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Game recap: No. 2 Purdue basketball beats No. 8 Tennessee in Maui Invitational

HONOLULU, HAWAII - NOVEMBER 21: Fletcher Loyer #2 of the Purdue Boilermakers lays the ball in off the fast break during the first half of their game against the Tennessee Volunteers in the Allstate Maui Invitational at SimpliFi Arena on November 21, 2023 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images)

No. 2 Purdue basketball continues Maui Invitational action with a semifinal game against No. 8 Tennessee.

The Boilermakers (4-0) blitzed No. 10 Gonzaga in the second half of their opener as Zach Edey and Braden Smith got help from Lance Jones and Myles Colvin.

Tennessee (4-0) stifled Syracuse and got strong performances from Dalton Knecht (17 points, 3-of-4 3-pointers), Josiah-Jordan James (15 points, 12 rebounds) and Jonas Aidoo (14 points, 11 rebounds).

The Boilermakers are 3.5 favorites, according to BetMGM. The over/under is 134.5 total points. Moneyline: Tennessee +135, Purdue -160.

We'll have updates throughout tonight's game, so please remember to refresh.

More: Big shots from a freshman and improved second-half defense

Player ratings: Edey, Smith carry Boilers to top-10 win

Final: Purdue 71, Tennessee 67

Fletcher Loyer bounces back from a rough game to lead Purdue with 27 points. Zach Edey fights foul trouble but still manages 23 points and 10 rebounds.

For Tennessee, Dalton Knecht scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half. Jordan Gainey all 15 of his in the second half.

Free throws: Purdue is 29-of-48 and Tennessee 21-of-30.

Three-point shooting: Purdue is 4-of-15 and Tennessee 8-of-30.

Purdue owns a +12 rebound edge but has 16 turnovers (9 by its starting guards).

The Boilermakers play the winner between No. 1 Kansas and No. 5 Marquette at 5 p.m. Wednesday for the tournament championship.

3:44 left 2H: Purdue 61, Tennessee 61

Jordan Gainey's 3 with just over 4 minutes left ties it at 61. He has all 12 of his points in the second half.

Fletcher Loyer's 3-point play gives him 25. Edey, who has been off the floor for 5+ minutes, has 19.

Braden Smith is having fits dealing with Tennessee's defense. He's 1-of-8 shooting (4 points) with 3 turnovers.

Four players (2 Tennessee, 2 Purdue) have 4 fouls. One Vols player has fouled out.

Trey Kaufman-Renn and Caleb Furst are trying to play a 2-man game inside in Zach Edey's absence. TKR has 7 points and 7 rebounds, Furst 3 and 4.

8:00 left 2H: Purdue 50, Tennessee 48

Free throw watch: Tennessee is 20-of-28, Purdue 18-of-29. Yes, this game is taking forever. And the Volunteers have 2 free throws coming out of the break.

Zach Edey picks up foul No. 4 with 9:00 to and Purdue leading 50-46.

Braden Smith's first basket of the game gives Purdue a 50-42 lead with 10:20 to go.

11:15 left 2H: Purdue 45, Tennessee 42

Tennessee is in the bonus with 12:57 to go, and Zach Edey returns. The Vols have committed 4 fouls.

Purdue players who have scored in the second half include Lance Jones and Trey Kaufman-Renn, and of course, Edey and Fletcher Loyer.

Edey picks up foul No. 3 with 14:55 to go, and heads to the bench.

15:39 left 2H: Purdue 40, Tennessee 35

It's much like Monday's start to the second half. Purdue surges with 10 points over 2:19 as Zach Edey (15 points) scores multiple baskets and gets help from others.

Fletcher Loyer drains a 3 on the right wing on an assist from Braden Smith on Purdue's first play to take a 33-31 lead.

Halftime: Tennessee 31, Purdue 30

Fletcher Loyer: 17 points, 4-of-13 shooting, 2-of-7 on 3s, 7-of-8 free throws.

Zach Edey: 10 points, 2-of-5 FGs, 6-of-12 FTs, 8 rebounds, 2 fouls.

Rest of Purdue: 0-of-12 FGs, 3-of-6 FTs. Braden Smith is 0-of-3 with 0 assists.

Caleb Furst's free throws with 2:12 left put Purdue up 28-27.

Dalton Knecht has 13 points (5-of-7 FGs, 2-of-2 3s) for Tennessee, which is 8-of-13 on free throws.

3:44 left 1H: Tennessee 27, Purdue 26

Anyone going to help Fletcher Loyer (16 points) and Zach Edey (10)? The rest of the Boilermakers are scoreless. Edey picks up his second foul with 4:17 to go and heads to the bench.

Dalton Knecht has 13 points, including a putback dunk.

Tennessee coach Rick Barnes picks up a technical foul for arguing the way the officials are dealing with Edey.

7:06 left 1H: Tennessee 22, Purdue 15

In true Tennessee defensive style, the Boilermakers can't make a thing (23% from the field). They went scoreless for almost 6 minutes before Zach Edey made 2 free throws with 8:34 to go. Edey is 2-of-5 from the field and 2-of-8 on free throws.

11:32 left 1H: Tennessee 14, Purdue 11

Fletcher Loyer has 9 points. The rest of the Boilermakers are struggling. Those guys are 0-of-6 on free throws and 1-of-7 from the field.

Dalton Knecht, Tennessee's leading scorer, has 2 3-pointers already and 7 points.

15:05 left 1H: Tennessee 10, Purdue 9

Zach Edey, who missed his first 2 free throws, will be at the line coming out of the timeout. Fletcher Loyer, blanked from the field vs. Gonzaga, hits a 3-pointer on the game's first play and has Purdue's first 7 points in 2 minutes.

Synchronized celly vs. Gonzaga

Maui Invitational schedule

Monday, Nov. 20, 2023

2:30 p.m. ET, Game 1: Tennessee 73, Syracuse 56

5 p.m. ET, Game 2: Purdue 73, Gonzaga 63

9 p.m. ET, Game 3: Kansas 83, Chaminade 56

11:30 p.m. ET, Game 4: Marquette 71, UCLA 69

Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023

2:30 p.m. ET: Gonzaga 76, Syracuse 57

5 p.m. ET: UCLA 76, Chaminade 48

8 p.m.. ET: Tennessee vs. Purdue, ESPN

10:30 p.m. ET: Kansas vs. Marquette, ESPN

Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023

2:30 p.m. ET: Third-place game, ESPN2

5 p.m. ET: Championship game, ESPN

9:30 p.m. ET: Seventh-place game, ESPNU

Midnight ET: Fifth-place game, ESPN2

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Purdue basketball vs. Tennessee in Maui Invitational score updates