After an observer saw Purdue head coach Katie Gearlds’ face red at halftime, it would have been hard to predict the word that described the Boilers’ second half: steady.

At first it wasn’t stable. Not when senior forward Reagan Bass took control of the affair with seven straight points in the opening minutes of the half.

It wasn’t stable when the Boilers finally regained their lead against lower-league Maine midway through the third quarter, with the game starting with another veteran: fifth-year senior guard Ella Collier.

Collier blocked a 3 with Boilers tied. Fifth-year guard Destini Lombard recovered but missed a three-pointer at the other end, but the miss went wide, all the way to the corner of the Purdue bench.

Then Purdue’s youth leaped into the comeback as freshman center Kendall Puryear applied pressure, if not an arm, into the back of Maine’s rebounder, forcing a bad pass. Redshirt freshman Amiyah Reynolds got the ball for a steal and layup, and Purdue had a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

Overall, the Boilers defeated the Black Bears 60-51. Excluding the second quarter, the score was 48-24.

Maine caught fire in the quarter, making 6 of 9 threes. Early in the third period, Maine made another three-pointer against fast-moving, focused Purdue defenses that were losing a game they shouldn’t have lost. Then it missed its next 13. And the Boilers held the line steady. The follow-up didn’t get possession of the ball in the entire fourth quarter.

The Black Bears consistently distributed their offense, turning Purdue’s size advantage in the post into a weakness until Bass took over the center position down the stretch. With Bass, the Boilers were inconsistent on defense and suddenly broke the deadlock on offense against a troublesome Maine zone.

Purdue controlled possession in the final 20 minutes with six steals and seven rebounds from Lombard alone, funneling the ball to Bass as soon as they got it. The senior scored 13 goals in the second half and 20 overall.

Purdue moved to 5-3 with the win and will stay home to face No. 7 Maryalnd in Saturday’s Big Ten opener.