WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — JaJuan Johnson scored 21 points to help No. 13 Purdue beat Michigan 69-59 on Saturday.
E’Twaun Moore had 19 points and six assists and Robbie Hummel added 13 points and seven rebounds for the Boilermakers (16-3, 4-3 Big Ten), who won their second straight after a three-game losing streak.
DeShawn Sims led the Wolverines (10-9, 3-4) with 21 points, and Zack Novak added 16.
They carried extra responsibility because Michigan guard Manny Harris, the conference’s top scorer, was suspended for what his coach described as an act of unsportsmanlike conduct during practice on Friday. The team did not release details of the conduct.
Harris had played in 85 straight games.
Sims scored Michigan’s first 13 points, but he got little help. The Wolverines led 11-10, but Purdue responded with a 16-2 run that included eight points by Johnson and six by Moore.
Novak’s 3-pointer with 7:28 left in the half provided Michigan’s first points from someone other than Sims.
Purdue continued its hot shooting and took a 43-27 lead at halftime. The Boilermakers shot 58 percent, outrebounded Michigan 16-6 and committed just four turnovers before the break to offset Michigan’s 55 percent shooting.
Johnson scored nine of Purdue’s first 12 points in the second half. John Hart scored to make it 59-32 with 12:41 to play.
Purdue didn’t make another field goal for more than nine minutes, and Michigan chipped away before Moore’s jumper gave the Boilermakers a 68-50 lead with 3:13 to play.
Novak and Anthony Wright made back-to-back 3-pointers to cut Purdue’s lead to 11 with 1:20 to go, but the Wolverines ran out of time.
While Purdue featured a balanced attack, Michigan didn’t have that luxury.
Coach John Beilein said he plans to meet with Harris and the team to determine whether Harris will return for Tuesday’s game in Ann Arbor against rival Michigan State.
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