Adversity is something we all face. The Purdue men’s basketball team faces adversity as they try to navigate through this year’s season. With college basketball being one of the most watched college sports in the world many fans have wondered what has been going on with Purdue. They seem to be struggling without their 7 foot 4 center from last year Zach Edey (Memphis Grizzlies), and newcomer 7 foot 4 Daniel Jacobson out due to an injury from the start of the season.
According to the Purdue men’s basketball official website, this season the Boilermakers are standing 20th in the NCAA college basketball ranking. The Boilermakers have an overall record of 11-4 this season and have a record of 3-1 in the Big Ten conference. According to the Purdue men’s basketball stats on ESPN, the team leaders are number 4 junior, Trey Kaufman-Renn, number 3 junior, Braden Smith, and number 5 sophomore, Myles Colvin. Trey Kaufman-Renn is carrying the team with 17.8 points per game, as well as averaging 6.3 rebounds per game. Smith carries the team averaging 8.6 assists per game, along with 2.1 steals per game. Then finally Myles Colvin carries the team with 0.3 blocks per game which is not much but it will have to do until Daniel Jacobson gets back.
This season Braden Smith has really shined through and became a major team leader. According to Fox 54 News, Smith was in attack mode this past game against tough opponent Northwestern. They stated when Braden is in attack mode Purdue can beat anyone. The Big Ten preseason Player of the Year, Braden Smith, managed to score 22 points, have seven assists, and six rebounds leading the team to a 79 to 61 victory. Averaging 15.4 points, 8.6 assists, and 4.8 rebounds, Smith is in the running to win the league award, which he predicted he would win back in October at the start of the season. In an interview with Purdue Head Coach, Matthew Painter, he stated, “It all starts when he is hungry and shooting.” Following with “We encourage that … when he’s making the right reads, we’ve been successful. His ability to shoot the basketball and pass the basketball is very unique.” This season the Boilermakers have had a sustainable amount of their success due to Braden Smith and how he plays that game.
The winning still continues for the Boilermakers even though they do not get as many looks on the inside as they did with Zach Edey. The team is still dominating the court shooting 39.6 percent from the three-point line, as well as having one of the best assists-to-turnover ratios in the country. Since the paint is not being domineered by Edey anymore this allows many of Smith’s assists to go to shooters junior, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn.
Even though the Boilermakers have not had the greatest start of their season, they are still getting comfortable with the big changes. The Boilermakers will continue working hard to win more games and make a run deep into the tournament like the previous season.
