With leading scorer Desmond Claude still out, USC falls to No. 7 Purdue
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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Trey Kaufman-Renn had 24 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 7 Purdue to a 90-72 victory over USC on Friday night for its fourth straight win.
Fletcher Loyer added 14 points for the Boilermakers (19-5 11-2 Big Ten), who outrebounded the Trojans 48-31. Braden Smith and Caleb Furst each just missed joining Kaufman-Renn with double-doubles. Smith finished with nine points and a team-high 13 assists, and Furst also had nine points and 10 rebounds.
Nick Martinelli’s basket with 2.6 seconds left helped Northwestern give a rallying USC a tough defeat on the road.
Redshirt freshman Wesley Yates III scored 22 of his career-high 30 points in the first half for the Trojans (13-10, 5-7). Yates, whose previous high was 21 points, had to play most of the second half with four fouls after he picked up his fourth with 16:25 minutes left. Isaiah Elohim added 11 points and Jalen Shelley 10 for USC. Saint Thomas was scoreless over 35 minutes, with only one shot attempt from the field.
The Trojans played their second game in a row without leading scorer Desmond Claude, who is out with a knee injury.
The Boilermakers shot 67% in the first half to take a 48-36 lead into halftime.
Both teams struggled from the three-point line: USC shot four for 26, while Purdue was six for 26.
Takeaways
USC: The Trojans, who lacked scoring punch with Claude out, were 16 of 29 from the foul line.
Purdue: The Boilermakers moved two games up in the win column over Michigan State and Michigan, both 9-2, in their quest for their third consecutive Big Ten regular-season title.
Key moment: With an assist from Smith, Myles Colvin’s fast-break dunk energized the crowd and gave Purdue a 42-27 lead with 3:23 left in the first half.
Key stat: On a night when both teams had rough outside shooting games, Purdue held a 52-36 edge on points in the paint.
Up next: Both teams are back in action Tuesday night. USC will host Penn State, while Purdue is at No. 24 Michigan.
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