PROVIDENCE, R.I. − Survive and advance, they say.

That’s a good summarization of Purdue basketball’s NCAA Tournament opener.

The Boilermakers (23-11) got everything they wanted and more from first-time March Madness participant High Point before pulling away 75-63.

In the end, Purdue had Trey Kaufman-Renn and Braden Smith and the Panthers didn’t.

Cam Heide led a valiant Purdue effort on the boards. No. 4 seed Purdue, last year’s NCAA runner-up, out-rebounded the Panthers 45-24 and had 19 offensive rebounds.

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More: Purdue basketball’s thunderous putback dunks a March Madness shining moment vs High Point

Purdue basketball turning point

The Boilermakers were looking to separate from a High Point team that kept hanging around.

It finally came with some force.

Cam Heide missed a 3 only for Myles Colvin to crash, catch the ball with two hands behind his head and throw down a ferocious dunk. Colvin then stripped the ball on the other end, leading to Heide returning the favor with a put-back dunk off Colvin’s miss.

That boost gave the Boilermakers a 35-25 lead with 1:55 left in half. Will Berg’s bucket at the buzzer kept that cushion at 10.

High Point got within three in the second half before Purdue closed the door.

3 stars

Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue: Old reliable. Purdue’s center got in first-half foul trouble, but was again the offense the Boilers could count on. Kaufman-Renn made 10 of 16 shots, scoring a game-high 21 points to go with eight rebounds.

Braden Smith, Purdue: The Boilermaker point guard had another cold shooting game. Elsewhere, he was the game’s best player. His 3-pointer with 4:28 to go to put Purdue up 10 came as part celebration, part relief. Smith totaled 20 points and six assists.

Cam Heide, Purdue: The redshirt sophomore has been a big boost on the boards lately. Heide secured his second double-double in three games with an exclamation dunk that slammed the door on High Point’s comeback hopes. Heide finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, including four offensive boards.

What’s next?

Purdue will play No. 5 seed Clemson (27-6) or No. 12 seed McNeese (27-6) on Saturday. The tipoff time hasn’t been set yet.

Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X and Instagram @samueltking.