LAS VEGAS (AP) — Davis Fogle scored 22 points and No. 15 Gonzaga opened the season by defeating Purdue for the first time, winning 78-72 in the Hall of Fame Series on Monday night.
The game was a procession to the free-throw line, with Gonzaga making 26 of 34 compared to 15 of 21 for Purdue.
Xaivian Lee, a Florida fifth-year transfer making his Gonzaga debut, added 18 points, Izan Almansa scored 11 and Braden Huff had 10.
Daniel Jacobsen led Purdue with 22 points despite battling foul trouble, C.J. Cox scored 11 and Antione West Jr. finished with 10.
Purdue, with the program’s winningest coach Gene Keady watching from the stands, entered the game having won all five prior meetings between the teams, including three straight from 2022-24.
Beating Gonzaga in the season opener, however, is not easy, the Bulldogs running their streak to 23.
The Boilermakers started a lineup without any players from the state of Indiana for the first time since Feb. 11, 1982, when they played Ohio State.
Gonzaga led for nearly 35 minutes, but Jacobsen kept Purdue within striking distance most of the night. The offense not only ran through the 7-foot-4 center, the Boilermakers didn’t have many answers against the more balanced Bulldogs when he had to sit because of fouls.
Purdue coach Matt Painter picked his spots to put Jacobsen on the floor with four fouls down the stretch, but once Gonzaga went ahead 67-56 with 5:50 left, there was little choice but to go with the junior center.
The Boilermakers then went on a 10-1 run to make it a two-point game, but Gonzaga held on.
Gonzaga: Host New Mexico State on Saturday.
Purdue: Host Valparaiso on Friday.
