The Purdue Boilermakers will square off against the Penn State Nittany Lions at the Mackey Arena on Saturday. The Boilermakers have a 14-2 tally whereas the Penn State have an 8-8 stat.

The Purdue occupy the top position in the AP men’s basketball polls and would be looking to make a comeback after their surprising loss against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. This game will be important for the Purdue fans to check if their team can get back on track.

Players to Watch

For the Purdue all eyes will be on their star player Zach Edey. Edey basketed his team’s second-highest points in the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers albeit the Purdue lost the game.

He averages a remarkable 21.8 points per game with 10.4 rebounds per match. Edey would be hungry to continue his on-song performance and make the recovery after losing unexpectedly to the Huskers in their last game.

Everyone knows that the Purdue have relied a lot on Edey. For exceptions during the last game against the Cornhuskers, the Purdue’s forward Mason Gillis potted the highest points (16) for his team.

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Coming into this game, every fan will have their eyes set on Gillis to check if he can repeat his exploits and be a strong supporter of Edey, sometimes even outdoing him when the opposition has trapped the tall baller.

For the Penn State a lot would rest on their star guard Kanye Clary. Clary has throttled 18.8 points per game and would be looking to take advantage of the Purdue’s weaknesses.

Read More: With Kansas Stumbling Out, Can Purdue Maintain Number 1 NCAA Status?

The last game would have proven that though the Purdue is a difficult team it is not impossible to defeat them. Going into this game, Clary would be looking to dominate his opponents and turn the tide in the Penn State’s favor.

Head to Head

As per the Purdue’s official website, the Purdue have won 37 games against the Penn State Nittany Lions while losing 9 of the matches since January 1999. The Purdue have a spectacular 18-3 home record and a 32-9 conference tally against the Penn State. As for their last matchup in March 2023, the Purdue edged past them by a 67-65 margin and have a heavy 9-1 streak in their last 10 games. 

Prediction

The game is poised in the Boilermakers’ favor and they can look to get back on their winning streak beginning this season. Edey can be lethal in this game and difficult to control.

Or for a change, the team can rely on other players knowing that Edey will not give the desired results in every match since it puts a lot of pressure on him. On the other hand, the Penn State can look for holes in the Purdue’s wall and get a resume victory if they try hard enough.

Injuries

Fortunately, no one from either team has been injured.

Starting Five

Purdue Boilermakers: Zach Edey, Braden Smith, Lance Jones, Fletcher Loyer, and Trey Kaufman-Renn

Penn State Nittany Lions: Kanye Clary, Ace Baldwin Jr., Qudus Wahab, Zach Hicks, and D’Marco Dunn

It will be a treat for the fans to watch the Boilermakers take the next steps.

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