Purdue Impresses Fans with Rout of Will Wade, McNeese State in March Madness Bracket

Purdue is in the Sweet 16 for a second consecutive year after an impressive 76-62 win over McNeese State in the second round of the 2025 NCAA tournament on Saturday.

The Boilermakers jumped out to a 20-8 lead in the first seven minutes of the game and never looked back.

There was some concern about Purdue coming into the tournament after a lackluster end of the regular season. It lost six of its final eight games, including a four-game losing streak in February.

Head coach Matt Painter has his team back on track with another Sweet 16 appearance. It also improves the Big Ten's record to 9-0 in the NCAA tournament this year.

Fans showered the Boilermakers with praise after their impressive win that ended McNeese State's brief Cinderella run:

This wasn't a perfect game for Purdue, which showed some cracks that could become a problem going forward. The team went more than five minutes in game time early in the second half without a point, missing five field goals and committing five turnovers during that span.

McNeese State's defense did an incredible job of preventing Braden Smith from scoring in the second half. He didn't have a point after the intermission because the Cowboys were constantly trapping him.

The focus on Smith as a scorer did allow him to show off his passing ability. He had four assists in the second half. Trey Kaufman-Renn came alive at that point, scoring 14 of his 22 points after the break.

McNeese State's loss ends the best season in program history, highlighted by a victory over Clemson on Thursday that marked its first-ever win in the NCAA tournament. It will also likely mark the end of head coach Will Wade's two-year tenure, who is expected to be hired by North Carolina State.

Purdue has advanced to the Sweet 16 for the third time in the past four seasons. The team is 1-1 in its last two trips to this round, losing to Saint Peter's in 2022 and beating Gonzaga last year en route to advancing to the national title game.

Next up for the Boilermakers will be the winner of Saturday's matchup between No. 1 Houston and No. 8 Gonzaga.