Braden Smith Makes Purdue History in Season-Opening Win Over Texas A&M-CC
Purdue guard Braden Smith delivered an historic performance in Monday night's season-opening win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He did it with his vision more than his shooting.
Smith concluded Monday's contest with 15 assists, the most ever in a season-opening game at Purdue. He was the only Boilermaker to finish the night with a double-double, also scoring 12 points. The junior guard nearly had a triple-double, collecting eight rebounds.
Purdue defeated Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 90-73 to start the year 1-0.
⚫ PTS: 12
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 5, 2024
⚫ REB: 8
⚫ AST: 15
Braden Smith (@3bradensmith) starred in No. 14 @BoilerBall's season-opening win.
Watch all 1️⃣5️⃣ of his dimes 👇#B1GMBBall pic.twitter.com/PkvUanYHHB
Smith was projected as the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year after averaging 12 points, 7.5 assists and 5.8 rebounds per game last season. Although he had several mistakes in Purdue's first game of the 2024-25 season, he came through in some big moments.
After the game, Smith said he was more concerned about the six turnovers he was responsible for than the 15 assists.
"I had six of them," Smith said when asked about Purdue's turnover struggles on Monday. "You can say 15 assists, but I'm looking at the six turnovers. I have to be better."
Purdue is still feeling itself out in the early portion of the season. Although three starters return from last year's team, there are a lot of new faces in West Lafayette. There are going to be some bumps in the road.
But Smith got off to a strong start and helped propel his team to a win in the first game of the season. We'll see if he's even more dialed in on Friday, when Purdue hosts Northern Kentucky.
Related stories on Purdue basketball
JACOBSEN PLAYS LIKE VETERAN IN KEY MOMENT: Purdue 7-foot-4 freshman Daniel Jacobsen was playing in his first regular season game with the Boilermakers, but at pivotal moments, he made veteran plays. CLICK HERE
BURGESS WON'T REDSHIRT: Purdue coach Matt Painter has decided that he will not redshirt freshman big man Raleigh Burgess, who was a member of the Boilers' 2024 recruiting class. CLICK HERE
PURDUE UNVEILS FINAL FOUR BANNER: Prior to its season opener against Texas A&M-Corpus-Christi, Purdue celebrated its run to the 2024 Final Four by unveiling the latest banner. CLICK HERE
