What We Learned From Penn State Basketball's Loss to Purdue

Playing without their leading scorer, the Nittany Lions fell to the fifth-ranked Boilermakers 93-85.

Penn State Nittany Lions guard Dominick Stewart (7) drives the ball past Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) during the first half at Mackey Arena. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Last season, Penn State fans stormed the court at the Bryce Jordan Center when the Nittany Lions beat No. 8 Purdue 81-70. It was Penn State’s first win over a top-10 team since 2019 and its fourth over a top-15 team since Mike Rhoades became head coach. 

But it was a different battle in the sold-out Mackey Arena one year later to face the fifth-ranked Boilermakers. Penn State, a much younger team in 2025, traveled to West Lafayette as 22.5-point underdogs and without freshman guard Kayden Mingo, who was out for a second straight game. The Nittany Lions (9-7, 0-5 Big Ten) fought against a Purdue team (15-1, 5-0 Big Ten) that was riding a six-game win streak. It increased to seven after the Boilermakers’ 93-85 win.  

Braden Smith had 26 points and 14 assists for the Boilermakers. Earlier this season, Smith broke the Big Ten career assists record and was tough for Penn State to contain on Saturday. Oscar Cluff had seven offensive rebounds in his 23-point performance and missed only one shot (10-for-11) from the field.

The Nittany Lions’ 85 points were the most the Boilermakers have allowed this season. The only other team to come close to that mark was Iowa State, the only team to defeat Purdue this season (81-58 in December). 

Penn State dropped its third straight game to a ranked team and still seeks its first Big Ten win. Here’s what we learned about Penn State in its road test.

Sloppy down the stretch

Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith drives the ball past Penn State Nittany Lions guard Freddie Dilione V. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Penn State has been pretty disciplined this season, limiting turnovers and winning the turnover battle. Heading into this matchup, the Nittany Lions ranked sixth nationally in turnovers (9.1 per game). 

But while trying to claw back from ten-point deficits, Penn State got sloppy offensively, and Purdue forced five second-half turnovers. The Boilermakers scored 18 points off turnovers in the game, which really hurt Penn State’s chances of clawing back. 

With five minutes left in the game, Purdue had back-to-back steals turned into three-point-play opportunities after fouls on Melih Tunca. Because Penn State mishandled the ball down the stretch, Purdue kept the momentum and was able to slow its pace to drain the clock.

Leaning on Freddie Dilione V

Penn State Nittany Lions guard Freddie Dilione V. (5) drives the ball around Purdue Boilermakers guard Jack Benter (14) during the first half at Mackey Arena. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Without Kayden Mingo, Freddie Dilione has become Penn State’s primary ball-handler. He had 17 points against No. 2 Michigan on Tuesday and a team-high 25 points against Purdue. 

Dilione is one of Penn State’s few returning players, and the team has leaned on his experience. With under two minutes left in the first half, Dilione caught Oscar Cluff off guard, taking the ball out of his hands before slamming it home to momentarily silence the Boilermaker crowd.

Dilione shot 50 percent from the field and made three 3-pointers. He also was on the court the longest for Penn State, playing 34 minutes. Since Mingo has been injured, Dilione has been off the court for just eight minutes over the past two games. 

Learning resilience 

Purdue Boilermakers guard Gicarri Harris (24) defends against Penn State Nittany Lions guard Freddie Dilione V. (5) during the second half at Mackey Arena. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Since losing its Big Ten opener by 41 points at Indiana, Penn State has put up a fight against these ranked teams. The team’s resiliency has improved with experience, a positive sign for the young group that the morale isn’t diminishing through this tough stretch. 

After Purdue countered Penn State’s 7-0 run with a 9-0 scoring spree, Rhoades called a timeout with 4:03 remaining in the first half. The Nittany Lions looked a lot different after breaking the huddle.

It was smart clock management that kept the game close going into halftime. The Boilermakers led by only one point, and the Nittany Lions hit three 3-pointers in those final minutes. One of Penn State’s biggest issues in some of its wide-margin losses has been an inability to fight through adversity and opponent scoring runs. 

This key timeout was pivotal in keeping Penn State alive and breaking up Purdue’s momentum, which is difficult to do when you’re on the road. Penn State’s resiliency was mightily tested once again down the stretch, and the Nittany Lions slightly unraveled coming out of halftime, trailing by as much as 11 in the first five minutes. Purdue’s largest lead of the game was by 14 near the end of the game.

As the season has progressed, Penn State has learned to battle through tough sequences. 

Shooting better from beyond the arc

Penn State Nittany Lions guard Freddie Dilione V. (5) shoots the ball in front of Purdue Boilermakers guard C.J. Cox (0) during the first half at Mackey Arena. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Against these ranked opponents, Penn State has been forced to shoot more threes. When the Nittany Lions faced nonconference opponents, they were able to drive the paint and didn’t have to rely on shots from distance. 

However, against Purdue and its defense that scarcely conceded points in the paint, Penn State was forced to attempd 27 3-pointers. In turn, Penn State’s 3-point shooting is improving. At the beginning of the season, Rhoades wanted his team to take more shots and encouraged players to spread the ball. If Penn State wanted a chance against Purdue, it had to move the ball around quickly and take long-range looks.

In the first half against the Boilermakers, the Nittany Lions shot 47 percent from 3-point range, making three in the last four minutes. On average, Penn State makes 7.5 per game. Penn State made 12 against Purdue, which did a much better job of limiting those attempts in the second half and forcing uncomfortable shots that either rimmed out or missed entirely. 

When can Penn State expect a Big Ten win?

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Mike Rhoades reacts to a call during the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

Rhoades has said that Penn State needs to go through games like these vs. ranked opponents. Over this stretch, while it hasn’t won, the team looked more capable of winning and keeping games close. 

Penn State won’t have to face another ranked opponent until Feb. 21, when it travels to Nebraska. Because of how the Nittany Lions have improved in certain areas, they should be better equipped to face other conference opponents. 

Up next

Penn State returns home to face UCLA at 8:30 p.m. ET Wednesday at the Bryce Jordan Center.

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