Vince Edwards, Purdue's hero from the start, hit a pair of free throws with eight seconds left, ending the Gophers' last surge, and the No. 21 Boilermakers walked out of Williams Arena sweating but 68-64 winners on Wednesday night.
The Gophers, meanwhile, lost their 10th consecutive game — Minnesota's longest skid since 1986-87, when the Gophers dropped 16 in a row — and 13th of the past 14 in nerve-racking fashion once again, falling short in a decrepit performance from the free-throw line.
The Gophers, living on a game of runs, were on the right end of the seesaw with 68 seconds left, when center Bakary Konate's layup brought Minnesota back within 65-63. But after A.J. Hammons turned over the ball with 49 seconds to go, the Gophers couldn't find the shot they wanted on the next possession, calling a timeout before ultimately settling for an off-the-mark three-point attempt from Carlos Morris. Purdue took the gift and won the game on free throws.
"I'm sounding like a broken record," Gophers coach Richard Pitino said. "But I think they're getting better."
Sophomore Nate Mason led the Gophers with 15 points and a career-high 12 assists and freshman Dupree McBrayer added 13 points and five rebounds, carrying Minnesota through a slow first half.
The Gophers, after trailing 33-26 at halftime, quickly fell behind by 11 at 47-36 with 13:04 remaining before picking a fight once more. Mason's jumper capped a 16-6 run and pulled the Gophers within 53-52 with 8:43 to go.
But the Gophers couldn't bridge the gap.
Freshman Jordan Murphy went to the line with 6:42 left and a chance to give Minnesota its first lead since 20 seconds into the game, but he missed both, a symbol of the Gophers' night. They managed to make only 11 of 21 attempts from the foul stripe.