After a trip to Las Vegas to open its season on Monday night against No. 15 Gonzaga, Purdue returns to West Lafayette this week and will play its home opener at Mackey Arena. The Boilermakers host in-state foe Valparaiso, the first of a five-game homestand.

The Beacons began their season with an impressive 80-58 victory over Western Illinois. They head to Mackey Arena ranked No. 140 in the KenPom standings and are looking to pull off a major upset early in the year.

What should Purdue fans know about Valparaiso ahead of Friday night's matchup?

Retaining the roster

The transfer portal has affected everyone in college basketball, but mid-major programs have typically been hit the hardest. Valparaiso doesn't fall into that category, though. There are several new faces on the roster, but head coach Roger Powell Jr. added only two players from the transfer portal to this year's roster: Kai Yu (Bradley) and Bruno Alocen (Indiana State)

Powell did an excellent job retaining some of his top talent from last season. The Beacons return three of their top-five scorers from last season: JT Pettigrew (12.5 ppg), Rakim Chaney (10.3 ppg) and Justus McNair (7.9 ppg). They also brought in a four-man recruiting class.

Retention is difficult at the mid-major level, but Powell has done a good job recruiting high-level players and keeping them around.

All-MVC honors

Valparaiso returns two players who received All-Missouri Valley Conference accolades last season. Pettigrew was an All-MVC third-team selection, earned All-MVC Freshman Team honors, and was the runner-up for the MVC Freshman of the Year award in 2026. He averaged 12.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game in his first season with the Beacons.

McNair was named to the MVC's All-Bench Team and Most-Improved Team. He came off the bench and averaged 7.9 points per game and shot 43.6% from the field and just under 35% from three-point range.

Both Pettigrew and McNair started for the Beacons in their opener against Western Illinois. Pettigrew scored a team-high 18 points in the victory.

Better each year under Powell

This is Powell's fourth season at Valpo, and he's improved in each of his first three years. The former Illinois guard went just 7-25 in his first season (2023-24). The Beacons improved to 15-19 the following season and posted a winning record during the 2025-26 campaign, finishing 18-15 and 11-9 in MVC play.

Last season was Valparaiso's second winning season in the last eight years. The Beacons were also dangerously close to reaching the semifinal round of Arch Madness, falling to No. 2 seed Bradley 90-84 in double-overtime.

Powell has steadily improved each season at Valparaiso. With so much returning production from last year's team, the Beacons could be a legitimate contender in the MVC.

Getting to the free-throw line

In the opener against Western Illinois, Valparaiso had a parade to the free-throw line. Powell's team attempted 43 free throws, making 28. The Beacons have players who can attack the rim and can draw contact regularly. As we saw in Purdue's loss to Gonzaga, the Boilermakers had some trouble with fouling, especially in the second half.

Last year, Valpo averaged 22.3 free throws per game, a number that ranked inside the top 100 nationally. The Beacons also don't shoot many three-pointers, relying more on getting into the paint and scoring at the rim or getting to the charity stripe. It's been a strength for this program the past two seasons.

Limiting turnovers

One of the most important keys to success is limiting turnovers. Valparaiso did a good job of that last season, and it has carried over into the early portion of the 2026-27 campaign. The Beacons don't give away many possessions and place a heavy emphasis on getting quality shots.

Valparaiso averaged just over 10 turnovers per contest, an average that ranked inside the top 100 in college basketball. In the Beacons' win over Western Illinois, they finished with only nine turnovers while forcing the Leathernecks into 16.

The Beacons don't beat themselves with careless mistakes.