Braden Smith had 24 points, and Purdue needed everyone of them as it came from behind to beat rival Indiana, 81-76.
Indiana looked like a team desperate for a win, and it brought its best game to Mackey Arena in the first half. Purdue was held to just one made three-pointer while Luke Goode and Mackenzie Mgbako combined to make four three-pointers in the first half to give IU a 41-37 lead going into the half.
But Trey Kaufman-Renn got going to start the second, scoring seven straight and giving Purdue a 44-41 lead.
But a five minute drought in the second half had Purdue trailing late in the second half.
Purdue was down 67-61 following a Trey Galloway lay up, but six straight points by Purdue tied it up.
With less than a minute to play, Trey Galloway gave Indiana its final lead of the game, 76-75, but unfortunately for the Hoosiers, Kaufman-Renn would respond again.
Smith would find his big man inside and Kaufman-Renn would spin to his left shoulder and hit a falling hook shot to give Purdue a one point lead.
A blocked Myles Rice mid-range jumper by freshman Gicarri Harris would help seal the game for Purdue as Loyer would then knock down two free throws, and Kaufman-Renn would add to more to get to the final score.
Trey Kaufman-Renn battles foul trouble, overcomes Ballo
Kaufman-Renn didn't just hit a game winner against rival IU, he was spectacular from the jump when he wasn't in foul trouble. Kaufman-Renn scored 23 points on an efficient 10 of 13 from the floor and 3 of 3 from the free throw line.
But the points don't tell the whole story. In a game where Kaufman-Renn played just 26 minutes in a 5 point win, Kaufman-Renn had a game-high +/- of +21. He played the last handful of minutes with four fouls and was Purdue's go to option on offense and its best players.
Purdue's three-point shooting continues to struggle
Purdue was just 2 of 13 from three. Purdue hasn't shot over 40% from three in the last five games now.
Myles Colvin struggled again, missing all three of his attempts. Camden Heide missed his three three-pointers. Both players have a history of making threes, but are both on half-season long stretches of cold shooting.
Braden Smith missed both of his threes and Fletcher Loyer was just 1 of 3.
Gicarri Harris, after starting the season struggling from three, has really started to knock down shots. He was 1 of 2 in his first career Purdue-IU game.
