Edey a force with 19 points as Purdue tops Liberty 77-64
MELBOURNE, Fla. -- — Zach Edey scored 19 points on 9-of-10 shooting in his collegiate debut and Purdue fended off Liberty 77-64 in the opener of the Space Coast Challenge on Wednesday night.
Edey, a 7-foot4 freshman, led four Boilermakers into double-figure scoring with Jaden Ivey adding 12 and Aaron Wheeler and Brandon Newman 10 each.
Purdue shot nearly 60% from the floor (31-of-53), owned the boards 30-24 and outscored the Flames 36-14 in the paint. Edey was a big part of the close-in scoring with five of Purdue's seven dunks. Wheeler and Trevion Williams had the others.
Darius McGhee led Liberty with 21 points and Micaiah Abii scored 19 on 7-for-7 shooting in his collegiate debut. Abii made all three 3-point attempts and trails only Seth Curry (23 points, 2008) for most points in a game by a Liberty freshman.
Purdue improved to 15-1 in season openers under coach Matt Painter. The win against a feisty Liberty squad that had defeated four Power 5 opponents in the last three seasons was perhaps a way for the Boilermakers to register a complaint at not being ranked in the AP preseason top 25 poll for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
The Space Coast Challenge concludes on Thanksgiving with Purdue facing the winner of Clemson-Mississippi State in the championship game, Liberty facing the loser in the consolation game.
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Game Information
- Referees:
- Bret Wegenke
- Chet Walker
- Michael Griffith
2023-24 Conference USA Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Sam Houston | 13-3 | - | 21-12 |
Louisiana Tech | 12-4 | 1 | 22-10 |
Western Kentucky | 8-8 | 5 | 22-12 |
Liberty | 7-9 | 6 | 18-14 |
UTEP | 7-9 | 6 | 18-16 |
Middle Tennessee | 7-9 | 6 | 14-19 |
New Mexico State | 7-9 | 6 | 13-19 |
Jacksonville State | 6-10 | 7 | 14-18 |
Florida International | 5-11 | 8 | 11-22 |
2023-24 Big Ten Conference Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Purdue | 17-3 | - | 34-5 |
Illinois | 14-6 | 3 | 29-9 |
Nebraska | 12-8 | 5 | 23-11 |
Northwestern | 12-8 | 5 | 22-12 |
Wisconsin | 11-9 | 6 | 22-14 |
Indiana | 10-10 | 7 | 19-14 |
Michigan State | 10-10 | 7 | 20-15 |
Iowa | 10-10 | 7 | 19-15 |
Ohio State | 9-11 | 8 | 22-14 |
Minnesota | 9-11 | 8 | 19-15 |
Penn State | 9-11 | 8 | 16-17 |
Maryland | 7-13 | 10 | 16-17 |
Rutgers | 7-13 | 10 | 15-17 |
Michigan | 3-17 | 14 | 8-24 |