From a record perspective, Purdue has hit a little bit of a bumpy road recently. After an 87-69 loss to No. 2 Auburn over the weekend, the Boilermakers have lost three of their lost four games and sit at 8-4 on the year.
That’s not something that’s been common in West Lafayette over the last few years. As a result, Purdue has fallen to No. 21 in the rankings with just one nonconference game remaining on the schedule — a home game against Toledo on Dec. 29.
Some might be worried about Purdue’s performance through the first two months of the season, but don’t panic on the Boilers yet. When you look at the results based on NET and KenPom rankings, you can understand why they’re not 12-0 right now.
After all, this is a team still replacing Zach Edey, Mason Gillis and Lance Jones.
Through the first 12 games, Purdue has already notched three wins over programs ranked in the top-31 of the NET rankings, defeating Alabama, Ole Miss and Maryland. All four of the team’s losses have come against teams ranked in the top-32 of the NET.
Currently, the Boilermakers have played just three opponents that rank outside the top-105 of the NET — Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Northern Kentucky and Marshall.
To put it simply, Purdue has played one of college basketball’s toughest schedules. Below is a breakdown of each opponent’s NET and KenPom rankings. As for the Boilers, they rank No. 36 in NET and No. 27 in KenPom.
*Rankings as of Monday, Dec. 23.
Purdue’s wins (8)
Defeated Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 90-73
Defeated Northern Kentucky 72-50
Defeated Yale 92-84
Defeated Alabama 78-78
Defeated Marshall 80-45
Defeated North Carolina State 71-61
Defeated Ole Miss 80-78
Defeated Maryland 83-78
Purdue’s losses (4)
Lost to Marquette 76-58
Lost to Penn State 81-70
Lost to Texas A&M 70-66
Lost to Auburn 87-69
PURDUE FALLS IN LATEST AP POLL: After suffering an 87-69 loss to Auburn on Saturday, Purdue dropped outside the top-20 in the latest Associated Press poll. CLICK HERE
WHAT MATT PAINTER SAID: Purdue suffered an 87-69 loss to Auburn on Saturday. Here’s everything Boilermakers coach Matt Painter said following the game in Birmingham. CLICK HERE
AUBURN BLOWS OUT PURDUE: No. 2 Auburn flexed its muscle on Saturday afternoon, pummeling No. 16 Purdue 87-69. It leaves the Boilermakers needing to answer a lot of questions. CLICK HERE
