Purdue returns to Sweet 16 with 76-62 win over McNeese in March Madness

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Trey Kaufman-Renn had 22 points and 15 rebounds, and Purdue used a fast start to roll to a 76-62 win over McNeese in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday.

Fletcher Loyer added 15 points. C.J. Cox finished with 11 points for the Boilermakers (24-11), who advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second straight season.

Purdue will meet top-seeded Houston in the Midwest Region semifinals in Indianapolis. Coach Matt Painter has reached the Sweet 16 in eight of his 16 NCAA Tournament appearances with the Boilermakers.

Painter said the challenge is to maintain the offensive efficiency his team has shown over the first two rounds.

“We can’t go further without playing great offensively,” Painter said. “We have to execute well, we have to shoot the ball well. That’s not really pressure, that’s just a fact.”

Sincere Parker scored 17 points for McNeese (28-7), which won its first-ever NCAA Tournament game during coach Will Wade's second and final season at the school. Javohn Garcia added 12 points as the Cowboys came up short in their bid to give the Southland Conference its first Sweet 16 team since Louisiana Tech in 1985.

McNeese came out in the 2-3 zone that was so successful during its first-round win over Clemson.

But Purdue hit seven of its first nine field goals and three of its first four 3-point attempts to build an early double-digit advantage. A pair of three-plus minute scoring droughts by the Cowboys and runs of 10-0 and 9-0 by the Boilermakers helped Purdue build a 36-14 lead in the first half.

“From the start of the game they kind of imposed their will on us," Parker said. "To their credit they made shots and we missed shots.”

The Boilermakers led for all but 19 seconds.

Purdue shot 11 of 26 from the 3-point line for the game and held a 41-24 rebounding edge.

“I thought we played really well these last two games,” Kaufman-Renn said. “We executed well and we stuck to our game plan and then we outrebounded both teams. So we do that, it’s a winning game plan.”

McNeese: Poor shooting prevented the Cowboys from duplicating their first-round magic.

Purdue: A year after making it to the national title game, the Boilermakers are getting some of their best production from Braden Smith and Kaufman-Renn, who both started in that game.

Wade declined to confirm that he had accepted the coaching job at N.C. State, but a person familiar with the agreement told The Associated Press a deal had been reached. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the school hasn’t publicly discussed its coaching search.

Wade said he'd spend Saturday celebrating what McNeese accomplished this season.

“I’ll worry about that tomorrow,” Wade said. "Look, I’m an honest guy but today I want to put a bow on everything with McNeese if we can. That’ll be up to whatever else happens."

As good as Purdue was offensively against the Cowboys, the Boilermakers will likely have to lean on their defense in the next round. Houston is the nation’s fifth-ranked 3-point shooting team.

AP Basketball Writer Aaron Beard in Raleigh, North Carolina, contributed to this report.

AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here.

Purdue guard Braden Smith (3) celebrates while taking a lead against McNeese State during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Purdue forward Caleb Furst (1) celebrates on a dunk against McNeese State during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Purdue forward Caleb Furst (1) celebrates on a dunk against McNeese State during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Purdue forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (4) battles for a rebound against McNeese State guard Quadir Copeland (11) during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Purdue forward Camden Heide (23) hangs onto the ball while colliding with McNeese State guard DJ Richards Jr. (2) during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)