Purdue's Trey Kaufman-Renn Provides Update on Shoulder Injury vs. Northwestern
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Winning heals everything. That may not be an entirely accurate statement, but it certainly helped Purdue's Trey Kaufman-Renn get through a hurt shoulder against Northwestern on Wednesday night in Evanston.
In the second half of Wednesday night's game, Kaufman-Renn and Northwestern's Jayden Reid both fell to the floor on the same play and were down for a considerable time. The Purdue senior forward was favoring his shoulder, but got some assistance back to his feet from his teammates.
Even on replay, it was difficult to see what happened to Kaufman-Renn that caused the issue. After the game, he confirmed that he'll "be fine," but he couldn't really explain the situation.
"I don't really know. It was just in the heat of the moment," Kaufman-Renn said, per a video from Boiler Upload. "It felt like it came out. [Trainer] Chad [Young] doesn't think it came out and went back in. I was able to play, so it obviously wasn't too bad."
Kaufman-Renn put together another strong performance for Purdue, finishing the game with 11 points, 10 rebounds and two assists, helping the Boilermakers to a 70-66 win over the Wildcats.
The senior forward may have been in some pain after the play, but after a quick chat with coach Matt Painter, he was back on the floor helping Purdue earn its 23rd victory of the season.
"He said he was OK," Painter said. "He said it popped out and it popped back in. I don't know if that's accurate, but that's what he said. So, I just said, 'Raise your hand.' He raised his hand. I said, 'You're fine.' If your shoulder's separated, you can't raise your arm."
When the play unfolded, Kaufman-Renn appeared to be in serious pain while on the ground. The good news for Purdue is that it didn't hinder his performance down the stretch and it doesn't sound like it will be something that will keep him off the floor.
Kaufman-Renn dealt with a hip injury early this season
Purdue has already had to play two games without Kaufman-Renn this season. The senior missed the team's first two games against Evansville and Oakland due to a hip injury. The Boilermakers won both contests, but his presence was still missed.
When the 6-foot-9 forward returned to the lineup in Purdue's road game against Alabama, he played like a man with his hair on fire. Kaufman-Renn cracked Alabama for 19 points, 15 rebounds and five assists, leading to an 87-80 win over the Crimson Tide.
Even though Kaufman-Renn has played in every game since the first week of November, UCLA head coach Mick Cronin said he believed the forward was playing hurt when the Boilers went out to Los Angeles in January.
"Kaufman-Renn, that dude is a warrior, man. Dude is a warrior. He goes after the ball like nobody else," Cronin said after the game. "His hip ain't right, he's just playing through it. I mean, I'm seeing him run in person, that kid is playing [hurt]. In a different situation, he'd be out."
Hurt or not, Kaufman-Renn has been on a mission recently. He has scored 10 points or more in each of Purdue's last six games, also recording three double-doubles in that span.
Along with Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer, Kaufman-Renn will play his final home game at Mackey Arena on Saturday afternoon as Purdue hosts Wisconsin.
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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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