WEST LAFAYETTE — Confetti was netted near Mackey Arena’s rooftop, but Michigan State threatened to put a damper on Purdue basketball’s Big Ten championship celebration.
Zach Edey, Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and the rest of the Boilermakers made sure that didn’t happen.
Third-ranked Purdue fell behind by eight points midway through the first half before storming back and beating the Spartans 80-74.
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Confetti dropped and a championship trophy was presented as the Boilermakers (26-3, 15-3) clinched at least a share of the regular season title, repeating as league champions.
Purdue can clinch the outright title with a win at Illinois on Tuesday or at home against Wisconsin on March 10. Illinois needs to win out and have Purdue lose to Wisconsin to earn a share of the league title.
It was over when
When the Spartans built their largest lead at 24-16, Purdue responded with a 22-6 run. Michigan State scored the final five points of the first half, but Purdue was able to come out of halftime with a lead.
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The Boilermakers opened the second half on a 16-4 run, making for a 38-10 run overall and a 54-39 lead.
Tyson Walker, who had 12 points in the first half, was held in check while Purdue built its double-digit lead. Walker scored just two points in the second half.
Despite Walker being shut down, the Spartans made it a game. A.J. Hoggard’s 3 cut the deficit to 58-55 and Michigan State managed to stay in that five-to-eight point window.
Mason Gillis essentially sealed the victory with a 3 with 56.3 seconds left. Lance Jones then snagged a steal on Michigan State’s ensuing possession.
Zach Edey watch
Tom Izzo chose to guard Edey with one defender last season in East Lansing. Edey scored 32 and had the game-winning basket in the final seconds.
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Michigan State again opted to play Edey straight up for a lot of Saturday’s game, though help was there at times.
Edey again was able to dominate the Spartans, finishing with 32 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists.
3 stars
Braden Smith, Purdue: The sophomore point guard continues to solidify his legend status. Smith entered the game needing four assists to tie Bruce Parkinson’s single-season Purdue record of 207. Smith fell one assist shy, but made up for it with 23 points and 9 rebounds.
Fletcher Loyer, Purdue: The sophomore guard snapped out of a shooting funk. It probably began in the second half at Michigan on Sunday, but Loyer drained 3 of 5 3s in the first half and finished with 15 points, his most since scoring 19 at Indiana on Jan. 16.
Mason Gillis, Purdue: The senior forward wasn’t big in the scoring column, but his 3-pointer with 6:55 to go came when the Boilermakers had to have a bucket. Then, he delivered the dagger. Gillis’ ability to hit 3s also brought defenders to the 3-point line, opening the inside and Gillis was able to deposit post feeds. Gillis had 4 assists.
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Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.
Costco is making $100 million to $200 million a month by selling gold bars, according to a Wells Fargo equity research note.
Fox – LA
Costco announced it is switching from Pepsi products at its food court to Coca-Cola, according to reporting from USA Today, with the change affecting 17 locations in Michigan.
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The announcement was revealed in a shareholder meeting Thursday at which the warehouse retail giant rejected an anti-DEI proposal.
“This summer we will be converting our food court fountain business back over to Coca-Cola,” Costco CEO Ron Vachris said during the meeting.
The company switched from Coca-Cola to Pepsi products in its food courts in 2013 to maintain the price of its $1.50 hot dog combo, according to reporting from CNN.
The company did not say when the switch would take place.
Are Costco Teamsters going on strike? Here’s what to know in Michigan
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Where does Costco have stores in Michigan?
There are 17 Costco locations throughout Michigan. Costco warehouses can be found in the following cities across the state:
East Lansing, 2540 E. Saginaw Hwy.
Grand Rapids, 5100 28th St. SE
Wyoming, 4901 Wilson Ave. SE
Kalamazoo, 5100 Century Ave.
Midland, 4816 Bay City Road
Traverse City, 125 E. South Airport Road
Green Oak Township, 6700 Whitmore Lake Road
Shelby Township – Lakeside, 45460 Market St.
Livonia, 20000 Haggerty Road
Livonia, 13700 Middlebelt Road
Commerce Township, 3000 Commerce Crossing
Ann Arbor, 771 Airport Blvd.
Bloomfield, 2343 S. Telegraph Road
Auburn Hills, 400 Brown Road
Southfield, 21110 Northwestern Hwy.
Roseville, 27118 Gratiot Ave.
Madison Heights, 30550 Stephenson Hwy.
What is available at the Costco food court?
The website, Eat This, Not That, lists a variety of food items available at the Costco food court, including the longtime $1.50 hot dog and drink special, which has been offered since 1985.
More: Costco announces 2025 stores, including 1 in Michigan. Where to find the new warehouse
Jeff Persi flew under the radar as a recruit, but the 2020 San Juan Capistrano (Calif.) JSerra Catholic offensive tackle rose to four-star status before arriving in Ann Arbor. However, he never quite became that standout as expected.
Persi got several games under his belt, including the 2022 game at Rutgers, as well as several in 2024. However, it didn’t appear that he would be a key part of Michigan football’s future plans at offensive tackle and thus entered the transfer portal, looking for greener pastures.
On Sunday, according to reports, Persi found his new home, staying in the Midwest after committing to Pitt.
News from the transfer portal:
Michigan offensive line grad transfer Jeff Persi is transferring to Pitt. Details here: https://t.co/TQfAaHfczd pic.twitter.com/onuiyhO0Gt
Persi is a grad transfer and has one more year of eligibility remaining. He’s one of several offensive linemen who departed the Wolverines this offseason. Center Dom Giudice (Missouri), interior lineman Raheem Anderson (Western Michigan), and tackle Andrew Gentry (BYU) are among the notable names who have opted to seek out different schools to finish their careers.
The USC Trojans are off to a hot start for recruiting the class of 2026. Offensive tackle Malakai Lee is the No. 1 player in Hawaii in 2026, and he is beginning to make his final list of top schools.
Lee is the No. 14 offensive tackle and the No. 176 recruit in the nation per 247Sports. The 2026 offensive tackle plans to narrow down his list of schools by the end of January. He has visited a couple of schools, and coaches have gone out to see him. Narrowing down his list early will help him figure out which schools he would like an official visit with.
“We’re actually planning to narrow it down at the end of the month after all the coaches have come through,” Lee told 247Sports. “But we definitely want to cut things down and make things easy on us.”
Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore shakes hands with USC head coach Lincoln Riley after 27-24 win at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Being a Hawaii local, narrowing down schools before an official visit will make it easier for Lee. Lee visited schools last season and will use the next few months to narrow down his final schools.
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Among the schools that have picked up steam for the offensive tackle is the USC Trojans. Tennessee, Utah, Texas, and BYU have also visited Lee in the last couple of weeks. Lee also said that Michigan coach Sherrone Moore will be visiting soon, and he is interested in Nebraska as well.
“Coach (Johnny) Nansen from Texas came through on Friday and coach (Zach) Hanson from USC also came by,” said Lee.
Lee did get the chance to visit schools throughout the season, including the USC Trojans. Lee attended USC’s game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Though the Trojans lost the match, Lee was able to attend a historic rivalry matchup.
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Lee spoke to 247Sports after the visit, calling it an awesome trip.
“I know there’s bad blood between Notre Dame and USC, so the fans from both teams were ready to go. I was just stoked to be there. USC definitely knows how to host a party. The pre game area for recruits was fire. I had a chance to get to know some of the other recruits which was cool,” Lee said. “This was my first time in the Coliseum, walking into that stadium, you can feel the energy.”
Outside of attending a rivalry game, Lee spoke about USC’s coaches and the rest of the staff, giving them immense credit for how he and his family were treated. USC coaches Lincoln Riley and Josh Henson made sure to make Lee feel welcome.
“The coaches and staff at USC really took great care of us and I can’t wait to get back there,” Lee said. “I also really enjoyed getting to know coach (Lincoln) Riley and coach (Josh) Henson.”
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Dec 27, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts against the Texas A&M Aggies in the first half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
USC worked hard to impress their recruits that day, hosting pregame festivities and the offensive lineman went bowling and had dinner with Elijah Paige. Lee had the chance to see the campus, meet the coaches, and bond with other recruits.
Lee went into his plan for the decision process and after he commits.
“When I cut the list, it will be to five and then I’ll take official visits to five schools,” said Lee. “Then we’re aiming towards the end of June or July for a decision.”
Lee is planning to graduate in December after he commits and enroll that month. This will give him a chance to get to the university quickly and attend the school’s bowl practices. With Lee’s finalists coming out in the coming weeks, USC will be a school to watch for as they continue to build up their class of 2026 recruits.
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