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In what is the only Sweet 16 matchup in which both of the highest possible seeds advanced, second-seeded Purdue takes on No. 3 Texas Tech at the TD Garden in Boston on Friday night.
The game is scheduled to start at about 9:57 p.m. ET (25 minutes after the conclusion of Villanova vs West Virginia, which starts at 7:27 p.m. ET) and will be broadcast nationally on TBS. If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can watch the game, as well as other NCAA tournament games, live on your computer, phone or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
Hulu With Live TV: In addition to their extensive Netflix-like streaming library, Hulu now also offers a bundle of live channels, including TBS and CBS. You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the game on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
DirecTV Now: TBS is included in all of DirecTV Now’s four main channel packages. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial no matter what package you choose, plus you can get a free Amazon Fire TV if you prepay one month. Once signed up, you can watch the game live on your computer via the DirecTV Now website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the DirecTV Now app.
Sling TV: TBS is included in both the “Sling Blue” and “Sling Orange” channel packages. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial of either, and you can then watch the game live on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app.
Note: You can also watch any tournament game on your computer via the March Madness Live website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the March Madness Live app. To watch these streams, you’ll have a free preview before needing to sign in to a TV provider to keep watching, but if you don’t have cable, you can do this by logging in with your Hulu credentials.
Preview
In their first full game without star big man Isaac Haas, Purdue’s offense didn’t skip a beat during a 76-73 win over Butler last weekend. They shot 15-of-28 from inside the arc, 11-of-24 from three and finished with 1.27 points per possession, which, factoring in the quality of opponent, has to be considered one of the Boilermakers’ best offensive performances of the season.
However, Haas’ presence on the other end of the court was certainly missed. On the season, Purdue allows teams to shoot just 45.2 percent from two-point range, while also holding opponents to rebounds on 27.9 percent of their own misses. Butler, meanwhile, shot 60 percent from the inside the arc (21-of-35) and pulled down 32.1 percent of available offensive rebounds.
This presents a compelling matchup on Friday night, as Texas Tech is elite defensively. They are fourth in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency, 14th in effective field-goal percentage, 17th in turnover percentage and 26th in block percentage. In their second-round win, they held Florida–a high-volume three-point shooting team–to just 6-of-22 from beyond the arc.
But not only Purdue’s offense vs. Texas Tech’s defense, this one could very well come down to the battle of the guards. Purdue’s Carsen Edwards is in the midst of a shooting slump–12-of-45 from the field in his last three games–but he’s an electric scorer who can break out at any time. In the eight games before this current slump, he was pouring in 25.3 points a contest. Then there’s Texas Tech’s Keenan Evans, who is averaging 21.2 points per game on blistering 54.2 percent shooting in the five games since returning from his late February foot injury.
Both players are fully capable of taking over the game, and with the spread set at Purdue (-1.5), it’s very easy to see this ending with either one hitting a huge shot.
Either way, this sets up as undoubtedly one of the best games of the Sweet 16.
