UNCASVILLE, Conn. – A surge by No. 6 Purdue in the final 10 minutes carried the Boilermakers past No. 5 Villanova, 80-74 in the final of the Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic here Sunday at Mohegan Sun Arena.
 
"Purdue just played a really intelligent game," stated Villanova coach Jay Wright. "I thought we played well but when you play in a game like that, a lot of little things add up. A foul shot here, a missed defensive assignment there, a turnover. Ultimately, they made less mistakes and executed what they do more consistently than we did over 40 minutes.
 
"That's why they're a really good team."
 
After the Wildcats (3-2 overall) broke out to a 5-2 lead, Purdue (4-0 overall) responded with a 6-0 run centered mostly about the presence of 7-4 Zach Edey. In fact, the Boilermakers grabbed 11 of the game's first 12 rebounds yet Villanova hung tough, trailing 13-11 after 8:05 of the first half thanks to a pair of 3-pointers from Collin Gillespie and another from Jermaine Samuels. A 2-point basket by Samuels off an inbounds play tied the game at 13.
 
Purdue responded, though, with an 8-0 burst to move out to a 21-13 lead at the midway point of the first half. However, Villanova came right back with an 8-0 response of its own to deadlock matters at 21. Edey got loose inside again and scored to put Purdue back in front. It held a 26-23 lead at the 6:12 mark of the first half. A Caleb Daniels corner 3-pointer tied it at 26.
 
The high intensity battle continued for the remainder of the half. Another Daniels corner 3-pointer and a Daniels' blocked shot on Jaden Ivey on the final possession of the period helped Villanova take a 33-31 lead into the locker room at intermission.
 
Though the Wildcats were outrebounded 21-13, their care of the basketball – zero first half turnovers against constant Purdue halfcourt pressure – of ability to drain the long ball – seven – were the keys to holding an edge after 20 minutes.
 
A 7-2 spurt to open the second half gave the Wildcats a 40-33 advantage before Edey scored twice to narrow the advantage to 40-38. Daniels then dropped in his third triple of the day to allow VU to take a 43-38 lead into the under 16 official timeout.
 
A short Justin Moore jumper capped a 10-0 Nova burst that got the lead up to 51-41 with under 11 minutes remaining in the second half. Three balls from Moore, Daniels, and Gillespie helped Villanova craft a 60-51 margin with 7:23 to play in the period. Yet Purdue pushed back, sinking six straight field goals to cut the 'Cats lead to 61-60 with 5:17 left in regulation.
 
An Edey dunk tied it at 62 before a Boilermaker score on a fast break gave Purdue the lead at 64-62 with just less than four minutes on the clock. Another defensive stop gave the Boilermakers possession and a two-point edge with 3:30 on the clock.
 
Purdue closed the contest on a 16-12 run to seal the win and the title of the Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic. Villanova called on just seven players, so the starters and Daniels all logged heavy minutes in a tough, physical matchup.
 
"We've got to get our young guys going," noted Wright. "We probably don't have a 10-point lead playing those young guys right now. We've got a lot of growth ahead of us, a lot to learn. It's a decision you make during the game. These guys (who played) don't give in to it. It's our job as coaches to keep them fresh. We've got to do a better job of that as coaches."
 
"I don't think we were tired," said Moore. "We didn't do the little things down the stretch that they were able to do. Rebounding, turnovers hurt us. We have to go back to work on those."
 
Villanova will have a short break for the Thanksgiving holiday this week. It next sees action one week from today when it meets Philadelphia Big Five rival La Salle at the Palestra at 6 p.m.