WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Zytarious Mortle scored 25 points as No. 1 Purdue opened the second half with a big run to hand Texas Southern a 99-67 loss on Tuesday night.
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The Boilermakers jumped out to a 13-0 lead four minutes in before Kenny Hunter's jumper ended the drought with 15:33 left. Purdue would increase its lead to as much as 17 several minutes later but the Tigers would begin to show signs of life with three consecutive three-pointers to spark a 12-4 surge which closed the gap to 27-18 at the 7:41 mark.
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Purdue would push its lead back to double digits but TSU cut it to nine once again with 6:29 left after Xavier Ball's three-pointer. The Tigers once again cut the margin to single digits with 3:31 left on Kehlin Farooq's jumper but was outscored 7-1 from that point as Purdue led 44-29 at the half.
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The Boilermakers opened the second half with a 24-7 run for a sizable lead which created a hill too high for TSU to climb from that point.
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Zytarious Mortle scored a season-high 25 points along with season bests in rebounds (6) and steals (3). Reining SWAC Impact Player of the Week PJ Henry scored 10 points while Deon Stroud added seven rebounds.
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TSU will have an extended break due to finals and will return to action in Las Vegas, Nev. on Dec. 16 against North Carolina A&T State.
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