11/5/2017 basketball Edit

Keys spurs Purdue in exhibition blowout

Kyle Charters • BoilerUpload

Staff Writer

Andreona Keys has started 77 games in the first three seasons of her career, all of them on the wing.

But Sunday in the exhibition, the senior started at the 4 — and she’ll start the regular season there too — because of a slew of early-season injuries to the Boilermakers’ front court.

The role, though, suited her, as she helped spur Purdue’s 88-39 thrashing of Saint Francis in Mackey Arena. The 5-foot-11 captain scored 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting with 10 rebounds and six assists.

“I enjoyed it,” Keys said. “I can post up, use my strength a lot and come outside, because we do a four-out (offense), pick-and-pop, so I’m comfortable there and it’s working for me.”

Purdue is going to need Keys to have success inside, because the Boilermakers will start the season without Nora Kiesler (head), Tamara Farquhar (knee) and Fatou Diagne (foot/ankle). But filled in more against the out-manned Cougars of Fort Wayne on Sunday afternoon.

“She’s a physical player and a great rebounder anyway,” Coach Sharon Versyp said. “Down low, you’re a bit closer to the basket, so hopefully she’ll continue to elevate in that (rebounding) area, and when you can extend the floor, when you have a 4 player who can shoot the three and attack as well as she does, but one thing she odes better than most 4 players is set others up. She doesn’t have the shot, she finds somebody else.”

Purdue shared plenty, with 24 assists on its 34 baskets. The Boilermakers, with a four-guard lineup that should allow for more running, raced out to a 19-0 lead in the first 6:30. They were active; after a scramble, when Keys dove for a loose ball to keep the possession alive, she scored inside when Dominique Oden attracted defenders on a drive.

Purdue led 24-6 after the first quarter, hitting 11-of-19 shots compared to 2-of-12, with seven turnovers, for the guests.

Keys was hard to stop inside, a mismatch advantage for the Boilermakers. Forward Ae'Rianna Harris was a matchup nightmare for the Cougars. The sophomore scored Purdue's first seven of the second quarter, the last when Keys found her trailing on the fastbreak.

Harris finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocks.

“I saw (this) over the summer," Keys said. "You could tell that she played with a lot more confidence. We’re going to give her the ball inside. She’s a huge post presence and we know she can score the ball.”

Purdue shot 57.6 percent for the game, including 7-of-16 from three-point range. The Boilermakers had the edge on the glass (38-21), forced 19 turnovers (on 15 steals) and held Saint Francis to only 34-percent shooting.

After the game, the Boilermakers said it was good to get some of the early-season jitters out. And maybe that applied to freshman point guard Karissa McLaughlin. The Indiana Miss Basketball was held scoreless in the first half, but then broke out in the third quarter, hitting three three-pointers. She finished with 11 points and three rebounds, without a turnover, in 23 minutes, after playing 35 minutes in the scrimmage vs. DePaul without a giveaway.

“She can push the ball,” Keys said. “… She’s a point guard who can score. With confident with her shooting. When it goes up, we’re like, ‘It’s probably going to go in.’ She brings that scoring mentality and her total effort. She’s playing defense, getting hustle plays, stuff like that.”

Dominique Oden scored 14 points with four assists, while Lamina Cooper, starting in Keys' spot on the wing, had a dozen points with four rebounds and six steals.

Now, the Boilermakers have final preparation for their season-opener Friday at Central Michigan.

“This is a great start for us,” Keys said. “I feel like we got the jitters out today and got to see what we have.”

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