Fletcher Loyer Gives Pointed Response to Doubters of Trey Kaufman-Renn, Matt Painter

With Trey Kaufman-Renn's recent awards snub, Purdue guard Fletcher Loyer said he "doesn't care what the media thinks," and reiterated that the Boilermakers are focused on winning Big Ten titles.

Purdue guard Fletcher Loyer (2), forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (4) and guard Braden Smith (3) | Alex Martin/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When it comes to media chatter and awards lists, Purdue guard Fletcher Loyer kind of blocks it out. Sure, the junior still hears what's being said, but, quite frankly, he doesn't care about it.

Loyer said as much on Monday, speaking with reporters ahead of Tuesday's matchup between No. 7 Purdue and No. 20 Michigan in Ann Arbor. Like Braden Smith and coach Matt Painter, the junior guard was asked for his thoughts on Trey Kaufman-Renn being snubbed from the Karl Malone and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar top-10 lists last week.

"It's the same stuff over and over again — it has been for three years," Loyer said in a video posted by Boiler Upload. "Just continue to do what we do. We don't really care."

It was a bit surprising not seeing Kaufman-Renn's name among the 10 finalists for the award. He's averaging 18.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting over 60% from the floor. More importantly, Purdue is 19-5 this season with an 11-2 mark in Big Ten play, sitting atop the conference.

After Friday's 90-72 win over USC — a game in which Kaufman-Renn had 24 points and 10 rebounds — Smith sounded off on Kaufman-Renn being left off the list.

"We're back with this BS again, excuse my language," he said. "We're back with it again. You see what he's doing and the numbers he's putting up and what he's doing to other people. I just find it unbelievable that he's doing this every single night and they're ... you know, there's no need to get into it."

Loyer made it clear that, while there's been plenty of noise around the program regarding Kaufman-Renn's snub, the primary objective is still to win a Big Ten title. And, if that's accomplished this year, it would be the third consecutive league championship.

That's a feat that simply can't be argued.

"Some people don't think Coach Painter should win Coach of the Year, so I don't really care what the media has to say," Loyer said. "We're going to keep playing ball and keep winning Big Ten championships."

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