Purdue women's basketball dropped its first game in the Elevance Health Women's Fort Myers Tip-Off on Thanksgiving Day, falling to Middle Tennessee 54-49. The defeat snaps a three-game winning streak for the Boilermakers, who dropped to 4-2 on the young season.
It was a rare loss for Katie Gearlds when her defense plays up to par. Purdue entered the game with a mark of 29-3 when opponents score less than 60 points under Katie Gearlds, but were unable to continue that trend against a scrappy Middle Tennessee squad.
Thursday was a back-and-forth affair, with nine lead changes and seven ties, but the Blue Raiders were able to outlast the Boilermakers down the stretch.
Purdue got off to an efficient start on Thursday afternoon, as Destini Lombard got the offense started. The pair combined to score the first six points for the Boilermakers, who started the day shooting 57% in the first quarter. Sophie Swanson added a pull-up three in transition to give Purdue a 9-3 lead at the 5:37 mark of the opening frame.
Middle Tennessee responded in a big way, however, storming its way back to take the lead after a 9-2 run of its own. The charge gave the Blue Raiders a 12-11 advantage with 1:51 left in the first quarter.
Amiyah Reynolds and Kendall Puryear then connected on back-to-back buckets, helping give the lead back to the Boilermakers heading into the second quarter. Puryear gave Purdue a boost off the bench, having four points and two rebounds in just three minutes.
The Blue Raiders came back in the second quarter to steal the lead back, after swapping scores twice that made it a 19-18 game in favor of Purdue, Middle Tennessee State went on a 7-0 run that spanned over five minutes of game time. The Boilermakers went dry in the second quarter, largely due to that scoreless stretch, heading into halftime just three of their last 14 attempt from the field and 0-6 from three-point range.
Elina Arike and Anastasia Boldyreva were the main culprits giving Katie Gearlds' defense fits. The senior tandem combined for 17 points in the first half, nearly matching the Boilermakers' team output.
Middle Tennessee took a 25-19 lead with 2:00 to play in the first half, matching the largest lead of the day to that point, before Kendall Puryear snapped a six and a half minute scoring drought to cut the deficit to four at halftime.
Destini Lombard and Puryear served as anchors for the Purdue offense over the opening 30 minutes of play, each having six points on 3-4 shooting from the field. Sophie Swanson, Lana McCarthy and Reagan Bass struggled, however, combining to shoot 1-15 from the field.
The Blue Raiders free throw discrepancy helped give them the halftime lead, hitting five of eight attempts while the Boilermakers did not attempt a free throw.
Swanson and Bass began to get it going to start the second half, as Swanson connected on a three, then Bass sank a jumper before Swanson hit another triple to quickly swipe the lead back from the Blue Raiders.
After Purdue took the 29-25 lead, Blue Raider guard Jalynn Gregory caught fire, knocking down back-to-back deep triples as the back and forth affair continued. Reagan Bass then stopped the mini 6-0 run by Gregory with a pair of free throws, before getting a layup to go as the Boilermakers and Blue Raiders traded buckets on four straight possessions.
Purdue shot just 26% from the field in the third quarter of what turned out to be a defensive battle, with only Swanson and Bass getting on the board for the Boilermakers.
Amid those offensive woes, Middle Tennessee State took a four-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, while holding the Boilermakers without points over the final three minutes of the third quarter.
The backcourt swiftly ended that stretch early in the fourth quarter caught fire in the final frame. After Middle Tennessee took a 42-37 lead with 8:21 to play, Ella Collier knocked down a three, Rashunda Jones hit a jumper and Sophie Swanson got a layup to fall, giving the Boilers a two-point advantage. Anastasia Boldyreva then hit a free throw and Destini Lombard responded with her first three of the game, handing the Boilermakers a 47-43 lead with just under six minutes to play. Boldyreva then tied things back up less than a minute later with a layup, followed by two free throws.
Boldyreva was Middle Tennessee's saving grace down the stretch, having 11 points in the fourth quarter. The 6-foot-6 senior scored nine straight for the Blue Raiders, eventually giving them a 51-49 lead with 2:43 to play after yet another trip to the charity stripe.
Purdue had two chances to tie the Blue Raiders while being within one possession, but a Rashunda Jones travel and errant pass by Lana McCarthy squandered those opportunities. Boldyreva then got to the free throw line again, knocking down one to extend the lead to 53-49 with 42 seconds to play.
Purdue was unable to get any of its last ditch efforts to fall, going scoreless over the final 4:07 of the fourth quarter.
What's next?
Katie Gearlds and company have a day off before being back in action on Saturday afternoon against defending National Champions South Carolina in Fort Myers.
