PREPARING FOR ‘STOCKTON-LIKE’ PG IN PURDUE’S BRADEN SMITH
CHAMPAIGN — Braden Smith will walk into State Farm Center with some villain vibes after last season’s dagger three and an ensuing Steph Curry ‘night night’ gesture to the crowd.
Illinois trailed the third-ranked Boilers by three in the closing moments of last year’s March meeting, but Smith buried a triple with 19 seconds remaining to put the game on ice. The Illini’s cold streak in the series remains going into Friday night’s clash, as they’ve lost five straight to Purdue.
The junior Smith (3-0 vs. Illinois) is now a year older, while still sporting what looked to be a Connor McGregor-esque beard back at Big Ten Basketball Media Days in the fall when he was named the conference’s Preseason Player of the Year. He’s looked the part, as he’s averaged 16.3 points, 8.7 assists (2nd in the nation) and 4.5 rebounds per game this season, while shooting 45 percent from the field and 41 percent from three.
Purdue (21-9, 13-6) has taken an inevitable step back without Zach Edey, and last month, the Boilers went through the program’s first four-game losing streak in five seasons. However, Matt Painter‘s squad has responded with a pair of double-digit wins over UCLA and Rutgers. They exploded with 18 threes in a 100-point effort on Tuesday against the Scarlet Knights.
“Obviously, a team that was picked to win the league or close coming off a Final Four season. Matt’s done just an incredible job of a lot of veterans, keeping that team together led by a guy who arguably could or will be the Player of the Year in Braden Smith,” Brad Underwood said on Thursday. “High-usage guy who shoots it extremely well. They’re coming in very hot. They made 18 threes in their last game. But a backcourt of he and Fletcher (Loyer) that proved to be one of the best in the Big Ten. (Trey) Kaufman-Renn is having a great, great year. Recipient of so many great, great passes from Braden in ball screens. And then, they’ve filled in very nicely with some other guys who are key role players. A team that can really shoot it. They’re great offensively. Matt’s teams always are.”
Purdue is eighth in the country in adjusted offensive efficiency this season, according to KenPom. Interestingly enough, if you look over the last month, the Boilers are eighth nationally and the Illini are ninth. Both teams have been subpar defensively during that stretch, with Purdue at 123rd and Illinois at 127th.
The Illini have taken a step forward at the defensive end of late, first by limiting Iowa to 61 points and then containing Danny Wolf (9 points & 5 turnovers) and Michigan in Ann Arbor. Smith is a heck of a challenge, though. Over his last two outings, he’s gone 13-for-23 from three, while racking up 17 assists compared to just six turnovers.
“I think Braden’s seen just about every coverage you could see. That’s the advantage of having a John Stockton-like point guard,” Underwood said. “He’s seen it all. He’s gonna handle. He’s gonna adjust… He’s one of the best players I’ve seen at late dump-offs in ball screens in the paint. He’s got a never-ending dribble. When he’s making shots, all I can say is you’ve got to fight for everything against him. You’ve got to make it as tough as you can for him and know that he’s gonna score, he’s gonna make some, he’s gonna have a few assists. That’s what good point guards look like and he’s one of those for sure.”
Meanwhile, the Illini have been very encouraged by what they’ve seen from Kylan Boswell recently. The junior guard has seemed to regain his lockdown defender ways, starting with an admirable effort against Duke’s Cooper Flagg then to Iowa’s Payton Sandfort and most recently against a skilled 7-footer in Wolf. We’ve seen him have stellar defensive showings against guards as well, most notably Alabama’s Mark Sears and Arkansas’ Boogie Fland earlier this season.
In Friday’s clash, Boswell (6’2″, 205 lbs.) would actually have a bit of a size advantage on Smith (6’0″, 170 lbs.). Surely, that’s the matchup, right?
“Who says he’s guarding him?,” Underwood asked with a smirk. “That’s the one thing I like about Kylan Boswell. Kylan Boswell’s incredibly strong. Incredibly strong. His lower half is as strong as anybody I’ve coached. You never know, he may be a Caleb Furst (6’10”, 235 lbs.) matchup. You never know. We’ll see how the game goes.”
Oh, I think we know.
