No. 2 Purdue holds off Iowa 77-70 in Big Ten opener

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Jaden Ivey scored 19 points, Trevion Williams had 13 points and 18 rebounds, and No. 2 Purdue held off a late Iowa rally to win 77-70 on Friday night in the Big Ten opener for both teams.

Mason Gillis added 12 points off the bench for the Boilermakers (8-0).

The Hawkeyes (7-1) were without leading scorer and rebounder Keegan Murray, who injured his ankle in Monday’s victory at Virginia. Murray is averaging 24.6 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. His twin brother, Kris Murray, started in his place.

Patrick McCaffery led Iowa with 15 points. Tony Perkins scored 14 and Murray 12 for Iowa.

The Boilermakers had a 63-44 lead dwindle to 70-68 with 3:08 left after Iowa went on an 11-0 run, capped by Murray’s 3-pointer. Purdue held a 7-2 edge the rest of the way.

Purdue led by as many as 17 before settling for a 39-26 halftime lead.

The Boilermakers shot 42% in the opening half while holding Iowa to 27%, For the game, Purdue shot 42% and Iowa 40%

BIG PICTURE

Iowa: The Hawkeyes, who were averaging 94 points in the first seven games, struggled to score early without Keegan Murray. Their previous low scoring was in Monday’s 75-74 victory at Virginia.

Purdue: The Boilermakers didn’t have their best shooting performance and committed 17 turnovers, but the rebounding edge (42-30) and 3-point advantage proved to be the difference. Purdue made 8 of 19 3s while Iowa was 5 of 21.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

For the first time in its program’s history, Purdue could move into the No. 1 spot in AP Top 25. No. 1 Duke lost to Ohio State on Tuesday night. The last time Purdue was ranked No. 2 was in 1988.

UP NEXT

Iowa: Hosts Illinois on Monday night.

Purdue: At Rutgers on Thursday night.