden Smith, who shot 5-for-9 from downtown and dropped a double-double on 24 points and ten assists. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in threes (five). Trey Kaufman-Renn was another key player, earning 21 points plus eight rebounds.
Meanwhile, Texas A&M entered their tilt with Texas Tech on Sunday with three consecutive wins but they’ll enter their next game with four. They walked away with a 72-67 victory over the Red Raiders.
Texas A&M’s success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Jace Carter led the charge by going 5 for 6 en route to 16 points plus five rebounds. Carter had some trouble finding his footing against Wake Forest on Tuesday, so this was a nice turnaround. Another player making a difference was Wade Taylor IV, who scored 19 points along with two steals.
Texas A&M smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive rebounds (they’re ranked first in offensive rebounds per game overall). That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they’ve now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in 22 consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Purdue’s win was their 22nd straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 8-2. As for Texas A&M, their victory bumped their record up to an identical 8-2.
This contest is shaping up to be a blowout: Purdue just can’t miss this season, having made 49.8% of their field goals per game. It’s a different story for Texas A&M, though, as they’ve only made 41.2% of their field goals this season. Given Purdue’s sizable advantage in that area, Texas A&M will need to find a way to close that gap.
