Fletcher Loyer's career night sparks No. 1 Purdue to season-opening victory

Less than two minutes had expired in Tuesday night’s opener when Fletcher Loyer made his first 3-pointer.

The Purdue senior was quiet from beyond the arc during the next 12 minutes before heating up. And boy, did Loyer find his stroke.

Loyer scored a career-high 30 points, including seven 3-pointers, as the top-ranked Boilermakers started the 2025-26 season with an 82-51 victory over Evansville before the 90^th consecutive sellout at Mackey Arena.

Loyer had 18 points in the opening period as coach Matt Painter’s team discovered another gear before halftime. Loyer buried four 3-pointers in the final 6:56 as the Boilermakers outscored the Purple Aces 19-5 heading into the locker room.

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The seven 3-pointers matches Loyer’s career high. He also surpassed the 1,300-point mark.

Purdue played the opener without Trey Kaufman-Renn.

Redshirt freshman Jack Benter earned the start in place of Kaufman-Renn. Benter settled into his first college appearance with a 3-pointer, two rebounds and one blocked shot in the first five minutes. He finished with 11 points, making 3 of 4 from beyond the arc, and six rebounds.

The Boilermakers also received contributions from North Florida transfer Liam Murphy at the power forward spot.

Braden Smith started his final season with 11 assists, setting up four different players to score. He assisted on five of Loyer’s eight field goals. It marked the 24th time Smith has recorded double-digit assists.

Oscar Cluff totaled nine points and 10 rebounds in his official Mackey Arena debut. Daniel Jacobsen added 11 points and eight rebounds.

Purdue returns to action Friday against Oakland.

“UNBELIEVABLY EFFICIENT”

Loyer had 30 points but needed only 11 field goal attempts.

That’s impressive.

“Yeah, getting 30 points on 11 shots is unbelievably efficient,” Painter said.

It was that type of night for Loyer, whose brother, Foster, was in the stands to watch the career game unfold. Loyer’s previous career high was 27 points, a mark he reached three times.

He made 8 of 11 field goals and was 7 of 10 from 3-point range and converted 7 of 8 from the line. He was fouled twice on 3-point attempts.

“To have a good one to start off the season, it’s pretty special,” Loyer said. “Another game my brother got to come to.”

As a player who has lived his basketball life through the ups and downs of shooting, Loyer remains composed in his approach. He understands not every game will follow Tuesday’s script, but the ones that don’t make performances like this one stand out.

“Being confident in myself, whether I’m 3-for-15 at Kentucky or I’m 8-for-11 with 30 points,” he said. “It doesn’t really matter.”

Painter said Loyer’s understanding of the game and purpose of what the Boilermakers are trying to accomplish go a long way in his success.

“Tough, hard-nosed, knows the game, knows what’s going on, always in (a) good position, understands the purpose of what we’re doing on both ends. And that’s what a good player does,” Painter said.

“Other guys are just talented, and they’re hooping and they’re playing, but he understands things. He understands angles of screens. He understands pace. He understands when they take things away from him.”

“I HAVE TO BE READY”

Tuesday was Benter’s first “real” game since leading Brownstown Central to Indiana’s Class 2A state championship.

That was March 2024. This is November 2025. That’s a long wait.

But Benter was calm, confident and eager to return to action. It was worth it.

Benter was told during the afternoon shootaround he was likely going to be in the starting lineup for Kaufman-Renn, who was sidelined by a hip pointer and a rib cage issue, according to Painter.

“I started running plays with the main group and it’s just a next guy up mentality,” Benter said. “I have to be ready to go no matter what.”

He was ready.

Benter’s early contributions in different areas allowed him to ease into the game. He looked comfortable from the start, but the confidence continued to grow as his first 3-pointer went through the net.

Early in the second half, Benter drained back-to-back 3-point shots.

“Having somebody that’s willing to shoot it from 40 (feet) like he does, it’s nice,” Smith said. “It makes my job easier because I know it’s another shooter out there that’s confident to shoot the ball. At the same time, he understands his role, and he knows how to play. He’s here for a reason.”

Benter gives the Boilermakers a different dimension as a player who can step out on the perimeter and is an immediate threat. Purdue missed Kaufman-Renn’s physical presence inside, but the threat of Benter gives the offense plenty of space to operate.

“It’s another shooter, another ball handler, and he’s athletic and you can have guards 1 through 4 that can all dribble and pass and shoot,” Loyer said. “It’s very hard to guard, especially when you have size whether it’s Oscar or Daniel down low.”

Painter was impressed what Benter did on the defensive end, providing help, and his awareness kept him focused. He’s excellent passer after running the point at Brownstown Central and isn’t shy about fighting for rebounds.

“I thought both of those plays that he made when he chased down those rebounds and found Fletch were big plays for us,” Painter said.

SEEKING REBOUNDING IMPROVEMENT

The one area of concern exiting the victory was rebounding.

Purdue and Evansville were even on the boards, but the Aces were active on the offensive glass, pulling down 20. They converted those offensive rebounds into 20 points.

However, the Boilermakers committed only seven turnovers, which prevented the rebounding from developing into a bigger problem. It also didn’t hurt that Evansville shot 28.1% from the field and three of its top players – Keishon Porter, Leif Moeller and Alex Hemenway – were a combined 2 of 26 from the field.

“We’ve got to do a better job of rebounding,” Painter said. “But the thing that never ends is the rebounding and taking care of the ball. You’re always working on those two areas because if you can win the possession war, and you have equal teams, you’re normally going to win the game.”

Purdue’s big men – Cluff and Jacobsen – combined for 20 points and 18 rebounds from the center position. On the surface, they controlled the rebounding against their counterparts but need to box out better to close out possessions.

Three Evansville players totaled 14 offensive rebounds, which caught Painter’s attention.

“They have 18 rebounds between them, but they’ve got to do a better job of boxing out,” Painter said of Cluff and Jacobsen. “They gave up some offensive rebounds but it’s not always them. We do switch, and sometimes things are more team. If they want an area where they can secure things for us – keep being on the offensive glass and keep them off the offensive glass.”