Moore Scores 38 as Boilermakers Dump Buckeyes

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, February 20, 2011

Road wins are becoming harder and harder to get. Presumed walkovers go down to the final shot. Teams once thought to be pushovers are springing upsets against the Top 25... no, make that the Top Ten.

It must be late February.

The latest victim of late-season surging was the one many thought could not be beaten just a week ago, the Ohio State Buckeyes, who, in the course of just eight days and three games have proven not only to be beatable, but downright vulnerable. Of course, it helps when you have a player like Purdue's E'Twaun Moore, who normally plays big, but plays even bigger in big games.

Moore knocked down 7 of 10 three-pointers and was 13 of 18 from the field as he put up a career high 38 points to lead the Boilermakers to their 4th straight win, a 76-63 home court conquest of Ohio State.

Moore torched the Buckeyes from the start of the game to the finish as the Boilermakers snuck to within a game of Ohio State in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes, undefeated at 24-0 and 10-0 just a week ago, lost at Wisconsin on February 12 and beat up a depleted Michigan State squad on the 15th before falling at Purdue, casting doubt on their assumed superiority in the league.

Purdue looms a force with which to be reckoned as the regular season heads into its final two weeks and four games. The Boilermakers improved to 11-3 and 22-5 overall and will surely move up from their #11 ranking after knocking off the #2 Buckeyes.

NOTABLE: Four other Top 25 teams were on the hardwoods Sunday, all winners. #5 Duke polished off Georgia Tech, 79-57; #10 Wisconsin handled Penn St. 76-66; visiting #14 Florida held off a late rally by LSU for a 68-61 win, and #23 Temple scorched St. Joseph's, 66-52.

E'Twaun Moore Drains 31 as Boilermakers Triumph

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, November 26, 2010

sticking out like the proverbial sore thumb at the Chicago Invitational Challenge tournament, the Purdue Boilermakers smothered their undersized opponent, Southern Illinois, 79-60, advancing to the final of the tourney against Richmond on Saturday. The Spiders topped Wright State, 71-61, in their semi-final match.

The only ranked team invited, the Boilermakers are expected to win it all. They had little trouble knocking off Oakland and Austin Peay in the first two rounds, but got off to a slow, 1-for-13 start against the Salukis, but after trailing 13-7, outscored them, 72-48, for the win.

Senior guard E'Twaun Moore was outstanding, hitting 10 of 18 shots from the field, including 3 of 5 treys for a season-high 31 points. Moore also ripped down nine rebounds.

Though the games have been easy thus far, Purdue will be tested by Richmond, a solid team out of the Atlantic-10. The Spiders are 5-1. The Boilermakers will have to guard against early-season overconfidence. Already this week, #2 Michigan State, #7 Villanova and #8 Kentucky have suffered losses. The latest, Villanova, fell to Tennessee, 78-68, in the preseason NIT at Madison Square Garden.

Notable: Marcus Morris of Kansas scored 26 points, to go with 8 boards as the Jayhawks dominated the Ohio Bobcats, 98-41, improving to 5-0.

Maryland's Jordan Williams continues to impress as one of the best young big men in the country. The Terrapin center knocked down 26 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in a 76-57 win over Elon College. It was Williams' 5th double-double for the 5-2 Terps.