End 2H – Arkansas 69, Purdue 69

The Boilermakers turned the ball over trying to feed Zach Edey with under 10 seconds left, then El Ellis couldn’t get a tough layup to drop at the buzzer.

We’re headed to overtime. What’s better than this in the preseason?

:22.7, 2H – Arkansas 69, Purdue 69

Tramon Mark buried a tough 3 from the left wing to knot the score. He’s up to 10 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists today.

Arkansas has had good offensive success with him initiating offense today.

:37.1, 2H – Purdue 69, Arkansas 66

Zach Edey made a layup with 2:14 left to give the Boilermakers a 67-65 lead, then Tramon Mark split a pair of free throws.

Braden Smith then got fouled on a jump shot on Purdue’s next possession and canned both. Razorbacks down three and are inbounding the ball out of a timeout.

3:49, 2H – Arkansas 63, Purdue 61

A mix of poor decision making in terms of shot selection and a quick 5-0 run from the Boilermakers has this game at 2 points entering the final media stoppage.

Tramon Mark got a layup to go after snaking a ball screen, then missed jumpers by Mark and Devo Davis gave way to back-to-back scores for Purdue.

Trey Kaufman-Renn will be at the line when play resumes. He was fouled on a made layup just before the timeout.

Mason Gillis is up to 13 points for the Boilermakers. It matches Fletcher Loyer for the team lead.

Trevon Brazile has 13 points for Arkansas, and Khalif Battle has 12.

Zach Edey, who has 4 fouls, is waiting to check in for Kaufman-Renn.

7:43, 2H – Arkansas 58, Purdue 54

The Boilermakers have hit a pair of threes in the last 1:02 to remain well within striking distance of the Razorbacks.

Arkansas, though, keeps getting good play from Chandler Lawson, who added a layup plus the foul and will be at the line looking to complete a three-point play after the under-8 timeout.

Lawson is up to 7 points on 3 of 3 from the field, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 steal in 21 minutes. Arkansas is plus-5 with him on the floor.

Arkansas is up to 54.5% shooting in the game.

9:38, 2H – Arkansas 54, Purdue 48

The Razorbacks are on an 11-2 run of their own, fueled by a pair of threes from Khalif Battle, who has a team-high 12 points.

Trevon Brazile was also fouled shooting a three in front of the Razorbacks’ bench and made all three free throws. Chandler Lawson also hit an off-the-dribble pull-up against Zach Edey.

Did not have that on my bingo card today, but it’s the kind of thing Lawson does that will help him play meaningful minutes in the regular season.

Edey is also on the bench with 4 fouls. He has 8 points and 6 rebounds today. 

11:41, 2H – Purdue 45, Arkansas 43

After Trevon Brazile knocked down a pair of threes to open the half, the Boilermakers went on an 11-2 run to tie the game 39-39.

Fletcher Loyer has since given Purdue the lead twice with buckets, and Layden Blocker and Jeremiah Davenport have done the same for the Razorbacks. Loyer got a layup to go, plus the foul, to set the current score and answer Davenport’s score.

Loyer, who is on the watch list for the Jerry West Award with Arkansas’ Tramon Mark, is up to a game-high 10 points on 4 of 8 from the field.

Brazile is back in the game after leaving earlier with some discomfort in his left leg (not the leg injured last December).

15:47, 2H – Arkansas 39, Purdue 34

Trevon Brazile opened the second half with a pair of three-pointers to balloon the Razorbacks’ lead to 9.

The first triple was assisted by El Ellis, and Tramon Mark found Brazile for the second three. Brazile, who just left the game with what looked like discomfort in his groin after a somewhat scary fall to the floor, has 8 points.

Makhi Mitchell also has a dunk, assisted by Mark.

Zach Edey has gotten going a bit since halftime. He has 6 points after the break and 8 for the game.

Arkansas is shooting 50% for the game to Purdue’s 39.4%.

Half – Arkansas 31, Purdue 26

An 8-0 Razorbacks run over a 1:33 stretch late in the first half put them ahead by six points, and Arkansas has a lead at the break.

Khalif Battle, El Ellis, Tramon Mark and Makhi Mitchell each scored in the spurt, which forced Purdue coach Matt Painter to call a timeout. Ellis later assisted on a three-pointer by Jeremiah Davenport that gave the Razorbacks their biggest lead at 7 points.

A couple of the game’s key players in Zach Edey and Devo Davis battled foul trouble and played a combined 14 minutes. Edey, the 7-4 center, has 2 points and 3 rebounds.

His lone field goal came on an offensive rebound putback.

Ellis leads the Razorbacks with 7 points and 2 assists, and Battle added 6 points on 3 of 5 from the field. Battle gave Arkansas its first lead of the game at 14-12 after hitting a short jumper then ripping a Purdue ballhandler and finishing a layup seconds later.

Freshman guard Layden Blocker also provided a boost in the half, coming off the bench and adding 4 points and 1 assist in 5 minutes.

Neither team took great care of the ball. Purdue turned it over 11 times in addition to a 2-of-13 showing from three-point range.

Arkansas committed 8 turnovers and shot 3 of 10 from deep.

The Boilermakers made 2 of their final 3 shots of the half. It came after a stretch in which they went 4 of 17 and had a pair of stretches with 6 consecutive misses.

Braden Smith leads Purdue with 8 points, and Trey Kaufman-Renn added 6.

3:46, 1H – Arkansas 22, Purdue 22

Khalif Battle is up to a team-high 6 points after getting a layup to go in semi-transition following a Boilermakers miss.

Battle also has 2 rebounds and 1 steal in his 11 minutes.

Zach Edey and Devo Davis have been sitting for a while with foul trouble. With Davis sitting, Layden Blocker has gotten a shot and played well with 4 points and 1 assist.

Arkansas has held Purdue to 4 of its last 15 from the field. The Razorbacks’ defense has been solid today.

The Boilermakers will be at the line when play resumes.

7:35, 1H – Arkansas 18, Purdue 16

Khalif Battle had his first big moment in a Razorbacks uniform earlier, giving Arkansas its first lead of the day on a layup after ripping a Boilermakers ballhandler at midcourt.

Moments before the steal and layup, he got a tough two-point jumper to go.

Layden Blocker, the freshman guard, has made an instant impact off the bench today. In 48 seconds, he added a layup through contact, defended well the next possession, then assisted on a lob to Trevon Brazile to set the current score.

Solid start for the newcomer. He looks like he belongs.

10:29, 1H – Purdue 12, Arkansas 10

Good defensive stretch there for the Razorbacks, who have held the Boilermakers to 1 of their last 7 from the field. Purdue has not scored in 3:30 of game time.

El Ellis carried the offense between timeouts. He scored on a tough layup at the rim through contact, then hit a three-pointer from the left wing with the shot clock winding down and a defender in his grill.

Ellis is 2 of 3 from the floor so far. The rest of the team is 2 of 9.

Purdue is 4 of 14 from the field and 2 of 10 beyond the arc. Arkansas’ 2 threes have come from Ellis and Chandler Lawson.

Zach Edey is back in the game after the second media timeout.

14:15, 1H – Purdue 10, Arkansas 5

The Razorbacks have not been sharp on the offensive end so far.

They are 2 of 7 from the field, including a missed dunk from Trevon Brazile, and have turned the ball over 4 times in 10 possessions. Devo Davis also picked up his second foul to send the game to the first media stoppage.

Zach Edey, the Boilermakers’ 7-4 center, has attempted one shot. Makhi Mitchell forced a miss. Earlier, Chandler Lawson did a solid job on him and did not allow a field goal attempt.

Braden Smith leads Purdue with 6 points on a pair of threes.

Pregame

Arkansas’ starting lineup: El Ellis, Davonte Davis, Tramon Mark, Trevon Brazile and Chandler Lawson

Brazile, who returned to game action last Friday for the first time since his knee injury last December, and Lawson, the Memphis transfer, get the start in the frontcourt against Purdue’s size.

Eric Musselman said Lawson and returning forward Makhi Mitchell will likely match up with 7-4 forward Zach Edey most. Lawson’s length – 7-7 wingspan – and athleticism could impact Edey’s offensive game.

No surprise when it comes to the three guard spots. Lots of experience, playmaking ability and defensive intensity with Ellis, Davis and Mark.

Jalen Graham (back spasms) did not go through pregame warmups and will not play. He also missed the Razorbacks’ first exhibition against Texas-Tyler last Friday night.

Purdue’s starters: Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, Lance Jones, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Zach Edey

Edey is the center of attention in today’s game and the reigning national player of the year after averaging better than 22 points on 60.7% shooting and 12 rebounds per game a season ago.

Smith and Loyer lead the backcourt for the Boilermakers. Smith led the team in 2022-23 with 153 assists, and Loyer knocked down a team-high 59 threes. They started all 35 of Purdue’s games.

Musselman said earlier this week to keep an eye on Jones, a transfer guard from Southern Illinois who scored more than 1,500 points with the Salukis, and Kaufman-Renn, a 6-9 forward who may slot in for much of the game next to Edey in the frontcourt.