No. 1 Purdue was looking at a second-straight loss. Then Sasha Stefanovic woke up.
Sometimes a shooter just needs to see the ball go through the net.
One of Purdue's best shooters, senior Sasha Stefanovic was held scoreless for the first 37 minutes of Sunday's Basketball Hall of Fame Invitational game in Brooklyn against N.C. State.
Three days after suffering their first loss of the season, the No. 1-ranked Boilermakers' offense continued to struggle against the Wolfpack. Outside of center Trevion Williams, the Boilermakers could not generate consistent offense, especially outside of the paint, starting 2-of-11 from 3 and 1-of-5 from the free-throw line.
More: Purdue stages second-half rally to overtake N.C. State in overtime
Stefanovic's first points came from the free-throw line at 2:19 left in regulation and the shots seemed to lift the cover off the basket. After an N.C. State jumper, Stefanovic curled around a Williams screen, took a handoff a knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game, cutting Purdue's deficit to three with 1:36 left in regulation.
Purdue scored on four straight possessions to end the second half, including a play designed to generate a 3 for Stefanovic that ended with the senior driving to the basket and finishing with a floater in traffic with 21 seconds left, sending the game to overtime, where the Boilermakers eventually pulled away for an 82-72 win.
"I think we just really executed our plays really well," Stefanovic said. "For that first 35 minutes I thought we were just taking rushed (shots) or taking contested shots. We were playing at 100 mph. We really just needed to relax a little bit and kind of settle into the game."
Stefanovic's scoring spurt helped Purdue overcome a 13-point second-half deficit. He started overtime with another 3-pointer off a Williams assist, helping the Boilermakers take control of the game. The Crown Point product finished with 12 points.
Purdue coach Matt Painter credited sophomore Mason Gillis with providing an emotional boost and sparking the comeback. Offensively, Painter said he was pleased with the execution even after the poor first half.
"Our consistency in our execution offensively got better as the game went along," Painter said. "You really judge things on the results, the ball doesn't go in. But what it really comes down to if you get good shots and the ball doesn't go in there's only so much that you can do. As it went on, I thought our energy picked up especially down the stretch."
Having a third consistent scorer will be key for Purdue moving forward. Jaden Ivey (22 points) does a great job of creating his own offense off steals and transition baskets. One of Williams (22 points, 12 rebounds, 9 assists) or Zach Edey provides consistent scoring inside, but the rest of the Boilermakers have struggled to produce consistent offense. Isaiah Thompson is 0-of-3 from 3 over his past three games. Brandon Newman is shooting 38% from 3 on the season but is just 4-of-15 (26%) in his past three games.
When Stefanovic is on, he's one of the best catch-and-shoot players in country. His play late in regulation showed he's more than just a shooter, and he knows he's capable of taking over big games with his shooting ability.
"I just kind of told myself like, 'man, you got to wake up,'" Stefanovic said to BTN reporter Andy Katz after the game. "It's a big game, obviously. It's a big stage playing here in the Barclays Center, and I just wasn't able to find it early on, but I just kind of, continued to trust my shot.
"I was gonna have open looks eventually. We ran some great sets down the stretch and I was able to kind of get free and get some open looks."
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Purdue basketball: Sasha Stefanovic's sparks comeback over N.C. State
