How the Boilers fared in a loss to the Aggies

On By Littum

INDIANAPOLIS — No. 18 Texas A&M came to Gainbridge Fieldhouse and beat no. 11 Boilermakers 70-66 on Saturday.

Purdue had won seven of its past eight at Gainbridge, including four in a row. Instead of extending that streak, the Dec. 14 game at Indianapolis saw its losing streak extend to four.

The Boilermakers suffered their first loss in three games against SEC teams. They play Auburn in Birmingham, Ala., next Saturday.

(*denotes Man of the Match)

APPETIZERS

∎ Braden Smith: 7/10*

Provided a boost as he warmed up from the 3 in the first half. The problem was that most of the day was his only perimeter production. All 15 of his points came on 3-pointers. Finished with as many turnovers as assists (six) – never a healthy sign for this offense.

∎ Fletcher Rental: 6/10

Scored 12 points in the first half in a variety of ways, though without attempting a 3. Served as a weapon both in the midrange and in transition. Then it was goalless in the second half. Only upped the ante with one assist and no rebounds.

∎ Myles Colvin: 6/10

His 3-point percentage for the season dipped below 40% with Saturday’s 1-for-6. Makes up for it a bit with his athletic scoring potential in transition.

∎ Camden Heath: 6/10

Was a big part of a 9-0 run early in the second half, including a dunk off a low-post dump-off from Kaufman-Renn. One of the wrinkles was largely missing from the offense as Purdue didn’t or couldn’t get the ball inside.

∎ Trey Kaufman-Renn: 5/10

Went deep into the first half without attempting a field goal – typically a sign that this offense was off-kilter. Went pretty deep into the second half before making one. Ended up grinding his way to an ineffective 11 points on 3-of-9 shooting with five turnovers.

RESERVE

∎ CJ Cox: 5/10

Called earlier than usual when Smith went to the bench after a tumble. Still shaky at times offensively, but hit a deep 3 in the first half and came through a few times in transition.

∎ Gicarri Harris: 4/10

Played just six minutes as Painter needed more of Cox’s ball handling and scoring potential.

∎ Will Berg: 4/10

First came off the bench among the greats. Maybe he would have stayed even longer if he hadn’t made another mistake. He still had no rebounds in his 10 minutes.

∎ Caleb Furst: 3/10

Not the best fit for such a physical game. Grabbed a rebound in his eight minutes.