Purdue’s West Coast Trip Ends In a Familiar Nightmare At UCLA

It has been a miserable, no-good, very bad 36 hours to be a Boilermaker. First, you have to watch your arch-rivals down in Bloomington hoist a national championship trophy in football. Then, looking for a little palate cleanser, you stay up way past your bedtime on a Tuesday night to watch the basketball team close out a West Coast road trip, only to witness a total implosion in the final 90 seconds.

Purdue’s 69-67 loss to UCLA inside Pauley Pavilion wasn’t just a loss; it was a frustration-fueled masterpiece of “how to lose a game you had in the bag.” The Boilers dropped to 17-2 (6-1 in the Big Ten), and while the sky isn’t falling, it’s definitely looking a little gray over West Lafayette today.

Snatching Defeat From the Jaws Of Victory

With 1:56 left to play, Trey Kaufman-Renn hit a shot that put Purdue up 67-61. In college basketball, six points with under two minutes to go is an eternity, sure, but for a veteran team like Purdue? That’s usually money in the bank. You grind the clock, you hit your free throws, and you get on the plane.

Instead, the Boilers seemingly forgot how to play basketball. UCLA didn’t just open the door; Purdue took the door off the hinges and handed it to them. The Bruins closed the game on an 8-0 run, fueled almost entirely by Boilermaker mishaps. We saw back-to-back turnovers from Braden Smith. One led to a layup, the other gave UCLA the ball back with 30 seconds left, setting the stage for the heartbreak.

When Tyler Bilodeau knocked down that triple with under 10 seconds to play to give UCLA the lead, it felt inevitable. A CJ Cox heave at the buzzer hit the front iron, and that was that. A 1-1 split on the California trip isn’t a disaster on paper, but the way it happened stings.

The Donovan Dent Problem

We need to talk about Donovan Dent, because Purdue certainly didn’t seem to want to talk about him on defense. On most nights, Smith can claim the title of the best point guard on the floor. Tuesday wasn’t most nights. Dent, the former Mountain West Player of the Year, absolutely cooked the Boilers. We aren’t talking about a few lucky shots; we are talking about a complete dismantling of the perimeter defense.

Dent finished with 23 points on 10-of-18 shooting and dished out 13 assists. He lived in the paint. He got two feet in the lane whenever he wanted, collapsing the defense and kicking it out or finishing at the rim. Purdue had no answer for him. It was a stark reminder that for all of Purdue’s offensive efficiency, quick, athletic guards who can penetrate off the dribble remain the team’s kryptonite.

The Bench Showed Up, The Stars Didn’t

If you’re looking for a silver lining, it’s Cox. The sophomore guard was the only reason Purdue was even in a position to choke this one away.

Cox was fantastic, pouring in 16 points and grabbing 5 boards. He started the game hot, scoring the team’s first 5 points, and he kept them afloat when the offense went stagnant. He was also tasked with guarding Dent, which was a thankless job given how hot Dent was, but Cox battled.

The problem is, you can’t rely on Cox to bail you out when your stars go missing. Fletcher Loyer is in a funk. He went 2-of-10 from the floor and 1-of-5 from deep. When Loyer isn’t hitting shots, his defensive limitations become glaringly obvious. The “Big Three” of Smith, Loyer, and Kaufman-Renn looked more like the “Big One-and-a-Half.” TKR was solid with a double-double, but the guard play from the starters just wasn’t championship-caliber.

Heavy Is the Head that Wears the Crown

It’s easy to pile on Smith for the late turnovers, and frankly, he deserves the criticism for those specific plays. You simply cannot cough up the rock twice in the final minute when you are trying to close out a road win.

But let’s be real: Smith is playing on one good leg, having tweaked something against USC, and he’s still being asked to play hero ball for 40 minutes. He looked gassed. He looked frustrated. And for the first time in a long time, he looked rattled.

This loss serves as a wake-up call. The Big Ten is a gauntlet, and Purdue just showed that they are mortal. The defense lapses, particularly allowing open looks from deep in crucial moments, are concerning. The reliance on the starters to generate everything is concerning. Purdue needs to head home and get back on track.