Purdue Basketball: Redshirt Freshman Forward Trey Kaufman-Renn Seeing Patience Pay Off
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue basketball saw a glimpse at what redshirt freshman forward Trey Kaufman-Renn could provide to the team given extended playing time during its nonconference schedule.
With star center Zach Edey out of the lineup, the former four-star recruit out of Silver Creek High School in Sellersburg, Ind. registered a career-high 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting in a dominant 74-53 victory over New Orleans.
But being the backup to a first-team All-American, the Big Ten Player of the Year and a frontrunner for National Player of the Year all in one means consistent minutes are hard to come by.
"He's the one guy on the team that has a gripe," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "A lot of times everybody thinks they have a gripe, but he's the one that actually does."
Painter has detailed Kaufman-Renn's position quite simply throughout the 2022-23 season, expressing that he has the talent to play well beyond his season average of 12.0 minutes per game.
However, at 7-foot-4 and 305 points, Edey is one of the most unique and dominant forces in the entirety of college basketball. The Boilermakers took full advantage during the regular season, posting a 26-5 overall record and a 15-5 mark in the Big Ten to win the program's 25th conference title.
But as a result, Kaufman-Renn went through his fair share of struggles in league play. Following his career performance against the Privateers, minutes were few and far between. Not because he was playing poorly, but because Edey simply plays at a level that no other could replicate this season.
"When you're a good player like he is, it doesn't feel that way. And that's really hard," Painter said. "So I don't try to mix words when it comes to that. He's a really, really good player, but Zach's just established himself so well that you don't like having him out of the game."
In his first 16 Big Ten contests, Kaufman-Renn tallied a total of 48 points — an average of three points per game. But he put his head down, kept practicing and is now seeing his improvements pay off when it matters most.
Over the team's final four games of the regular season, Kaufman-Renn scored 26 points on 8-of-11 shooting and was 9-of-12 at the free-throw line. He logged double-digit minutes in three of those contests, all of which resulted in wins.
Kaufman-Renn scored 11 points in an 82-55 rout of Ohio State at Mackey Arena on Feb. 19, his first game in double figures since late December and just his second against a league foe. He's been stout in his role ever since, whether it be filling in for Edey or playing alongside him.
"I went through a cold stretch there in the middle of the season," Kaufman-Renn said. "But the coaches just kept believing in me. And when you put in the work and you have a couple of good games, you start to build that confidence.
"I've done a better job of knowing what we're doing out there at all times, especially on the defensive end. All of that prep work is paying off."
Kaufman-Renn has put up 4.9 points and 2.0 rebounds per game so far this season while shooting 51.8 percent from the field. He ranks fourth on the team with 27 offensive rebounds while being ninth in total minutes.
Purdue went into the postseason with a double-bye and the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, and the team is slated to tip off in the quarterfinals at noon ET on Friday at the United Center in Chicago.
After watching from the sidelines all of last season, it will be Kaufman-Renn's first experience in a tournament setting and a precursor to March Madness in a few weeks.
Despite the increasing stakes, Kaufman-Renn plans to prepare the same as he has all season. And why would he change something now? He's hitting his stride at the perfect time.
"Just because we're going in a new situation, having those things that you can kind of go back to and say, 'hey, I've done this before,' is always super important," Kaufman-Renn said. "I like to treat every game the same no matter where it's at. I think that really helps me out."
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.