For the first time since before Christmas, Purdue women's basketball is back in the win column. The Boilermakers took down Wisconsin on Sunday afternoon in Mackey Arena, 84-71, snapping a nine-game losing streak, all against Big Ten opponents in the process. The last win previous to Sunday came on December 21st against Indiana State and the victory over the Badgers was the first conference win for the Boilermakers this season.

Katie Gearlds and company conquered Wisconsin in front of 40+ former Boilermakers being recognized for Alumnae Day in Mackey Arena.

Sophie Swanson put a momentary hold on Purdue's slow start woes on Sunday, as the sophomore helped pace the Boilermakers in what was an explosive opening frame. Swanson had seven early points to provide Purdue with a 17-7 lead over the Badgers at the 5:00 mark of the first quarter. Swanson had five of her first seven during a 7-0 run to extend the lead to double-figures, with Kendall Puryear's layup capping the charge. Purdue started the game shooting 86% (6-7) from the field to build that advantage.

After Wisconsin mounted a brief 5-0 run, Purdue caught a second wind in the first quarter, going on an 8-0 run of its own. The back court trio of Rashunda Jones, Destini Lombard and Ella Collier headlined the push, which gave Purdue a 25-12 lead.

The Boilermakers would go on to take a 31-21 lead into the second quarter behind a combined 17 points from Swanson and Jones.

Wisconsin chipped away at the sizable lead in the second quarter, which reached as much as 13 with 3:03 to play in the first half. Serah Williams had six down the stretch of the quarter before the Badgers connected on a pair of triples in the final minute to cut the Purdue lead to just six heading into the break.

McKenna Layden did her best to fend off the Badgers, knocking down two threes in the quarter, en route to nine first half points, which matched Sophie Swanson for the team-high. The Boilermakers shot 35% from the field in the second quarter after eclipsing 75% in the opening frame, but they had only five first half turnovers, a stark difference from their season pace.

Star forward Serah Williams was integral in keeping Wisconsin in the game throughout the first half, serving as a tough test for the freshmen tandem of Lana McCarthy and Kendall Puryear. The All-Big Ten performer had a game-high 17 points in the first half on 6-9 shooting from the field.

Wisconsin continued its momentum out of halftime, outscoring Purdue 9-3 in the opening three minutes to tie the game at 48-48. Ella Collier and Tessa Myers then traded triples to keep the game knotted up at 51 apiece with 6:05 left in the third quarter.

After the Myers three, Purdue outscored the Badgers 6-2 in the following three minutes to take a four point lead with 2:01 remaining in the third of what looked to be a defensive battle in the second half.

Despite shooting only 29% from the field in the quarter, and going the final two minutes without points, the Boilermakers maintained a three-point lead heading into the final frame.

After Wisconsin scored on its opening possession of the fourth quarter, Purdue found its shooting stroke down the stretch. Kendall Puryear and Ella Collier combined to go on a 12-0 run, which including a pair of triples by Collier, to the lead back to double-digits with 4:32 to play.

Serah Williams hit four straight free throws to help claw Wisconsin back into the game, cutting the lead to seven with 3:15 left in the fourth, but Puryear had other ideas. The freshman big had back-to-back layups within 30 seconds to hand the Boilermakers an 11-point advantage late. That would be all the cushion Purdue needed to secure it's first win in 2025.

Ella Collier and Kendall Puryear were integral pieces in Purdue's win, coming up clutch down the stretch. The pair led the Boilermakers in scoring, which included 18 combined points in the fourth quarter. Puryear has come on strong of late, reaching double-figures in three of the last four games, and producing a career-high 18 in the victory.

Sophie Swanson exploded in the first half with nine points, but was held in check in the second half until the final moments of the game. She scored eight points in the final 90 seconds to push her total to 17 in the victory.

McKenna Layden and Rashunda Jones also reached double-figures, having 12 and ten points, respectively. Layden was key in the first half, knocking down four threes on the night and leading the team in rebounding with nine. Jones was an efficient 3-5 from the field and had a team-high five assists on the night.

Reagan Bass, who has been relegated to a role off the bench following Layden's emergence, put together a strong night as well. The senior had seven points on 3-5 shooting and three rebounds.

Purdue will now have a week off before returning to action next Sunday in New Jersey, traveling east to take on Rutgers.