Purdue opened its Canada trip with a lopsided 102-63 win over the Vancouver Selects on Saturday night, and the box score told a pretty clear story: the Boilermakers had plenty of firepower.
Five Purdue players finished in double figures. Antione West Jr. and Gicarri Harris led the way with 20 points apiece, while true freshmen Luke Ertel and Jacob Webber each scored 11. Center Daniel Jacobsen added 10.
It’s still early in the summer and this was only the first game of a four-game trip, so there’s no reason to get carried away. But there were a few things worth noticing about how Purdue played in Vancouver.
The first was pace. No matter who is handling the ball, Purdue looks intent on getting up the floor quickly and turning defense into offense. The Boilers were eager to run after defensive rebounds, and at times they even pushed the tempo after made baskets.
That kind of speed comes with some messiness, and Purdue had it. There were stretches where the Boilermakers moved too fast and paid for it with turnovers, traps or rushed shots. It wasn’t constant, but it showed up enough to stand out.
The good news is that Purdue has the kind of athletes to make that style work. The guards just have to clean up the careless possessions.
Defensively, Purdue also looked more active on the perimeter than it did a season ago. Omer Mayer, C.J. Cox, Harris and West all showed they can defend on the outside, and the bigs - Jack Benter, Caden Pierce, Raleigh Burgess and Jacobsen - helped out on switches.
The pressure on the ball was there all night, and it led to turnovers that turned into easy points the other way. Purdue did have some issues inside and its rotations lagged at times, but that’s hardly surprising this early.
What stood out most was the way Purdue’s hands were everywhere. The Boilermakers look capable of making life difficult on the perimeter and turning those mistakes into transition chances.
Offensively, Matt Painter showed plenty of trust in his group from deep. Purdue leaned hard into the three-point line, whether it was through set plays or guys creating their own looks.
The Boilermakers hit 15 threes and took about 41 attempts from beyond the arc. The percentage wasn’t great, but for a first game together, it was workable.
Mayer and West were the most effective at creating their own shots off the dribble. Ertel also showed some ability to manufacture looks for himself. Cox, Harris and Webber did most of their damage in rhythm, with good passing and screening helping to free them up.
Purdue also worked the ball inside early, especially to Jacobsen, who got off to a strong start in the post. That wasn’t abandoned entirely, but as the game went on, the Boilermakers increasingly chose to fire from long range.