Caleb Swanigan, Purdue hold off Iowa State's late charge to earn Sweet 16 bid

MILWAUKEE — It was coming, it always does.

With few exceptions, no lead is safe in March. Opponents make runs and you either weather them or you wither. After overtime losses in the first round the last two years, Purdue knows that better than most.

So when the Boilermakers built a 19-point lead over Iowa State early in the second half, they knew not to trust it.

“Everybody makes a run,” Vincent Edwards said, recalling what he told his teammates. “It’s March. It happens. We just have to be able to withstand it.”

It was touch and go until the very end, and it took some plays befitting Caleb “Biggie” Swanigan’s nickname. But in prevailing 80-76, the Boilermakers got a victory that could carry them a lot longer than just to the next game.

BOX SCORE: Boilermakers 80, Cyclones 76

BRACKET: Track the tournament

The Boilermakers will play the winner of Michigan State-Kansas in the Sweet 16 on Thursday in the Midwest Region.

Trailing 63-48 with 10:41 to play, Iowa State went on a 12-0 run sparked by 3s from Donovan Jackson and Monte Morris. Edwards converted a three-point play to make it 68-62, but then Purdue started coming apart.

With Iowa State hitting pretty much every shot it took — Deonte Burton scored 14 of his game-high 25 points in the final 7:22 — the Boilermakers were melting down in a flurry of turnovers and missed shots.

Clinging to a 71-67 lead, Edwards fouled Burton, who made both foul shots. Ryan Cline missed a 3 and Burton snagged the rebound. Matt Thomas banked in a jumper to tie the game, and Burton stripped Swanigan, who then fouled him.

Burton made both shots, giving the Cyclones their first lead of the game at 73-71.

“I was praying,” Edwards acknowledged. “We just kept telling each other, 'We got this. We got this.’ ”

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P.J. Thompson answered with a 3 and Swanigan followed with a layup. Morris was fouled with 23 seconds left and the Boilermakers up 78-75, but he missed the second shot and Swanigan grabbed the rebound.

Swanigan corralled an even bigger rebound after Dakota Mathias missed the front end of a one-and-one with 11 seconds left, and Thompson finished it off with a pair of free throws.

Swanigan finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds for his 28th double-double this year. Edwards also had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Isaac Haas added 14 points.

“We hung in there,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said. “To be able to withstand things after they take the lead — a lot of times when you get up 16, 17 points and someone takes the lead, it's hard to recover. I thought our guys kept their poise.”

That is no small thing, both for Purdue and the other teams still playing.

The Boilermakers won the Big Ten this year and have one of the best players — if not the best — in the country in Swanigan.

But because knocking the Big Ten is fashionable this year, the Boilermakers have been largely overlooked. They’re a No. 4 seed as the regular-season conference champion. Most of the country is just now learning Swanigan’s name and game.

Purdue doesn’t do much to help its cause, either. While it has very few flaws — this is a team that can bump and grind with the best of them or let loose with a flurry of 3s — it’s not exactly flashy, either. Throw in its recent track record in the tournament, and it’s understandable why the sight of the Boilermakers might not have instilled fear throughout the bracket.

“When you lose at the end of the year, you always remember that. You always remember that last loss and how that felt,” Painter said. “And so when you lose back-to-back years in overtime, it sits with you.”

Every team gets tested this time of year. By gritting out this win, Purdue let it be known that it’s got the skill and the psyche to stick around.

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Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour.  

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