Purdue has made the Final Four in men’s basketball for the first time since 1980.  The Boilermakers beat Tennessee 72 to 66 in a game that was close, throughout.  Purdue will play North Carolina State, Saturday at 6 :09 p.m.

During the game, center Zach Edey earned a career-high 40 points along with 16 rebounds.

In a press conference afterwards, Edey said the team remained focused in the game’s final minutes.

“There’s no scenario we can go in that we haven’t been in before — like we’re never gonna panic, we’re never gonna like anything, like we’re gonna keep playing. We’re gonna keep executing. We’re gonna keep doing what we do and that’s kind of the message.”

Purdue will next face North Carolina State in the national semifinals. This will be the first time the teams meet in the NCAA Tournament.

Stan Sollars is IPR’s Morning Edition host, and a senior lecturer in Ball State’s Department of Media.  Contact him at stansollars@bsu.edu.