No. 24 Purdue is jumping straight into the deep end to open the 2026-27 season, taking on No. 12 Gonzaga on Monday night in Las Vegas.
The Boilermakers and Bulldogs will tip at 7:30 p.m. ET at T-Mobile Arena, with the game airing on TNT, TruTV and HBO Max. Purdue fans can also follow along on the radio, with coverage on 96.5 FM in Lafayette, 1260 AM and 97.5 FM in Indianapolis, 590 AM and 96.1 FM in Spokane, Washington, and SiriusXM Channel 253.
This matchup comes after Purdue’s exhibition run, which included a 87-55 win over Ball State, a 92-62 win over Purdue Fort Wayne and a 76-53 loss to Connecticut. The Boilermakers were humbled in that final exhibition against UConn, and now they get a Gonzaga team that preseason analytics like even more.
Gonzaga is ranked ahead of Purdue in both EvanMiya and Torvik, with the Zags sitting at No. 7 and No. 8, while Purdue checks in at No. 22 and No. 29.
Purdue’s exhibition starters were C.J. Cox, Caden Pierce, Omer Mayer, Daniel Jacobsen and Gicarri Harris. Gonzaga’s roster features Braden Huff, Xaivian Lee and Massamba Diop.
Matt Painter enters his 21st season at Purdue. He has a 501-224 record with the Boilermakers and a 526-229 mark overall, and he guided Purdue to the 2024 national championship game, where it lost to UConn.
Across the court, Mark Few is in his 28th season at Gonzaga. He owns a 772-156 record and has taken the Bulldogs to two Final Fours. Gonzaga is also moving from the West Coast Conference to the rehabilitated Pac-12 this season.
Purdue’s roster for 2026-27 includes C.J. Cox, Antoine West, Luke Ertel, Sam King, Caden Pierce, Jack Lusk, Jacob Webber, Daniel Jacobsen, Jack Benter, Omer Mayer, Enzo Shahrvin, Rivers Knight, Gicarri Harris, Jace Rayl, Sinan Huan and Raleigh Burgess.
The Boilermakers’ schedule rolls on after Monday with Valparaiso on Friday, Nov. 6, then Illinois State, Ohio, Lipscomb and Oakland later in November. The nonconference slate also includes DePaul and Oklahoma in the Fort Myers Tip-Off, Iowa, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Colorado in the Indy Classic and Cal Baptist before Big Ten play takes over.
In Other News...
Purdues Bye Week Brought More Frustration Than Hope At Penn State
A bye week was supposed to offer Purdue a reset, but the trip to Penn State only deepened the frustration. The Boilermakers fell 31-17, slipping to 3-5 overall and 2-3 in Big Ten play as Penn State leaned on its running backs, with Cam Wallace and Carson Hansen helping power the victory on the ground.
Purdue did find a couple of jolts to hang onto, mostly through special teams and one desperate offensive strike, but the overall picture was bleak. The offense struggled to generate much of anything against a Penn State defense that kept the Boilermakers out of the red zone, leaving Purdue to leave Happy Valley with more questions than answers heading into the stretch run. [Read more 🡒]
Purdues Bowl Push Suddenly Looks Tougher After Another Familiar Loss
Purdues path to bowl eligibility took another hit in a game that looked familiar in all the wrong ways. Penn State leaned on a ground game that kept the Boilermakers on their heels, and the Nittany Lions defense steadily squeezed the offense after the opening quarter, leaving Purdue searching for answers as the game wore on.
What makes the setback sting is how little margin remains now. Purdues run defense had trouble getting Penn State off schedule, and the offense never found enough rhythm to stay in the fight, which turns the next stretch of games into must-haves if the Boilermakers want to keep their postseason hopes alive. [Read more 🡒]
Purdue Faces A Bigger Depth Chart Question At Penn State
Purdue heads into Penn State with a thinner margin for error than it would like, and the availability picture only adds to the challenge. De'Nylon Morrissette and Jaden Mangham are both out for the matchup, leaving the Boilermakers without a receiver-captain who had been working back from ankle surgery and a first-year safety who arrived from Michigan to help steady the back end.
There is at least a bit of relief on the defensive side, where Mister Clark was a full participant in Tuesdays practice after being sidelined since the season opener with a wrist injury. His return would give Purdue another option in the secondary, which matters even more in a game like this, but the larger question remains how the Boilermakers piece together enough depth to hold up on the road. [Read more 🡒]