Loyal fans of Purdue basketball have become spoiled over the last three seasons as they have followed and rooted for several players who have and, in some cases, will continue to etch their names into the Boilermakers’ record book.
Big man and two-time National Player of the Year Zach Edey, now playing for the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies, carried Purdue to the national championship game this year, and he will be regarded as arguably the greatest Boilermaker ever.
Two players who played supporting roles to Edey’s lead the past two seasons, junior guards Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer, have stepped into the spotlight seamlessly this season and appear ready to lead the Boilers back to March glory.
All the two have done between the two of them for #11 Purdue this season:
Not surprisingly, the Purdue basketball team, whose record is currently 16-5 overall and 8-2 in Big 10 conference games, goes as the backcourt tandem goes.
As the point guard who leads his team in minutes played with 35.8 per game, Braden Smith has his hands on the basketball the majority of the time on the offensive end of the floor. In other words, Smith’s performance says a lot about how his team will fare.
Smith averages 15.4 points and 8.9 assists per game, and he registered his eighth double-double of the season against Michigan on Friday; he even has one more block (five) than power forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (four).
Head coach Matt Painter realizes this concept very clearly and knows his pre-season Big 10 Player of the Year must be the conductor of the Boilermaker Special.
Said Painter last week about Smith’s influence: “He’s the head of the snake for us, both offensively and defensively. We kind of go as he goes, so when he’s running well on offense, we’re right there with him.”
After Friday’s blowout win over Michigan, Painter once again praised his floor general, but he also recognized Smith’s ability to affect Purdue’s defensive efforts and be an extension of him on the court.
Said Painter: “As he starts a game and just getting into a rhythm is one thing in terms of shooting the ball and making decisions, but I thought he was active defensively, too. More than anything (for Smith), it’s be aggressive defensively when you see blood in the water. When you have an advantageous scenario to be aggressive, be aggressive. But if they don’t show weakness, be solid. And I think that’s being instinctual.”
Above all else, Painter believes Smith makes everyone around him better and understands their roles.
“Everybody wants to be Braden Smith. Braden Smith earned the right to have the ball in his hands and play that way. He has the skill set and he has the game. We really get guys to understand to play to their strengths and just keep playing to your strengths. Don’t get away from that and just be fundamentally sound.”
Fletcher Loyer’s career over his two and half years in West Lafayette is littered with accolades that are sure to continue as long as he is a Boilermaker. In his freshman year in 2022-23, Loyer earned honorable mention All-Big 10 honors after averaging 11 points over the season, which included being named Big 10 Freshman of the Week a school-record three times.
He did not slow down in his second season; he was one-of-10 players nationally to shoot at least 44.0 percent from 3-point range, make 50 trifectas, and shoot at least 85.0 percent from the free throw line. In his sophomore season, he saved his best games for when Purdue played top-tier squads as he averaged 12.5 points, 2.4 assists, and 2.2 rebounds against nationally-ranked teams, shooting 39.0 percent from long range and 88.9 percent from the free throw line.
Loyer reached double figures 21 times in 2023-24. He scored a career-high 27 points against both No. 1-ranked Arizona and No. 7-ranked Tennessee and was named Big Ten Player of the Week following the win over Arizona.
As a Boilermaker, Loyer has been and forever will be attached to Smith.
Cases in point:
Painter believes the two guards will be forever linked, like some of the other all-time great tandems in Purdue basketball history.
“They’re into the game, they know what the hell is going on, they’re competitive and they play to win,” Painter said after a recent game. “They’re two guys that will be linked together forever. You see that with certain people throughout Purdue history.
“Guys that come in and play right away like a Troy Lewis, Todd Mitchell, Everette Stephens. Chad Austin and Brad Miller. They’ll be linked together, because those guys have great careers, but they also do a lot of winning.”
Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer have seen the lowest of lows (losing to 16th-seeded Farleigh Dickinson as a one-seed in 2023) and highest of highs (reaching the National Championship in 2024) during March Madness. Both know that time is running out for them and their Boiler mates, and they want to reach college basketball immortality before their time in West Lafayette is over.
Losing to UConn last April has motivated both Smith and Loyer to step into leadership roles this season.
Said Smith back in October: “Me and Fletch and some of these other guys — (Trey Kaufman-Renn) and Caleb (Furst) — who are older and have experienced all those things, we understand what it takes to get there. We’ve been through it, we’ve seen everything, we’ve seen every situation possible. I think understanding that and helping these younger guys get through that can get us there, as well.”
On just what Purdue needs to focus on, Loyer added: “I think we know how hard we’ve got to work now. We knew how hard we pushed ourselves in practice last summer and leading into the fall. Just how focused you have to come each and every night, because you’ve got the target on your back and people want to get you. Just making sure that doesn’t happen, make sure we’re focused on ourselves.”
Fans of the black and gold hope these words become prophetic so they can plan trips to San Antonio to root their team on during the 2025 NCAA Final Four.
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