The Purdue Boilermakers basketball team is a college basketball program that competes in NCAA Division I and is a member of the Big Ten Conference. Purdue basketball gets the most Big Ten Championships with 24. [2] The Boilermakers have reached 2 NCAA Tournament Final Fours. The 1931–32 team was retroactively named the national champion by the Helms Athletic Foundation and the Premo-Porretta Power Poll. [3][4] Purdue has delivered more than 30 players to the NBA, including two overall No. 1 picks in the NBA draft. Purdue shares a traditional rivalry with in-state foe Indiana University, and leads the all times series 120–89 within them.
Purdue was seeded 2nd in the East Region of the 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, their highest seed lately. In the first round, they faced Cal State Fullerton Titans, winning 74-48. But lots of Purdue lover’s hearts broke in the next half of the match, as mature Center Isaac Haas fell on his elbow because he fought to get a rally, and broke his knee as he hit the floor, ending his Purdue Basketball profession. Purdue’s next round game was against Butler Bulldogs, whom Purdue had already played earlier in this season. The Boilers would win the match on a last second shot by Dakota Mathias, winning 76–73 ahead of the Sweet Sixteen for the second consecutive season. From the Sweet Sixteen, Purdue confronted the third seeded Texas Tech Red Raiders. The Boilers would go on to lose in disappointing fashion 65-78, ending their season with 30 wins, the most wins in program history.
In 2019, Purdue was seeded 3rd in the South Region of this 2019 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, following another strong season. In the initial round, they ruined a 26–8 Old Dominion team that was coming from a Conference USA championship, winning 61–48. At the second round, they handedly conquered #6 seed Villanova, sending the defending champs home early following an 87–61 success, and advancing to their third consecutive Sweet Sixteen under Matt Painter. The Boilermakers ran into to their first test with the Tennessee Volunteers that were # 2. After a back and forth contest that included 17 lead changes and needed to be decided, Purdue came out victorious, beating the Vols 99–94 to achieve their first Elite Eight in almost 20 years. In the Elite Eight, Purdue confronted the #1 Billion Virginia Cavaliers in what is another back and forth thriller. After several lead changes throughout the game, Purdue headed 70–67 with 5.9 seconds left and looked to be headed to their first Final Four since 1980 when Virginia’s Ty Jerome missed the second free throw of 2. Virginia managed to come up with the offensive rebound however, and after chasing down the loose ball, Mamadi Diakite nailed a Hail Mary – type jumpshot at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. The Boilers were once again looking towards the large dance, leading 75–74 with 43 seconds to go, but Virginia managed to hold Purdue scoreless over the final moment and prevailed 80–75, finishing the Boilermakers year with 26 wins and their first Elite Eight appearance since 2000.
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