Multiple former Purdue players gave the Boilers a shoutout after beating McNeese 76-62 on Saturday to advance to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

Purdue advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 76-62 win over McNeese State, led by Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith. They now face the Houston-Gonzaga winner.

This is the fourth time Sampson has been a No. 1 seed, including the past two seasons. In 2024, Houston was upset by Duke in the Sweet 16 a year after the Cougars were upset by Miami in the Sweet 16. Sampson was a No. 1 seed at Oklahoma in 2003 and made it to the Elite Eight before losing to Syracuse.

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.

On the shoulders of Trey Kaufman-Renn, the Boilermakers are headed back to Indiana, where they get to play in the Sweet 16 in Indianapolis.

The No. 4 Boilermakers jumped out to a big lead over No. 12 McNeese in the first half on the way to a 76-62 win. It wasn’t nearly as pretty in the second half, but Purdue built itself so much of a cushion in the first 20 minutes that its struggles in the final 20 minutes didn’t matter.