Game time revealed for Purdue’s Elite 8 contest against Tennessee
DETROIT (WISH) — The Purdue University men’s basketball team will play Tennessee on Sunday afternoon with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
The No. 1-seeded Boilermakers and the No. 2-seeded Volunteers will face each other inside Little Caesars Arena. Tip-off is set for 2:20 p.m.
“I knew, when I committed here, I knew what sacrifices I had to make,” Purdue senior guard Lance Jones said. “To be on a team that’s in the Elite Eight currently, I would give up anything, whether that’s scoring or doing whatever I used to do.
You know it’s bigger than me. I go to war with these guys every day, and I’ll give up anything to fight for them and do whatever is necessary to win.”
The Elite 8 contest will be a rematch of a game in November during the Maui Invitational. The Boilermakers beat the Volunteers 71-67 in that contest.
Purdue sophomore guard Fletcher Loyer led the way for the Boilers with 27 points in that victory in November. Purdue senior center Zach Edey scored 23 points and hauled in 10 rebounds in that victory as well.
The Boilermakers enter this weekend’s matchup fresh off an 80-68 win over No. 5-seeded Gonzaga on Friday night in the Sweet 16.
“More than anything, with this win we’re 26-0 this year when we have 13 or less turnovers,” Purdue head coach Matt Painter said after the victory Friday. “Just taking care of the basketball. When we give ourself a chance to score and we execute and get good shots, outside of making them, we also are a good offensive rebounding team. Then if we do miss them and don’t get it, it sets our defense.”
Meanwhile, the Volunteers enter the game fresh off an 82-75 victory over No. 3-seeded Creighton on Friday.
Purdue is hoping to make the program’s first Final Four since 1980.
“These guys are resilient,” Painter said. “They’ve played in a lot of close games. We’ve played one of the best schedules in the country. We’ve been undefeated in nonconference for the last three years. This is Zach’s second time in the Sweet 16. So we’ve had some experience in the tournament. We’ve had disappointment, and I think any time you have that you appreciate things a little bit more, and your attention is detail is a little bit better.”