Boilers upended by Huskers

CHICAGO, Ill. (WLFI) - Purdue men's basketball will miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time in seven seasons as the Boilermakers were upended by Nebraska 57-55 on the opening day of the Big Ten Tournament Thursday at the United Center in Chicago.

“We just weren't sharp. So, that is disappointing. You play well, you play good against some very good competition after struggling most of the Big Ten season. Then you come out with a performance like this,” said Purdue head coach Matt Painter.

The Boilermakers trailed the entire second half but were within striking distance in the final minutes of the game. Terone Johnson missed a pair of shots in the lane in the final seconds of the game that would tied the game.

“I couldn't get it to go down at the end. I mean, I thought I kind of got fouled at the end but we didn't get the call so we ended up getting the rebound. We put ourselves in that position, I thought. We should have played them better the whole game,” said junior Terone Johnson.

D.J. Byrd led the Boilermakers with 15 points and eight rebounds. A.J. Hammons added 11 points and Ronnie Johnson added 10 points, four rebounds, and four assists.

“I've been a part of some great teams at Purdue in my four-year stint here so it's a little difficult to have this happen, you've just got to keep going. Keep playing,” said senior D.J. Byrd.

The Boilermakers are now 15-17 and will miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2005-2006 season, Matt Painter's first season as the Boilermakers head coach.

“Obviously, we're not going to get into the NCAA or the NIT but, you know, I always want to play. I want to play games. I think it's important for a young team to get as much as experience as possible. I want to fight people and go out there and compete. You know, it's one of those things where right now I thought Nebraska was just they were more competitive than we were today,” said Painter.

Shavon Shields led the Cornhuskers with 19 points.