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Johnson, defense help Purdue snap skid

Dec 7, 2008 - 5:57 AM WEST LAFAYETTE, Indiana (Ticker) -- Arkansas-Pine Bluff proved to be the perfect remedy for Purdue.

Sophomore JaJuan Johnson scored a career-high 20 points to help No. 10 Purdue get back on track with a 90-42 victory over winless Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday.

E'Twaun Moore had 15 points and six steals and Nemanja Calasan added 12 and 13 rebounds for the Boilermakers (6-2), who were coming off back-to-back defeats against Top 10 teams. Purdue lost to No.6 Oklahoma on November 28 before suffering a 76-60 loss at home to fourth-ranked Duke on Tuesday.

The Golden Lions were a much easier test for the Boilermakers, who forced 35 turnovers and held Arkansas-Pine Bluff to 23 percent (11-of-47) shooting.

Purdue scored the game's first 11 points and never looked back.

After missing its first seven shots, Arkansas-Pine Bluff got on the board with Tyree Glass' 3-pointer 7:28 into the contest. But Moore's 3-pointer capped a 9-0 burst as the Boilermakers went up 20-3 with 9:54 left in the half.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff never got within single digits and Purdue held a 44-23 bulge at intermission.

Keaton Grant scored five points during a 13-0 run early in the second half as the Boilermakers took a 63-29 lead with 11:38 remaining, ending any hope of a comeback.

The Golden Lions shot 16 percent (4-of-25) over the game's final 20 minutes and the Boilermakers held a 49-33 rebounding advantage. Purdue also forced 35 turnovers.

Glass scored 18 points to lead the Golden Lions (0-7), who have lost each game by an average of 32 points.

The margin of victory was the seventh-biggest in Purdue history, and the contest was the most lopsided triumph since the Boilermakers defeated Tampa, 106-50, on December 10, 1983.