Hammering Down: Purdue Still Navigating Through Offense

Each of the past four years, Matt Painter has put his team in a position to be exposed. The goal is to uncover the oil leaks before the start of the regular season, giving Purdue an opportunity to fix some problems before the games count towards the record.

Purdue learned about itself in a painful way on Tuesday night in Hartford. The Boilermakers were no match for No. 4 UConn, falling 76-53 to drop to 2-1 in exhibition play. It was the final opportunity for Painter to get a good look under the hood and see what needs to be repaired with the opener against No. 15 Gonzaga less than one week away.

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The most glaring issue from Purdue’s 23-point loss at PeoplesBank Arena on Tuesday night comes on the offensive end. It’s clear that this year’s team is still navigating through some changes. One problem specifically stood out from the Boilers’ performance: How will they score points when the three-pointers aren’t falling?

Shots from behind the arc clanged off the rim throughout Tuesday’s game. The Boilers finished the contest connecting on just two of 25 attempts from three-point range. Plenty of those failures can be attributed to a stingy UConn defense, but Purdue also missed its fair share of open shots.

If Purdue had shot even 33% from the three-point line – making six more shots from long range – the perception of Tuesday night’s exhibition game would be significantly different. That’s not how basketball works, though.

Purdue’s struggles from behind the arc pointed to a larger issue heading into the upcoming season. When the triples aren’t falling, how are the Boilermakers going to put the ball in the basket? Can they still find ways to grind out games in the Big Ten?

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After the game, Painter said Purdue “isn’t there yet” in terms of winning games when shots aren’t falling. It’s a lesson best learned in a preseason game in October than in a Big Ten showdown in January.

Where can Purdue’s scoring come from?

Purdue Boilermakers center Daniel Jacobsen (12)…

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Publish date : 2026-10-28 15:30:00

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