Valparaiso walked into Mackey Arena and left with a result nobody in that building had seen in nearly six decades, outlasting Purdue 83-80 in double overtime on a night when the Beacons kept finding just enough answers.
The win was Valparaiso’s first in the series since Dec. 22, 1965, when it beat Purdue 114-96 at Valparaiso. This one came the hard way.
The Beacons were down 19-4 almost 14 minutes into the game and could have folded. Instead, they kept defending, kept hanging around, and waited for Purdue’s offense to come apart.
Rakim Chaney was the engine all night. He kept doing the same thing over and over, and Purdue never solved it.
Once he fouled out, Valparaiso still had enough left. His three-pointer to force another overtime was the kind of shot a player makes when he’s locked in and defended well anyway.
Justus McNair’s game-winner came against much softer pressure, but it counted just the same.
Purdue had this one in a good spot early. The defense was solid at the start, and when Chaney buried a long three just before halftime to trim the margin to 32-20, it seemed to wake Valparaiso up. The Beacons had been stuck in a miserable half to that point, but they finally saw one go in from deep and also knew Purdue’s offense wasn’t exactly humming.
From there, Valparaiso chipped away while Purdue kept slipping on the other end. Chaney stayed hot, and a game that looked controlled early was tied with 5:46 left. The Beacons had hit only one three-pointer at that point - the one Chaney made before halftime - and they were 1 of 15 from beyond the arc before he gave them their first lead since 2-0 at 51-50.
They finished 7 of 27 from three, but the biggest shots were the toughest ones. Bruno Alocen hit a falling-down three while being fouled in the corner with 46 seconds left in the first overtime, right after a rough turnover by Gicarri Harris.
Purdue had led by six just 10 seconds earlier and looked in control. Then Chaney answered with a fall-away desperation three over two hands at the buzzer, the kind of shot that leaves everybody in the gym staring.
McNair finished it with a near-perfect game-winner, using just enough space after Caden Pierce flew by to get the shot off by a tenth of a second.
For Purdue, the loss adds up fast. Matt Painter is 0-2 for the first time in his Purdue career.
It’s also Purdue’s first home loss to a non-power conference team since Gardner-Webb on Dec. 22, 2014.
That team also lost at home to North Florida and still recovered to go 12-6 in the Big Ten and make the NCAA Tournament. Purdue is 0-2 for the first time since the 1976-77 season, when it opened with road losses to Alabama and Miami-OH before finishing 19-9.
There were still some positives for Purdue, and Daniel Jacobsen was the biggest one. He looked like a star and a player Purdue can build around, and he nearly won both of these games by himself. But the rest of the roster has a lot of work to do.
Antione West Jr. showed the kind of edge and confidence you want, but 1 of 9 from three won’t cut it. Omer Meyer’s shooting has been a problem too; he’s now 1 of 10 on the season, and his 1-for-11 night from the floor was rough enough to make him hard to play until West fouled out. Purdue isn’t going anywhere if West and Meyer keep combining for nights like 3 of 23 from the field and 2 of 15 from three.
CJ Cox and Harris are producing numbers, but they’re having to work much harder for them now that they’re the guys in the backcourt. Both were solid role players the last two years, but now the burden is different, and Purdue needs more from them. They each had moments in overtime, but not enough to swing the game.
As a team, Purdue shot 5 of 28 from three at home, on rims it knows well and shoots on all the time.
The loss also puts a spotlight on Matt Painter’s approach. He could have chased the transfer portal and tried to assemble a quick fix, but he’s chosen the long game, building rosters years ahead.
You can already see how his next few teams are supposed to fit. But the portal era has changed the math, and Purdue has already lost more than it has gained.
Painter likely expected Camden Heide, Will Berg, and Myles Colvin to be major pieces of this team, but they’re elsewhere now. Oscar Cluff was a strong hit in his limited and strategic portal use, but in place of those three, Purdue has just Camden Pierce.
He looks like a decent role player, though even he had a rough night.
In Other News...
Purdue Suddenly Has A Backcourt Question Matt Painter Must Answer
Purdues season took an early jolt when Valparaiso walked out with an 83-80 double-overtime upset, a game that exposed how quickly a night can turn when the Boilermakers are not getting enough from the perimeter. The offense had chances to separate, but the shooting never really came around, and the missed opportunities piled up as the game stretched deeper into the evening.
Justus McNair was the difference for Valparaiso, pouring in 35 points and staying central to the action even after fouling out in double overtime. For Matt Painter, the larger concern is what this kind of loss says about Purdues backcourt balance and shot-making when games tighten, because the Boilermakers cant count on surviving nights when the outside touch disappears and the margin for error shrinks to almost nothing. [Read more 🡒]
Purdues Roster Overhaul Raised Big Concerns In A Brutal Opener
The first night of Purdues new-look season brought plenty of curiosity to Mackey Arena, where four new starters were making their debut and the Boilermakers were trying to sort out a reshaped rotation on the fly. For stretches, the ball security was encouraging and the energy fit the occasion, but the offense never quite settled in, and a 32-point first half underscored how much work remains for a group still learning how to play together.
Purdue did get notable individual production and some useful answers from the bench and rotation decisions, yet the second half exposed the same issue that lingered early: too many possessions stalled when the game tightened. With a roster overhaul already forcing adjustments, the opener served as a reminder that the Boilermakers may need time to turn talent into consistency, especially when the offense is asked to carry them through a rough patch. [Read more 🡒]
Purdue Needs A Much Cleaner Response After That Opening Loss
Purdues season opened with a jolt in a loss to No. 15 Gonzaga, a result that stood out not just because of the opponent but because it was only the second time in Matt Painters 22 seasons in West Lafayette that the Boilermakers dropped their opener. Even in defeat, there were a few encouraging individual signs, including a strong showing from center Daniel Jacobsen and a solid first outing from newcomer Caden Pierce.
The bigger issue now is how Purdue responds, because early November losses can linger if the next game does not bring a cleaner, sharper effort. Valparaiso comes in having already handled Western Illinois in its opener, so the Boilermakers will need to show they can settle in quickly, tighten things up and avoid letting one rough night set the tone for the week. [Read more 🡒]