What Purdue Center Zach Edey Said Following Road Win Over Michigan State
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Junior center Zach Edey registered a career-high 32 points on 13-of-26 shooting to lead No. 3 Purdue basketball to a 64-63 win over Michigan State on Monday at the Breslin Center.
After the game, Edey met with the media to discuss the outcome, including his game-winning shot in the final seconds. Here's the complete transcript of everything he had to say, including the postgame video.
On his game-winning basket with 2.2 seconds left to play...
Edey: We dribbled up the floor, Painter drew up a play for me to get the ball in the post. They didn't want to double, they wanted to leave me one-on-one, so I was going to go score the ball.
In our last few games, they doubled me in those last possessions when I touched the ball and I kicked it out. But they didn't, and I tried to go score the ball.
On if he was surprised to be left in a one-on-one situation...
Edey: A little bit. I was kind of expecting some type of double, but they were doing that all game with the one-on-one with the hard scrapes. So it didn't shock me, but I was expecting a little bit of a double team.
On Fletcher Loyer's entry pass to set up his final shot...
Edey: I think Fletcher, that's something he's really improved on. Just his post feeding has been really good. I think today he probably hit me about 10 times in the post, he was really getting me the ball. Everyone was really getting me the ball, that's something I really appreciate obviously.
On the spin move on Michigan State center Mady Sissoko to score the game-winning basket...
Edey: It was just a read. I dribbled baseline originally trying to dunk the ball, and then he kind of cut me off and my momentum was still going toward the base. So I spun back middle and tried to dunk the ball again but I couldn't do that that time.
On scoring a career-high point total despite missing routine shots throughout the game...
Edey: You can look at the stats and say I had a good game, but I felt like a really missed a lot of shots that usually go down for me. I think I was getting good shots. That’s one thing that [coach Matt Painter] always says, just don’t get discouraged by taking good shots.
I felt like a lot of shots I was missing were routine hooks for me. I just kept going back to them, and eventually, they started falling in the second half. I probably could’ve had 40 if my routine hooks were going down.
On his matchup with Sissoko throughout the game...
Edey: I think he's very improved this year. He's always been very physical even when playing against him my freshman year, sophomore year, this year. He's always super physical, pretty strong dude. That kind of sums up Michigan State in a nutshell. Obviously, everyone knows they're going to come out, they're going to play hard, they're going to push you, they're going to be physical with you.
I think he did a good job defending on some possessions, but he's definitely improved.
On staying patient in the face of double teams to find open teammates...
Edey: I know eventually something is going to open up. When you have two people on the ball, obviously, the longer you wait the more of a pickle it puts the defense in. Obviously, we're going to move, we're going to cut. We worked on me getting doubled all offseason, all season. That's not something that's new or unexpected.
Just kind of moving and cutting and eventually someone is going to get open. I'll find Caleb [Furst] on a dive, I'll find someone for a kick-out three. And then obviously, we're really good at playing out of that. I'll find someone on the kick-out, they might have a shot or they'll do one more for a better shot. They'll drive the ball. I think we're really good at playing out of those rotations.
On how it feels to get a game-winning shot after passing out of double teams at the end of games this season...
Edey: It definitely feels good. Everyone wants a game-winner, I'd be lying if I said otherwise. Obviously, I'm going to keep sticking with what we're doing. If they had a double team, I probably would have kicked it out to Fletcher [Loyer]. I have ultimate trust in all my teammates to hit open threes. But they didn't, and I got to score the ball this time which is kind of fun.
On how similar the game played out to previous years at the Breslin Center...
Edey: It's always going to be a battle with these guys, it's always going to be a one-possession game. I think last year at this arena it was a one-possession game and Tyson Walker, I'm pretty sure, hit that three. It's definitely pretty similar with Trevion [Williams] that year hitting the game-winner.
On Fletcher Loyer stepping up in the second half...
Edey: He's just ultra-confident. We all kind of know that, we all know he has the ultimate trust in himself. We all have the ultimate trust in him as well. When he hits those one-and-ones to give us a lead there at the end, that was pretty huge.
He just seems to have a knack for making a big play in the big moment, and that's what happened today too.
On adjusting the defense to Tyson Walker at the end of the game...
Edey: He hit a lot of really tough shots I feel like. When someone wants to switch on someone to hit a step-back on me, I mean I just kind of have to shake their hand. That's kind of the shot we want them to take, and he hit it. There's nothing much I can do about it. There are some possessions where maybe he got to the rim a little bit too much — I need to do better at that — but a lot of the shots he was hitting were just really, really tough shots. When someone hits tough shots, you go back on offense and just shake their hand.
On his confidence to defend on the perimeter...
Edey: I feel pretty confident when I get switched onto a guard. I feel like I can usually kind of keep him in front enough or keep those straight-line drives enough away for my teammates to give me some help, give me some swipes. Obviously, kind of those little guards, they know that their advantage is out on the perimeter when they kind of drive the ball for those layups. That's when I can really try to make a play on that ball. But I feel good kind of guarding the people put there.
Related stories on Purdue basketball
- Zach Edey Delivers Game-Winner Against Michigan State: Purdue junior center Zach Edey scored a career-high 32 points on 13-of-26 shooting to lead the team in a 64-63 win over Michigan State on the road. CLICK HERE
- Purdue, Michigan State Live Blog: No. 3 Purdue basketball improved to 17-1 and 6-1 in Big Ten play with a win over Michigan State on Monday at the Breslin Center. Relive some of the action with our live blog. CLICK HERE
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