The No. 2-ranked Purdue Boilermakers are set to face a challenging test on Thursday as they travel to No. 8-ranked Alabama to complete a home-and-home series that began last year in Mackey Arena. This matchup marks the third consecutive year that these two teams have competed against one another, and Purdue is eager to secure a significant victory early in the season against a highly regarded Crimson Tide squad.
Purdue’s upcoming schedule is daunting, with the Boilermakers’ remaining 29 games featuring only two opponents ranked below 100 in the KenPom ratings. The team aims to begin the season with a 3-0 record, which would be their fifth consecutive year achieving this milestone and the 15th time in head coach Matt Painter’s 21-season tenure.
The game against Alabama represents a noteworthy moment in Purdue’s history, as it will be their highest-ranked non-conference road opponent since 2005, when they faced the No. 4 Memphis Tigers. Additionally, Purdue is seeking its first non-conference road win against an Associated Press top-10 team since defeating No. 3 Kentucky in 1970.
Historically, Matt Painter has held a favorable record against Alabama, with four wins and two losses. However, one of those losses occurred during the 2004 NCAA Tournament, where the No. 8 seed Crimson Tide edged out Painter’s No. 9 seed Southern Illinois team in a narrow 65-64 victory.
As the season progresses, Purdue will play an impressive 27 games against opponents ranked in the KenPom top 100, including 17 against teams in the top 50. In their latest contest, Braden Smith has showcased exceptional skill, tallying 35 assists with only seven turnovers over the last three games of last season and the current season. The Boilermakers have a remarkable team assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking 10th nationally with a turnover percentage of 9.1% and seventh in assist rate.
Braden Smith, who recently moved into third place on the Big Ten’s career assists list, leads a talented roster that includes four active players with at least one 30-point game. Since the beginning of the 2021-22 season, Purdue has secured 118 victories, ranking third in the nation.
The Boilermakers have also achieved a record 34 consecutive non-conference home victories, which is the longest streak in school history. Furthermore, they have been ranked No. 1 in the AP poll for 14 weeks since the 2021-22 season, the most of any school in that period.
Purdue’s depth of talent has not gone unnoticed, as four of their players have been nominated for awards by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, placing them among just five schools with at least four nominations. Braden Smith has also been recognized as the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year alongside Trey Kaufman-Renn.
Coach Matt Painter continues to make his mark in the Big Ten, currently sitting fourth on the conference’s all-time wins list. He is just four wins away from reaching 500 career victories, which would make him one of the fastest active coaches to achieve that milestone.
With a sellout streak now at 106 games, extending into the upcoming and highly anticipated matchups, the atmosphere in Mackey Arena continues to be electric. As the Boilermakers prepare for their game against Alabama, fans are optimistic about the team’s potential for a strong start this season.