Gicarri Harris came off the bench to score a game-high 23 points as Purdue pulled away in the second half for an 80-62 victory over visiting Ohio in West Lafayette, Ind., on Friday.
Harris, the son of former Boilermakers great Glenn Robinson, connected on 8 of 12 field goal attempts, including 4 of 6 3-point shots, and was 3 of 3 from the free throw line. He scored 15 points in the second half.
Antione West added 17 points and C.J. Cox chipped in 16 for the Boilermakers (2-2), who shot 53.8% from the field in the second half. Purdue held a 22-4 advantage in points off turnovers and outrebounded the Bobcats 37-27.
Jackson Paveletzke scored 16 points for Ohio (2-1), while Javan Simmons added 12 and Siebe Ledegen contributed 10. The Bobcats shot 40.8% from the field and committed 15 turnovers.
Ohio trailed 43-36 after Ledegen hit a short jumper in the lane with 15:47 to go in the second half, but Harris tallied 12 points in a span of just under 9 1/2 minutes, including a pair of 3-pointers, to help the Boilermakers expand their advantage to 63-51 with 6:26 left.
The pregame storyline for Purdue was its search for consistency. Coach Matt Painter was looking for more efficient work on both ends of the floor, even after defeating Illinois State on Monday for its first win of the season.
Painter got most of what he wanted for most of the first half. The Boilermakers held a 20-9 lead with 11:34 to play after West took a Harris pass and deposited a corner 3-pointer.
The margin was still 11 with 6:06 left after Cox hit a layup, but the Bobcats then went on a 7-0 run to cut the margin to 25-21. Paveletzke converted a three-point play to start the run. But Ohio couldn’t get any closer.
Purdue took a 37-28 lead to halftime when Harris made a layup with a second remaining. That play set the tone for the second half.
–Field Level Media
