WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Jordan Johnson and
Tyson Jackson hit double figures for New Orleans men's basketball (3-8) in a hard-fought loss to #1 undefeated Purdue (12-0) 74-53 at Mackey Arena Wednesday night to conclude its nonconference slate.
Johnson led New Orleans with 17 points and four assists shooting seven of 14 from the field and draining three-of-seven from the arc to help a Privateer team that shot 46% from the field. New Orleans also shot 81% at nine of 11 from the charity stripe. Jackson had 14 making it his fifth straight game in double figures.
True freshman, Omar Henry contributed eight points with 20 minutes in the game making his potential to be a Privateer great well-known.
Khaleb Wilson-Rouse rattled off two threes in the first half, one to tie the game early in the half before the Boilermakers took command. He had eight points as well.
Simeon Kirkland,
Jamond Vincent, and
Dorian Hill each had two apiece. Kirkland led the Privateers on the glass with 7 and three Privateers had two behind him. Hill made his debut with his first two points on the DI level.
While competitive through the entire 40 minutes, New Orleans had a 19-17 lead early in the first half before the Boilermakers took over. The game saw 8 lead changes all in the first half.
While the Boilermakers were in command, the Privateers did not give up anything easy scoring seven points within the first five minutes of the second half. New Orleans outshot the Boilermakers five-of-nine vs four-of-eight in just under the 12-minute mark cutting well into what started as a 20-point deficit. In the end, New Orleans were not able to close the gap resulting in the 74-53 final score.
A week from today, the Privateers will start conference play on the road at HCU Dec. 30 a 7 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and Jude Young will call the action on the NASH 106.1 FM radio broadcast.
