Purdue big man Zach Edey withstood all the abuse Gonzaga could lay on him Friday night, finishing with 27 points and 14 rebounds to lift the Boilermakers to an 80-68 victory and move them one win from the Final Four.
Gonzaga leaned on, swatted and grabbed at the 7-foot-4 center — even slapped him across the forehead at one point — but it wasn’t enough to stop either him or his top-seeded team.
On Sunday, Purdue, which last year became history’s second first-round loser as a No. 1 seed, will play the winner of Friday’s later game between Tennessee and Creighton in the Midwest Region. A win there would land the program in the Final Four for the first time since 1980.
