Purdue guard Dominique Oden shoots during the Boilers game against No. 21 Miami on Thursday at Mackey Arena. Purdue won 74–63. Photo by Charles Jischke/Purdue Athletics
‘Insane’ shooting night helps Purdue defeat No. 21 Miami, 74 — 63
Purdue shot 12 of 18 from three-point distance.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Beatrice Mompremier hedged a ball screen.
The six-foot-four Miami forward denied five-foot-seven Karissa McLaughlin a clean look at a 3-pointer.
McLaughlin wasn’t fazed. She passed to Dominique Oden on the left wing. The Boilermakers junior guard buried the 3-pointer — improving the hosts’ three-point shooting percentage to 63.7.
As of the 6:45 mark of the second quarter, Purdue shot 7 of 11 from beyond the arc.
The Boilermakers overcame Ae’Rianna Harris’ first-half foul trouble and hit timely 3-pointers in the final period to earn a 74–63 win on Thursday at Mackey Arena as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
The ACC won the challenge with a 3–2 record on Wednesday and a 4–5 mark on Thursday.
Oden scored a career-high 27 points, including 6-of-10 shooting from three-point distance. McLaughlin, a sophomore guard, added 18 points and made all five of her 3-pointers.
In the first half, McLauglin hit 3 of 3 from distance and Oden shot 5 of 9 from beyond the arc. The team finished 12 of 18.
“Confidence,” McLaughlin said. “That’s all I can say. From the very beginning, we came out, we believed in ourselves. We had that look in our eyes that we weren’t going to lose this game.
“You could tell that our leaders stepped up, they did exactly what they could and everyone followed. That’s exactly what it showed in the 7-of-11 (shooting percentage) and that was pure confidence out there.”
Added Oden, “I would definitely agree with that statement. I would say that and moving the ball around because we had wide-open shots and that is the whole team” playing well.
Purdue coach Sharon Versyp said that when Mompremier is on the floor, she’ll play atop Miami’s 1–3–1 zone.
“Every time they got into that (zone), we always had a good look and knocked it down,” Versyp said. “If you can execute well, hit shots and break it, most people will take it off and that’s what happened.”
Regarding how Purdue defeated the Hurricanes’ pressure, freshman point guard Kayana Taylor cited how she and McLaughlin oppose each other in practice.
“I think that prepares us for anybody else,” Traylor said.
Purdue (6–2) led No. 21 Miami (6–2) 40–35 at the half despite the visitors outscoring the Boilers 18–6 in the paint during the initial 20 minutes.
Harris played five minutes in the first half because she committed two fouls in the initial five minutes of the game. She failed to score in the first half. However, in the final 20 minutes, she scored 11 points in the second half.
Oden praised the way Harris prepared her fellow frontcourt players during practices: Fatou Diagne, Tamara Farquhar and Nyagoa Gony.
“She doesn’t try to go easy on them,” Oden said about Harris’ approach to the younger post players. “It showed tonight because when they had to step in, they played just as hard as she was going to play, so I feel like that was a big step for them.”
Emese Hof scored 25 points, while no other Miami player scored in double digits. Hof had three of the Hurricanes’ five third-quarter field goals. Miami committed six turnovers during the third quarter, while shooting 5 of 14. Hof made three of those field goals.
In the fourth, McLaughlin took the wind out of the Hurricanes.
With 8:14 to play, the sophomore point guard assisted on Oden’s 3-pointer from right wing. The shot doubled Purdue’s lead, 54–48. McLaughlin retreated from the baseline as the Hurricanes closed that driving lane. She kept her dribble and earned the assist.
Hof answered with a field goal.
On the Boilermakers’ next possession, at the 7:20 mark, Harris drew a two-shot foul after she took a pass from McLaughlin, who this time found driving room along the left baseline. Harris made both charity tosses.
Two possessions later, McLaughlin’s 3-pointer forced Miami to take a timeout. Purdue increased its lead to double digits at 64–54.
“In the beginning, it was very discouraging,” Hof said. “I think we got them their rhythm. After that, they started hitting guarded shots, too. I think they shot 67 percent from three. Like, that’s insane and props to them but I think we let them get into their rhythm in the beginning.”
Versyp said her team grew offensively because it shared the basketball. Purdue notched 16 assists on 23 field goals.
“I thought we were aggressive on both ends,” Versyp said. “We shot the ball very well, so that allowed us to be successful. We were really clicking on all cylinders in the first half.”
