The Purdue Boilermakers have had their share of struggles in March under head coach Matt Painter.
In his 20 years at the helm of the men's basketball program, the team has made it to the NCAA Tournament 16 times, including 10 straight appearances, excluding the 2020 season, which was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Still, however, that elusive national title keeps escaping coach Painter and his team as the Boilermakers came up just short in the championship game last season against the UConn Huskies. Despite making at least the regional semifinal on seven occasions during his tenure, the program is more known for its historic losses to Farleigh Dickinson and North Texas.
They'll get another opportunity to right this ship this season, as it was just announced that the team earned a No. 4 seed in The Big Dance. However, one analyst is convinced that the team will be upset by thirteenth-seeded High Point University in the first round.
Seth Davis thinks Purdue will lose to High Point
Seth Davis is an in-studio analyst for CBS Sports and was a part of the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday. He made a bold prediction once the Midwest Region bracket was revealed, and Purdue fans won't be happy.
"I got my slingshot out, ready?" asked Davis. "Shock of the tournament, High Point takes down Purdue. High Point goes to the Sweet 16."Seth Davis
The High Point University Panthers were the automatic qualifiers from the Big South Conference and boast a record of 29-5 heading into the matchup. This will be the program's first-ever March Madness appearance, so the team will have plenty of extra motivation.
They overcame a 15-point deficit in the second half of their conference championship game against Winthrop and ended up winning by 12 points. This team can score with the best of them as well, as they are averaging 82.2 points per contest.
By contrast, Purdue limped into the finished line a bit as they dropped their regular season finale to Illinois and then got blown out by Michigan on day three of the Big Ten tournament. This team has proven that they can compete with the best teams in the country, as evidenced by their wins against Alabama and Ole Miss, but they need to figure things out in the coming days if they want to prevent being upset in the first round of the tournament.
Matt Painter will have the team ready, as no coach in the country is more weary of an upset than he is. Purdue should roll through this game, but it's March, and anything can happen.