Purdue vs Davidson: 2022-23 college basketball game preview, TV schedule

The Purdue Boilermakers, newly minted as the number one team in the nation, will take on Davidson this Saturday as part of the 2022 Indy Classic.

Game time: Saturday, December 17, 6:15 p.m. ET
TV schedule: Big Ten Network
Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN

It’s only mid-December, but college basketball is already on their third AP #1 ranked team this season. How long is this one going to last? For Purdue fans’ sake, hopefully, a while. The Boilermakers are the top team in the country as of Monday, and they’ll get their first test this weekend when they take on Davidson in Indianapolis. This isn’t technically a home game for the Boilermakers as it’s part of the 2022 Indy Classic. But it’s about an hour and 15 minutes from campus so expect a lot of black and old gold in the stands.

Purdue is one of just seven unbeaten D1 teams remaining, sitting at 10-0 (2-0) on the season. And they already have some big-time victories under their belt. The Boilermakers have knocked off West Virginia, Gonzaga, Duke, and several other quality opponents. They have a really solid chance to finish off the remainder of their non-conference games undefeated… provided they can get by Davidson, of course.

If there’s one name to know heading into this game, it’s Zach Edey. The 7’4″ (yup) Canadian is taking college hoops by storm right now, averaging 22.0 points and 13.7 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting it at over 61 percent from the field. Davidson likely isn’t going to have an answer for him. But to be fair, most teams don’t. The other big piece for Purdue is freshman guard Fletcher Loyer, who averages 13.1 per game. And expect to hear plenty about this on the broadcast, but he’ll be matched up against his brother, Davidson’s Foster Loyer.

As for the Wildcats, they’re sitting at 7-3 on the season under first-year head coach Matt McKillop. Their most impressive win came against San Francisco, but they haven’t played any teams near Purdue’s caliber yet. The Cats could easily be 9-1, though. Back-to-back heartbreaking losses to Charlotte and Delaware a few weeks ago are the difference. They lost those two by a combined four points.

Foster, the other Loyer brother, is definitely the focal point for Davidson. He’s averaging 19.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 2.3 steals on the season as he continues to do it all. The Michigan State transfer should wind up a First Team All-Atlantic 10 guard when it’s all said and done. Redshirt junior Sam Mennenga will patrol the paint for the Wildcats, averaging 16.6 points and 7.2 boards on the year. Unfortunately, he’ll be dealing with Edey for most of the evening.

The Loyer Brothers storyline will dominate most of the game, and Purdue should dominate the rest. They’ll survive another week at #1.

Prediction: Purdue 80 – Davidson 59