TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Zach Edey scored 25 points on 11-of-14 shooting as No. 5 Purdue fought off Florida State 79-69 on Wednesday night in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Edey, who came in averaging 21.7 points on 61.5% shooting, recorded his sixth straight game scoring 20 or more for the Boilermakers (7-0).
The 7-foot-4 center helped Purdue keep pace with 15 first-half points as the Boilermakers looked jet-lagged early following weekend wins over Duke and Gonzaga in Portland, Oregon.
Purdue led 34-32 at the half but shot 53.6% over the final 20 minutes, extending its nation-best regular-season win streak against nonconference foes to 20 games.
Darin Green Jr. scored 16 of his 23 points in the first half for Florida State (1-8), which lost its fourth straight. Green shot 7 of 12 from the floor and 4 of 7 from 3-point range.
Matthew Cleveland had 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting with six rebounds for the Seminoles.
Braden Smith had 13 points and nine rebounds for Purdue, which had a 46-31 rebounding advantage. Edey had eight boards, four fewer than his average.
THE TAKEAWAY
Purdue: With the exception of Edey, the rest of the Boilermakers shot 5 of 20 in the first half. But Purdue gave Edey some help after halftime. The Boilermakers haven't lost to a nonconference foe since falling to Miami almost two years ago.
Florida State: Cleveland and Green had two of their best nights but the rest of the Seminoles scored just 26 points.
UP NEXT
Purdue: Opens Big Ten play against Minnesota on Sunday.
Florida State: Opens Atlantic Coast Conference play at Virginia on Saturday.
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