Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Kevin Sweeney

Purdue-Samford Had the Most Overmatched Opening Tipoff You’ll Ever See

Purdue Samford Zach Edey

Purdue star center and defending National Player of the Year, Zach Edey, towers over almost everyone. But fans finally got a chance to see what it would look like if the 7’4” big man went up against normal-sized humans Monday in a hilarious season-opening tip-off against Samford.

Samford Bulldogs guard Rylan Jones drives the ball toward the basket against Purdue Boilermakers center Zach Edey during the first half at Mackey Arena. 

Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

Samford, a Division I team from Birmingham, Ala., decided to send 5’8”, 140-pound point guard Dallas Graziani into the jump circle with Edey rather than its center. The result: One of the funniest moments I’ve ever seen on a basketball court, with Edey’s 20-inch height advantage on full display.

Watch college basketball with Fubo. Start your free trial today.

Samford had teased doing this in the week leading up to the game, sharing some epic preview content of Graziani practicing his leaping ability across campus and promoting the tip-off as though it was a heavyweight fight.

In the end, Graziani decided not to jump for the tip, simply conceding the opening possession to Purdue but producing a viral moment in the process. And it was all downhill for the Bulldogs from there, with Purdue winning in blowout fashion, 98–45. 

But if nothing else, it made an otherwise-forgettable game quite memorable.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Coachella 2025 has unveiled its full lineup with Post Malone, Green Day and Lady Gaga
Green Day, Post Malone and Lady Gaga have been announced as headliners for Coachella 2025.
BANG Premier
BANG Premier
People around world associate rolled R with a jagged line, study finds
Speakers of 28 languages linked sound and shape at least 88% of the time, in ‘strongest case of sound symbolism to date’
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
8 revelations from Cher's memoir
Cher details some of the famous people she grew up with and the desperation she felt being married to Sonny Bono
Salon
Salon
Trump's Grammatical Time Machine
The president-elect uses conditional grammar to craft self-fulfilling speculative historical fiction.
Reason
Reason
Duct-taped banana artwork sells at auction for almost £5m to crypto entrepreneur
Justin Sun purchased a certificate of authenticity that gives him the authority to duct-tape a banana to a wall and call it “Comedian.”
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Banana Taped To A Wall Sells For $6.2 Mn In New York
A fresh banana taped to a wall -- a provocative work of conceptual art by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan -- was bought for $6.2 million on Wednesday by a cryptocurrency entrepreneur at a New York auction, Sotheby's announced in a statement.
International Business Times
International Business Times
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play