No. 1 seed Purdue never trailed on Saturday in the first Final Four game Saturday and used a dominant effort to advance to its first national championship game since 1969 with a 63-50 win over No. 11 seed NC State. The Boilermakers will face the winner of No. 1 seed UConn vs. No. 4 seed Alabama in the national title game on Monday.
"Obviously we still have a game to play," said Purdue center Zach Edey, who led the Boilermakers with 20 points and 12 rebounds. "No one's celebrating right now."
Edey recorded his sixth consecutive game in the NCAA Tournament with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds to pass former Navy star David Robinson for the most such games in the last 50 years.
"We got the best player in the country," said Purdue coach Matt Painter. "It's a hell of a place to start, right. ... But you've got to have the right pieces with him from a skill standpoint, and then be able to guard elite players. ... We've got to do a better job helping him."
While Edey's co-star Braden Smith struggled and scored only three points, fellow guard Lance Jones stepped up. The Southern Illinois transfer finished with 14 points, and Fletcher Loyer scored 11. Purdue was making its first Final Four appearance since 1980 and will play for its first national championship in program history next week.
Purdue led by as many as 20 points in the final minutes of play but needed a late surge to ice the game. The Boilermakers shot 22 of 55 from the floor, while NC State connected on only 21 of 57 attempts.NC State ends its season with a 26-15 record.
"I don't think either team played great," Painter said. "If you look at their run to get here and our run to get here, both teams were better offensively (than tonight). ... But to win a championship and get six games and win six games, you're going to have a game or two where you don't play well offensively."
The Wolfpack won five games in five days at the ACC Tournament to receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. NC State won nine consecutive elimination games before falling to Purdue. NC State star DJ Horne scored 20 points, while big man DJ Burns Jr. scored only eight in only 27 minutes of action.
"I don't know that I could be more prouder of a group of men that I've coached in my life," NC State coach Kevin Keatts said. "We're going to leave out of here because Purdue won the game, but we're going to walk out as champions."
Purdue one game away from redemption
Two teams in NCAA Tournament history have lost in the first round as a No. 1 seed. Virginia fell to UMBC as the No. 1 overall seed in 2018 and ran the table the following season to capture its first national title in program history. Last spring, as a No. 1 seed, Purdue lost in the first round to Fairleigh Dickinson and now find themselves just one win away from writing a similar script. Edey is putting up historic numbers in this tournament. Edey taking his play to another level is why Purdue finds itself in the national championship game for the first time in 55 years. Edey declared for the 2024 NBA Draft in February, which means Monday will mark his final college game.
Edey puts Burns, Middlebrooks in foul trouble
There aren't many players who are better at drawing fouls than Edey. It's one of the many reasons he can be so tough to defend. Edey shot only two free throws — a season-low — but made his presence felt by putting Burns and Ben Middlebrooks in foul trouble. In the opening minutes of the second half, both NC State players had three fouls each.
The Wolfpack were able to go on a run right before halftime by making the switch to put Middlebrooks on Edey. NC State was able to put pressure on Edey and forced him to commit five turnovers. Purdue went on a run late because others around Edey stepped up — which ultimately put the game away. Burns logged only 27 minutes, while Middlebrooks played 26. NC State did hold Edey to only 20 points, his lowest since scoring 18 against Wisconsin on Feb. 4.
Purdue's Jones steps up
Speaking of others around Edey stepping up, Jones provided a spark by knocking down four 3-pointers. Jones finished with 14 points, and Loyer added 11. Jones transferred to Purdue after spending the first four seasons of his career at Southern Illinois.
Purdue hasn't taken many transfers during the Matt Painter era. Jones is the only player in the Purdue starting lineup that wasn't on the team last season. Jones stepped up while Smith struggled. Smith scored his fewest points (three) since dropping two against Jacksonville on Dec. 21 and committed five turnovers.
"The work stays the same," Jones said. "We don't want to shy from moments like this. ... I can speak for me and Fletcher that we have a lot of confidence right now."