Mackey Arena hosted Bellarmine Monday for a women’s basketball game that Purdue didn’t trail in until the third quarter.
The Knights gained a short lead for a short time after returning from the break, but Purdue’s scoring train pulled away not long later.
Sophie Swanson dribbles to the corner in Purdue's 78-67 win over Bellarmine.
“She’s been pushing us a lot in practice, so she wanted to see how much we're willing to fight for her as well as for ourselves,” Raegan Bass said of head coach Katie Gearlds after the game.
“I think that was a test of who we are. As Purdue, we were able to stay together during that, and we were able to push through.”
The Boilermakers (4-1) led for 30 of the games’ 40 minutes, and outlasted the Knights (3-2) in a roller coaster game that went Purdue’s way 78-67.
Here are three takeaways from Purdue’s 78-67 win over Bellarmine:
First half efficiency
Purdue jumped out to an 11-2 lead over the Knights at the first timeout Monday night.
The Boilers made two of their first three 3-point attempts, and the Knights hit none of theirs.
Sophie Swanson lets a 3-pointer fly Monday night.
Sophomore Sophie Swanson swished three of her six 3-pointers in the first half, leading the way for the Boilers with 11 points.
Senior transfer Raegan Bass also put up 11 points in the opening half. Both shot 5-of-7 from the floor in the first half and the Boilers 5-of-13 from deep as a team.
Freshman Lana McCarthy was 5-of-8 from the floor herself.
The trio of Swanson, McCarthy, and Bass contributed 32 of Purdue’s 39 first half points.
Raegan Bass double-double
Raegan Bass leaps up to win the tipoff against Bellarmine.
Senior forward Raegan Bass led Purdue with 20 points in Monday’s win over Bellarmine.
Bass shot 5-of-8 from the floor in total, including sinking her only 3-pointer.
The transfer from Akron also hauled in 11 rebounds, more than any other player and five more than the player with the second-most.
Bass had a chance to tie her Purdue career high at the free throw line with just over a minute to play, but only converted one of her two shots.
Bass finished with 21 points, one shy of tying her Boilermaker career high, achieved in the win over IU Indy.
Turnover trouble
On an otherwise successful night, a stat that sticks out negatively for Purdue is the turnover column.
The Boilers totalled 11 giveaways in the first half alone, and added 11 more after halftime.
Destini Lombard scores a fast break layup against Bellarmine.
Purdue entered Monday’s matchup averaging 19 turnovers a game, 76 through the first four, and did not improve the mark against Bellarmine.
“We just need to slow down. Sometimes we get ahead of ourselves,” Bass said after the game.
“It's really just controlling the pace of ourselves. A lot of them are forced turnovers, we kind of do it to ourselves.”
Rashunda Jones saw the positive side of Purdue’s high turnover rate.
“We have 22 turnovers, and to still come out with a win just speaks to who we are as a team,” the sophomore guard said after the game.