OKLAHOMA CITY — Purdue’s suddenly sizzling offense has the Boilermakers one win away from what would be an improbable berth in the Final Four.
For the second straight game, Purdue built a big lead with strong shooting, and the sixth-seeded Boilermakers held off a late rally to beat Rutgers 67-61 on Sunday night to advance to the round of eight in the NCAA Tournament.
Lakisha Freeman scored 18 points, FahKara Malone hit a key basket in the final minute and Jodi Howell added the clinching free throws with 6.2 seconds left for Purdue (25-10), which will play top-seeded Oklahoma, a 70-59 winner over fourth-seeded Pittsburgh, on Tuesday in the regional final.
The Boilermakers became the second No. 6 seed to reach the round of eight, joining Arizona State. Purdue, which shot 52.9 percent from the field, will make its eighth appearance in a regional final and has made the Final Four three times, winning the 1999 national championship.
“We play our best basketball when we are relaxed and not tense and not worrying about things,” said Purdue forward Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton, who had 13 points and eight rebounds. “We had nothing to lose here, so we had to go and play our hearts out.”
Brittany Ray scored 19 points and Epiphanny Prince added 15 for seventh-seeded Rutgers (21-13), which upset second-seeded Auburn in the second round.
