Purdue women's basketball commit Avery Gordon shines despite loss

One of Purdue women's basketball's two nationally ranked recruits in the class of 2025 was in action on Tuesday night as Brownsburg, led by four-star center commit Avery Gordon, hosted Hamilton Southeastern and 2025 Indiana commit Maya Makalusky. The Royals entered the anticipated matchup undefeated and ranked as the No. 1 team in the state.

HSE (Hamilton Southeastern) continued its dominance over the rest of the state, notching its sixth-straight win to start the season at the expense of Brownsburg, 69-57. The future Boilermaker did have a stellar showing, dropping a team-high 26 points on 12-17 shooting (2-3 on free throws), with nine rebounds and a pair of blocks in the defeat.

That prestige for Hamilton Southeastern was clear from the start as it jumped out to a quick 8-2 point advantage in the first four minutes of the game. Although, that is when Gordon got going, scoring the Bulldogs first six points of the game.

After HSE later extended the lead to 19-12 at the 1:44 mark, Brownsburg used a quick 5-0 run to close the gap to just two heading into the second quarter, with Gordon capping off the stretch to reach double figures in just six minutes of action. Gordon scored 10 points on 5-6 shooting and added four rebounds in the opening frame.

The Royals then mounted a charge in the second quarter to take a commanding lead as Gordon's production slowed and Brownsburg's supporting cast struggled. Guards Elle McCulloch and Emma Hendricks were the only other source of offense on the day, but were both held under ten points.

Brownsburg found themselves down 13 with less than two minutes left in the second quarter as future Hoosier Maya Makalusky began to take over the game. The Bulldogs were unable to muster another comeback and fell behind by 11 heading into the break.

HSE's success in the first half continued in the third quarter, extending the lead to as much as 18 while Gordon and Brownsburg struggled to find their groove offensively. Gordon missed her first four field goal attempts out of the break and was flustered by a pesky HSE defense.

The Bulldogs were unable to fight their way back into the game, ultimately dropping to 4-3 on the young season, although the last two have come against the top two ranked teams in the state.

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