When it comes to a scheduling model, Matt Painter applies the “iron sharpens iron” adage to his philosophy. Over the last several seasons, Purdue hasn’t shied away from battling some of the best teams in college basketball, and it has helped the program tremendously.
Purdue’s 2025-26 schedule will be another daunting challenge. The Boilermakers will play Alabama, Auburn, and Iowa State, all of which finished last season ranked in the top 25. They will also host a talented Marquette team and will play in the Baha Mar Championship, which features Memphis, Wake Forest, and (likely) Texas Tech.
Before all that, though, Painter will challenge his team with a trip to Lexington for an exhibition game against Kentucky. He believes that will help prepare the Boilers for the challenges of a tough schedule.
“You just look at some of the places — we’re going into Alabama to play, we’re playing Auburn (on a neutral court), we’re playing Memphis (on a neutral court), and then either Texas Tech or Wake Forest (on a neutral court),” Painter told Andy Katz on The Sideline. “So, why not go to Rupp Arena to start the season in an exhibition and get that experience in one of the best college basketball environments in the country?
“One of the great college basketball programs, venues, and environments. We just want to get into that buzzsaw-type environment when it doesn’t count, even though when you’re a competitor, it always counts.”
Purdue has thrived when playing tough nonconference competition over the last four years. The Boilermakers had a 39-game winning streak in nonconference regular-season games until a loss to Marquette on Nov. 19 last season.
Although Purdue dropped three nonconference games during the 2024-25 season — losing to Marquette, Texas A&M, and Auburn — it still managed to defeat a highly-ranked Alabama team and defeated North Carolina State and Ole Miss to claim the Rady Children’s Invitational championship.
Highlighting the difficulty of the schedule, Painter also pointed out some of the mid-major programs that are also coming to Mackey Arena this season, a few of which could also present challenges.
“We have Marquette here, we have Iowa State here … we have a really good Akron team, a really good Kent State team coming in, Painter said. “Oakland is also coming in here. We feel really good about our schedule.”
Playing one of the toughest schedules in college basketball isn’t just entertaining for fans, it helps prepare Purdue for a deep NCAA Tournament run. With aspirations of reaching another Final Four, the Boilermakers will have plenty of tests in November and December to prepare for March.
LANDREW TO VISIT PURDUE: Colben Landrew, a four-star prospect in the 2026 recruiting class, has scheduled an official visit to Purdue in June, per ZagsBlog.com. CLICK HERE
POPE TALKS KENTUCKY VS. PURDUE EXHIBITION: Mark Pope talked about Kentucky’s exhibition game against Purdue in October and praised Matt Painter as one of the “best coaches” in college basketball. CLICK HERE
WHAT CLUFF, MURPHY BRING TO PURDUE: Purdue coach Matt Painter spoke recently about why the program targeted Oscar Cluff and Liam Murphy out of the transfer portal, as well as what they bring to the program. CLICK HERE
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