No. 16 FDU shock No. 1 Purdue, make upset history in 2023 NCAA Tournament

On Friday night, the FDU Knights used a mix of guts, effort, defense, and some very timely shooting to eliminate Purdue from this year’s tournament, 63-58.

The game was highly competitive throughout and the Knights actually led by a point, 32-31, at halftime. They continued that strong play in the second half and started to pull away late. Junior Sean Moore—a player who averaged just under seven points per game this season—shined as he dropped 19 points and added a massive block in the final minute of the biggest game of his and his teammates’ life.

Purdue was one of the best teams in the country all season and was led by Zach Edey, a 7-foot-4 talent many expect to win the 2023 Naismith Award as the nation’s top player. However, late in their matchup with the Knights, the Boilermakers seemed to get tight as they felt the pressure of history upon them.

In a sign that fortune was likely not in their favor, a rebound from a missed FDU shot actually hit Edey in the face and bounced out of bounds, giving Purdue’s opponents the ball back.

The historic win for the Knights was their second of this tournament after the team was a part of the “first four” games and beat Texas Southern to get into March Madness 2023. The win came after FDU lost in the Northeast Conference finals to Merrimack.

Purdue entered the tournament having lost just four times this season. Zach Edey, who could be headed to the NBA Draft in June, led his team with 21 points, 15 rebounds, and two blocks. However, he only got off a few shots late in what will go down as the worst loss in the long history of Purdue University.

Purdue has several tournament losses to double-digit seeds, including last year as a two-seed to the 2022 Cinderella team Saint Peter’s.