Matchup Rewind | Purdue vs. Maryland

Jan 23, 2023 - 3:45 PM

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The start was great but the final 30 minutes was an absolute grind as Purdue was able to survive 58-55 at Mackey Arena that saw Zach Edey once again have a great day scoring 24 and posting 16 rebounds but not getting much help from anywhere else as the Boilers shot just 2-13 from behind the arc and had 15 total turnovers. Maryland, on the other hand, had three players in double figures but held Maryland to just 37.3% shooting from the field and 14.3% from behind the arc.

Let’s review the matchups to see how Purdue fared:

1 | Zach Edey vs. Maryland’s Interior Players

As Coach Painter essentially summed up in his post game comments, Zach was just ok today and he got 24 and 16. How great is it that the best player on the team can be ‘just ok’ and go get a double-double of that magnitude? Zach struggled with ball security again yesterday when Purdue was having to be really heavy with their reliance but the players around him struggled to really do anything offensively as nobody else on the roster got into double figures. The team also shot a measly 2-13 from behind the arc which allowed Maryland to just sit in the 2-3 zone, slow the tempo down, and grind Purdue’s once 16 point lead down to just 1 point at the end of game.

Advantage: Slightly Purdue because Zach could have been more effective with better wing/guard play and he had 5 turnovers.

2 | Jahmir Young vs. Braden Smith

Well, it wasn’t really Braden Smith guarding Jahmir Young as Ethan Morton took the brunt of that matchup but limiting Young to 10 points on 4-18 shooting is largely the reason why Purdue was able to get the win against the Terrapins. Young had a tough time getting started and once he was able to string some things together, Purdue had locked down most other aspects of the Maryland offense as well. This was a bad day for the Boilers on offense but the defense was really, really good.

Advantage: Strongly Purdue

3 | Purdue’s 3pt Shooting vs. Maryland’s 2-3 Zone

Well, this one is pretty easy to see in just the shooting percentage that Purdue had behind the arc against Maryland. Purdue started the game 2-3 but ended just 2-13 overall and didn’t force Maryland out of their zone at all which is why Purdue struggled in the final 30 minutes. Purdue turned the ball over 15 total times and struggled to make entry passes to the post because Maryland was able to clog the lane and make it difficult for Zach.

Purdue was so bad on offense against Maryland in the final 30 minutes there were multiple scoring droughts of extended amount of time and Purdue only scored 33 points the final 30:25 of the game. That comes out to less than 1 point per minute which is usually a recipe to get blown out but luckily Purdue played good defense themselves and were able to slow down Maryland just enough to scratch out a win.

Advantage: Strongly Maryland