Live Game Thread & Updates for Purdue's Big Ten Tournament Game vs. Northwestern

CHICAGO — After getting the last two days off because of the double-bye, Purdue returns to the hardwood on Thursday night to play its first game of the Big Ten Tournament. Its first opponent will be Northwestern.

While the Boilermakers were resting, the Wildcats have already played two games, defeating Penn State in the first round and Indiana in the second round to reach Thursday's third round. Will Purdue's rest pay off against Northwestern, a team that has played three times in three days?

Purdue won the first game 70-66 in Evanston. Can they go 2-0 against Northwestern and move on to the quarterfinal round?

Follow along with Purdue Boilermakers On SI for the latest updates and analysis throughout Thursday night's game.

#7 Purdue vs. #15 Northwestern live game blog

Northwestern Wildcats guard Justin Mullins (20) defends Purdue Boilermakers guard C.J. Cox (0). | David Banks-Imagn Images

2nd half

3:21 — Purdue has pulled back out to an 18-point lead at 79-61 at the final media timeout of the game. Braden Smith has racked up 16 assists and the Boilers continue to punish Northwestern in the post. The Wildcats may have given the Boilermakers a scare, but this one is essentially over.

7:00 — The Wildcats have really heated up. They've made seven straight shots and have cut the Purdue lead down to 14 at 71-57. The Boilers have led by as many as 26 points tonight. Matt Painter wants another timeout to talk it over.

9:08 — Northwestern has now made five straight baskets and has whittled Purdue's lead down to 18 points with under 10 minutes to play. Matt Painter wants to take a timeout to stop the Wildcats run. With such a big lead for most of the game, the Boilermakers look a little relaxed on the floor right now.

11:49 — Second media timeout and Purdue is in complete control. The Boilermakers lead this one 63-38. Purdue has three players in double figures now: Trey Kaufman-Renn and Oscar Cluff both have 13 and Fletcher Loyer leads the way with 14. Braden Smith is up to 12 assists.

13:54 — Jayden Reid becomes the first Northwestern player other than Nick Martinelli to exceed four points tonight. He makes a three-pointer, but at this stage, it feels inconsequential.

15:35 — FIrst media timeout of the second half and Purdue leads 52-33. Nick Martinelli continues to play well for Northwestern, despite carrying such a heavy load all week long. He's continued to make shots and draw contact.

Braden Smith is also now officially second on the NCAA's all-time assist leaderboard at 1,039. He has 10 assists for the Boilermakers tonight.

17:30 — Northwestern has put together a nice 6-0 run here early to cut into Purdue's lead a little bit. Ten CJ Cox buries a triple to push the lead back out to 23 points at 50-27.

1st half

HALF — Purdue 45, Northwestern 21. You couldn't ask for a much better half of Purdue basketball. The Boilers fired from all cylinders on both ends. Part of that is the Wildcats' exhaustion, playing their third game in three days.

Trey Kaufman-Renn led the charge with 11 points and four rebounds. Oscar Cluff had nine points and Braden Smith dished out nine assists. He's now tied for second on the NCAA's all-time list.

Purdue shot 55.9% from the floor and 5-of-12 from three. Northwestern attempted just six three-pointers and didn't make one. Nick Martinelli leads the way for the Wildcats with 10 points.

3:48 — Purdue leads Northwestern 38-19 at the final media timeout of the first half. Braden Smith is up to eight assists for the game. Oscar Cluff has nine points and Trey Kaufman-Renn has eight to lead the way for the Boilermakers. Northwestern's Nick Martinelli also has eight.

5:50 — Braden Smith just made a ridiculous play. He was able to tip a pass, then chase it down as it was going down. He tipped it for Omer Mayer to grab it and get a layup in transition at the other end. It was easily the best play of the night for Purdue. The Boilers have broken this thing open at 38-15.

7:35 — A pair of brilliant passes from Braden Smith — one to Omer Mayer and the other to Gicarri Harris — results in a pair of Purdue triples. Smith is up to six assists and the Purdue lead is 31-13. Everything is working for the Boilermakers right now. Chris Collins takes a much-needed timeout.

Purdue is on a 12-2 run and Northwestern hasn't scored in over two minutes. The Wildcats look exhuasted on the floor right now.

9:20 — Braden Smith was able to tie up Jayden Reid and creates a jump ball. Both players refuse to let go and officials get involved. Purdue then is able to take advantage on the offensive end with a bucket from Trey Kaufman-Renn. Purdue has just been dominant in this first half.

11:26 — Second media timeout and Purdue leads Northwestern 19-11. Both Oscar Cluff and Fletcher Loyer have seven points to start tonight. Boilers are again doing a good job on the glass, outrebounding Northwestern 9-4.

12:20 — Purdue has built its lead out to 10 points at 19-9. Fletcher Loyer knocked down a three-pointer after Jack Benter took a charge on the defensive end. A really good start for Purdue.

14:55 — First media timeout and Purdue leads Northwestern 11-6. Because of the way Northwestern is playing, Oscar Cluff is getting a lot of clean looks at the basket. He already has seven points, two rebounds and an assist for the Boilermakers. Purdue is off to a much better start than the one it had in Evanston against the Wildcats last week.

16:41 — Nortwestern has been trapping Braden Smith as soon as he crosses half court, the same thing it did last week in their meeting. Purdue's ball movement has been really good, though, leading to some open shot attempts.

19:06 — A couple of missed tree-pointers early, but Oscar Cluff cleans up the offensive glass and Purdue scores first, taking a 2-0 lead.

Starting lineups

Purdue — #0 CJ Cox (G), #2 Fletcher Loyer (G), #3 Braden Smith (G), #4 Trey Kaufman-Renn (F), #45 Oscar Cluff (C).
Northwestern — #3 Jake West (G), #4 Jayden Reid (G), #44 Angelo Ciaravino (G), #2 Nick Martinelli (F), #8 Tre Singleton (F).

Pregame

Both teams are going through warmups. Fans are filtering in and there is a lot of black and gold in the building. This crowd should be a pro-Purdue one tonight.

Significant news with Northwestern's Arrinten Page unavailable for today's game. That should give Purdue a major advantage on the interior, as he's the best post player for the Wildcats. Page was averaging 10.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. He scored seven points and had seven boards in the first meeting against the Boilermakers.

Availability report

Purdue — OUT: None. QUESTIONABLE: None.
Northwestern — OUT: Arrinten Page. Questionable: None.

Tipoff between Purdue and Northwestern is set for 6:30 p.m. ET. It will air on Big Ten Network.

What's at stake?

A trip to the quarterfinal round of the Big Ten Tournament hangs in the balance on Thursday night as No. 7 seed Purdue takes on No. 15 seed Northwestern.

The Boilermakers are firmly in the NCAA Tournament and are just trying to improve their status for the postseason. A win or two in the Big Ten Tournament could solidify Purdue as a No. 3 seed for March Madness. A loss to Northwestern could result in a No. 4 seed.

Northwestern's only hope of continuing its season is to win the Big Ten Tournament, a tall task for a team that finished 5-15 during conference play and will be playing its third game in three days on Thursday night.

The Wildcats did give the Boilers fits in their first matchup, but Purdue pulled out a 70-66 road victory in Evanston. How will things turn out Thursday night at the United Center?

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