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Outlier shooting and defensive struggles plague Purdue in exhibition loss at Kentucky

On3 imageby: Brian Neubert12 hours agobrianneubert
NCAA Basketball: Exhibition-Purdue at Kentucky
Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) drives to the basket around Kentucky Wildcats guard Denzel Aberdeen (1) during the first half at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

LEXHINGTON, Ky. — Purdue’s priority at Kentucky Friday night was the experience, but that’s not to say the nation’s No. 1 team wouldn’t have preferred to win.

A rough shooting night was central to the reason it didn’t. The Boilermakers, losing a road-atmosphere for the third time in as many years, fell in Rupp Arena, 78-63, due in part to 3-of-17 three-point shooting and a second half in which center Daniel Jacobsen accounted for the lone sunk triple.

There were other issues. Purdue was exposed defensively against the dribble and in keeping the Wildcats out of transition, but Matt Painter played lineups you’ll never see again this season, and his approach to these games has been well documented.

“I don’t care what we’re ranked,” Painter said. “We have real problems. This allows us to go back to practice and eat our humble pie and get better so we can have a great season.”

PDF: Purdue-Kentucky statistics

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PURDUE COACH MATT PAINTER

PURDUE GUARD BRADEN SMITH

PURDUE’S TREY KAUFMAN-RENN

PURDUE’S FLETCHER LOYER

Trey Kaufman-Renn led Purdue with 19 points despite missing a number of sweet-spot shots early. Fletcher Loyer scored 14 and Braden Smith 11.

Purdue trailed 38-30 at halftime after a rough-around-the-edges offensive start that saw it miss several really high-percentage looks in the lane and turn the ball over five times. The Boilermakers played a not-insignificant chunk of the first half with both Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn on the bench.

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