March Madness: Purdue overwhelms Gonzaga with barrage of 3s, too much Zach Edey to advance to Elite 8

Purdue’s offense is a lot more than Zach Edey. It’s a lesson Gonzaga learned the hard way Friday as the Boilermakers secured an 80-68 win over the Bulldogs in the Sweet 16.

Gonzaga focused its defense on Edey early, repeatedly double-teaming him in the post and on pick-and-rolls. Purdue’s lethal halfcourt offense responded with a 7-of-13 effort from 3-point distance in the first half.

When Gonzaga responded by showing Edey single coverage in the second half, the 7-4 All-American backed down his smaller defenders and scored. It’s a lethal inside-out combination that has Purdue near the top of the short list of remaining contenders for the national title.

For much of the game, Gonzaga kept pace with its own scorching offense. The Bulldogs shot 51.7% from the field in the first half and kept things close as Purdue carried a 40-36 lead into the break. When Purdue pulled away early in the second, Gonzaga responded with a 9-2 run to pull within two points.

Put Purdue eventually wore Gonzaga down. Senior Gonzaga forward Anton Watson went to the bench with his fourth foul with 12:33 remaining and Purdue leading, 53-51. Purdue responded with a 14-2 run to extend the lead to 67-53. The game was over.

Graham Ike, another Gonzaga big man with the unenviable task of guarding Edey, fouled out with 5:07 left and Purdue leading, 72-59 further extending the Bulldogs woes.

When it was over, Edey’d tallied 27 points and 14 rebounds while shooting 10-of-15 from the field. As a team, Purdue shot 57.1% from the field and 45% (9 of 20) from 3-point distance. Three Purdue starters joined Edey in scoring double figures.