Zach Edey scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and No. 1 seed Purdue pulled away for a 63-50 win over North Carolina State in the opening game of the NCAA Final Four on Saturday evening in Glendale, Ariz.
Lance Jones scored 14 points for Purdue (34-4), which advanced to the NCAA championship game for the first time since 1969. Fletcher Loyer finished with 11 points for the Boilermakers, and Mason Gillis chipped in eight points.
DJ Horne finished with 20 points to lead No. 11 seed North Carolina State (26-15). Jayden Taylor contributed 11 points and D.J. Burns Jr. scored eight for the Wolfpack, whose magical tournament run ended after reaching the Final Four for the first time since 1983.
Purdue will play the winner of Saturday’s nightcap between No. 1 seed Connecticut and No. 4 Alabama on Monday night for the title.
Purdue went on a 12-1 run late in the second half to seize control. Braden Smith made a 3-pointer from the right wing to put the Boilermakers on top 61-43 with 3:24 to go.
The Wolfpack fell behind by as many as 20 points before closing the game on a 7-0 run.
The Boilermakers overcame a slow start to the second half to maintain their lead. Gillis drained a 3-pointer from the left corner to snap a 4:47 scoring drought and give the Boilermakers a 42-33 lead with 13:41 remaining.
Less than a minute later, Jones made a 3-pointer to push Purdue’s lead to 45-33.
North Carolina State climbed back within 49-42 with 8:04 to play. Horne hit a jump shot to bring the Wolfpack within seven points.
Purdue led 35-29 at the half.
The Boilermakers grabbed a double-digit lead in the first 10 minutes. Jones fed a pass inside to Edey, who quickly returned a pass to Jones on the perimeter for a 3-pointer to make it 21-11 with 10:11 to go before the break.
North Carolina State chipped at the deficit with a 13-4 run to pull within 32-29 with 39 seconds remaining in the first half. Horne made a jump shot to cap the run.
Loyer made a 3-pointer to finish the first-half scoring for Purdue.
–Field Level Media
