Multiple Individual Milestones Achievable for Purdue in St. Louis
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ST. LOUIS — When Purdue steps off the bus in St. Louis this weekend, there will be multiple opportunities to make history. First, senior guard Braden Smith will get his shot on Friday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. If the second-seeded Boilermakers beat No. 15 seed Queens, head coach Matt Painter gets an opportunity to reach a milestone on Sunday.
Smith is just two assists shy of breaking the all-time NCAA record, set by Duke's Bobby Hurley (1989-1993). He dished out 1,076 during his career with the Blue Devils. Smith enters Friday's game against Queens with 1,075 after putting together monster performances in the Big Ten Tournament last week.
If Purdue beats Queens in its March Madness opener, coach Matt Painter will have amassed 499 career wins with the Boilermakers. That means he'd have a chance to get win No. 500 at Purdue in the second round, playing either No. 7 seed Miami (Florida) or No. 10 seed Missouri.
So, there's an opportunity for Purdue to celebrate several individual accolades, as well as a team accomplishment, this weekend in St. Louis.
Braden Smith's chase for the NCAA assist record
For a brief moment, it looked like Braden Smith may not have enough games left to break the NCAA all-time assist record, a mark that has stood for more than 30 years. But the senior put together one of the best four-game stretches in Big Ten Tournament history last week.
Smith opened the event by dishing out 16 assists in Purdue's win over Northwestern, setting a new Big Ten Tournament record. He had 10 more in the quarterfinal win against Nebraska and recorded nine against UCLA in the semifinal round.
Then, in the Championship Game, Smith had 14 points and 11 assists in Purdue's win over Michigan, bringing his career total to 1,075. Now, it's almost assured that the senior guard will be college basketball's all-time assist leader at some point in Friday's game against Queens.
Matt Painter on the verge of 500 wins at Purdue
Earlier this season, Painter eclipsed 500 career wins as a head coach, which included his lone season at Southern Illinois. In his only year coaching the Salukis, the team racked up 25 victories on its way to an NCAA Tournament appearance.
For the last 21 years, Painter has been at the helm in West Lafayette, stockpiling wins for two decades. His success has put him on the cusp of a 500th win with his alma mater.
Painter ended the regular season with 494 wins at Purdue, needing six more to hit the 500 mark. With four wins in the Big Ten Tournament, he is now at 498 career victories with the Boilermakers. If Purdue advances to the Sweet 16, he'll achieve the 500-win milestone at Purdue.
Individual accolades probably don't mean much to Painter right now, but it is certainly an accomplishment worth acknowledging.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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