Purdue Falls to Houston in Heartbreaking Last-Second Loss in Regional Semifinals

Purdue Falls to Houston in Heartbreaking Last-Second Loss in Regional Semifinals

Milos Uzan of Houston scored on an inbounds play with just 0.8 seconds remaining to secure a dramatic 62-60 victory over Purdue in the Midwest Regional semifinals at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, dashing the Boilermakers’ hopes after a thrilling comeback.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — No. 4 seed Purdue made a valiant effort in the final minutes to catch top-seeded Houston on Friday night, but it was Houston’s Milos Uzan who sealed the win with a clutch play in the final seconds. The Cougars’ 62-60 win sent them to the Elite Eight, ending Purdue’s season with a 24-12 record. This marks only the second time in the past decade that Purdue has lost 12 or more games in a season (the other being the 2020 COVID-affected year with a 16-15 record).

Houston, now 33-4, extended its impressive winning streak to 16 games and has now won 29 of its last 30 games. Despite being 8.5-point favorites, the Cougars were pushed to the limit by Purdue. Houston will face No. 2 seed Tennessee in the regional final after the Volunteers defeated Kentucky earlier in the day.

Purdue remains 0-9 all-time against No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

As expected, both teams played strong defense throughout the game, and it came down to a nail-biting final play to decide the outcome.

Purdue struggled with shooting from beyond the arc in the first half, hitting only 1-of-6 three-pointers early on. However, junior guard Fletcher Loyer hit a key three-pointer to tie the game at 16-16 with 8:19 left in the half, contributing 12 of Purdue’s 16 points by the break.

Houston’s dominance on the boards caused problems for Purdue, as the Cougars grabbed nine offensive rebounds in the first half, leading to nine second-chance points. Uzan helped keep Houston in the game with four three-pointers, contributing 12 of their 29 first-half points. Uzan and Emanuel Sharp hit consecutive threes to put Houston ahead 29-26, but Braden Smith answered with a three and hit two crucial free throws at the half, giving Purdue a 31-29 lead.

Only four players scored for Purdue in the first half: Loyer (12 points), Smith (7 points), C.J. Cox (7 points), and Trey Kaufman-Renn (5 points). Purdue’s defense kept Houston to just 32.3% shooting in the first half.

In the second half, Houston came out strong, going on an 11-1 run, but Cam Heide’s three-pointer cut the lead to 38-35 with 15:40 remaining. Houston built a 48-41 lead at the 11:31 mark, their largest lead of the game, and extended it to 10 points after Uzan hit his sixth three of the game. Purdue called a timeout.

Then, Purdue started its comeback. Heide hit another three, and after a defensive stop, Kaufman-Renn made two free throws to cut Houston’s lead to 57-55 with 4:18 to go. Houston’s LJ Cryer hit a three to make it 60-55, but Purdue responded. After another stop and a timeout with 2:32 left, Purdue ran a perfect out-of-bounds play, and Kaufman-Renn scored a dunk.

Purdue missed a three, but then Heide connected from the corner off a great pass from Smith, tying the game at 60-60 with the shot clock expiring. Houston called a timeout with 29 seconds remaining.

With the clock winding down, Uzan missed a runner in the lane, and Houston grabbed its 16th offensive rebound when Joseph Tugler got the board but missed. The ball went out of bounds, but Houston retained possession with 2.8 seconds to go.

On the final inbounds play, Uzan passed to Tugler, who quickly returned it to Uzan, and he made a layup with 0.8 seconds left, exploiting Purdue’s defensive lapse. Purdue’s last-ditch half-court shot by Smith at the buzzer fell short.

Loyer led Purdue with 16 points, and Kaufman-Renn added 14. Heide scored 9, while Smith, C.J. Cox, and Myles Colvin each had 7 points. Uzan led Houston with 22 points, and Sharp contributed 11.