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Nebraska upsets No. 1 Purdue, which falls in early Big Ten standings hole
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- Nebraska upsets No. 1 Purdue, which falls in early Big Ten standings hole
LINCOLN, Nebraska — Last month, Purdue basketball looked like a surefire repeat Big Ten champion.
On Jan. 9, the Boilermakers find themselves in an early hole in the conference standings.
Turnovers and a disastrous final three minutes of the first half cost No. 1 Purdue basketball in its 88-72 road loss to Nebraska at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Tuesday.
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Purdue (14-2, 3-2) spent the entire second half trying to crawl out of a double-digit halftime deficit.
The Boilers got as close as 51-50 before Josiah Allick 's 3-pointer started a 12-2 run. Nebraska (12-3, 3-2), which had four players with at least 12 points, never looked back.
MORE: Purdue basketball coach Matt Painter lobbies for more control on court stormings
Nebraska's Juwan Gary calls for a timeout after grabbing a loose ball next to Purdue's Lance Jones.
It was over when
The final 3:17 of the first half was all Nebraska and Purdue, already playing poorly, but treading water against a Nebraska team having its own turnover woes, dug its grave.
The Huskers went on a 13-0 run over a span of 2:03, sparked by three 3-pointers, including two by Keisei Tominaga .
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Mason Gillis was Purdue's saving grace for much of the first half, hitting four 3s and scoring 13 points. But Gillis' performance was a wash with Nebraska's late run.
Zach Edey watch
Turns out, Zach Edey is human.
For the second straight game, Edey wasn't much of a factor in the scoring column. And for the second straight game it happened after two first half fouls put Purdue's 7-foot-4 center on the bench.
Edey drew his second foul with 3:44 to go in the first half when Juwan Gary beat Edey off the dribble, scored a layup and got fouled, completing the three-point play to tie the game at 28.
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Edey finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and two blocks.
3 stars
Rienk Mast , Nebraska:Mast, who came in averaging 12.9 points per game, scored 14 in the first half. Mast proved to be a matchup problem for Edey inside and with his ability to score from the perimeter. Mast scored 18 points to go with four rebounds and three assists.
Mason Gillis, Purdue:By halftime, Gillis already had a season high with 13 points in 12 minutes. Gillis' 16 points was the only reason Purdue was competitive in the first half.
Keisei Tominaga, Nebraska:Tominaga always seems to get hot against Purdue. He had four first half 3s. The senior guard then added his fifth 3 that was the dagger, a stepback from the wing with 4:04 to go that gave the Huskers an 80-70 lead. Tominaga scored a game-high 19 points to go with four assists.
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Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue upset by Nebraska in Big Ten men's basketball game
