The pair are two of 30 players nationally selected and two of four Big Ten players (Northwestern’s Boo Buie, Michigan State’s Tyson Walker) on the list. In addition, there are just four teams with two players named to the chart as the Boilermaker duo joins tandems from Houston, Kansas and North Carolina to have two representatives.
Lastly, Braden Smith is one of just three sophomores or younger on the list, joining Duke’s Kyle Filipowski and Iowa State’s Tamin Lipsey.
Last year’s recipient, Zach Edey, has the inside track to repeating in 2024 thanks to a dominating start for the Boilermakers. Edey is third in the country in both scoring (23.2 PPG) and rebounding (11.7 RPG) while producing 17 double-doubles.
He surpassed the 2,000-point barrier for his career in the win over Rutgers (Jan. 28) and ranks fourth on Purdue’s career points list (2,091) and second on the rebounds chart (1,128). He is the school record-holder in career double-doubles (56) and has scored in double-figures in a school-record 75 straight games.
This year, he has already produced five 30-10 games, the most in the country and his 13 career 30-10 games are the most for a Big Ten player in the last 15 years by eight games (Luka Garza – 5).
Edey has joined Hall of Famers David Robinson and Patrick Ewing as the only players in NCAA history to score 2,000 points with 1,000 rebounds and 200 blocks while shooting at least 60.0 percent from the field. He needs just nine points to become the fourth player in Big Ten history with 2,100 points and 1,100 rebounds.
Edey has reached these marks in just 23.8 minutes per game and in under 3,000 minutes for his career.
Smith, meanwhile, has had a sensational season for the Boilermakers as their starting point guard, averaging 12.4 points, 7.1 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game. He is one of two players nationally (Marquette’s Tyler Kolek) to average at least 12.0 points, 7.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds and is on pace to become just the third player in Big Ten history to reach those averages (Denzel Valentine, Magic Johnson).
Smith has already dished out 171 assists this season, the ninth most in a season by a Boilermaker and just 37 shy of the school record set by Bruce Parkinson in the 1974-75 season (208). He is already one of four players in school history with 300 points, 150 assists and 125 rebounds in a season (Matt Waddell, Troy Lewis, Bruce Parkinson) and he has done it twice after reaching those marks a year ago as a freshman. Smith’s 16 assists against Northwestern were the second most in a game in Purdue history and the most for a Big Ten player in the last 15 years.
Based on a 38-game season, Smith is on pace to surpass 450 points, 250 assists and 200 rebounds, which would make him one of three players (BYU’s Kyle Collinsworth, UCLA’s Lonzo Ball) to reach those marks in a season.
The No. 2-ranked Boilermakers will battle Minnesota tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET, in Mackey Arena.
