WATCH: Shot Fake Leads to Easy Basket for Braden Smith Against Maryland

Purdue freshman point guard Braden Smith makes a savvy shot fake underneath the basket to get an easy shot to open the game on the road against Maryland on Thursday. The Boilermakers look to give the Terrapins their first Big Ten loss at home this season.
In this story:

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Looking to bounce back from a loss, freshman point guard Braden Smith kickstarted the scoring for Purdue basketball on the road against Maryland on Thursday night at the Xfinity Center.

Coming off a pair of screens set by sophomore forward Caleb Furst and junior center Zach Edey, Smith rounded the corner and took off toward the right side of the basket. Terrapins guard Hakim Hart dropped to defend a shot at the rim.

Smith faked the shot at the block, getting Hart to leave his feet for just a moment, giving him enough time to spin away and drop in an easy bucket off the glass. The freshman has 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting to open the game, and the Boilermakers lead 28-25 at halftime.

Watch the highlight in the tweet embedded below courtesy of FOX College Hoops on Twitter:

More on Purdue vs. Maryland

Purdue entered a road matchup with Maryland having lost two of its last three games. The Boilermakers sit alone atop the Big Ten with a 23-3 overall record, including a 12-3 mark in conference play.

Junior center Zach Edey leads the team with 22.2 points and 13.0 rebounds per game so far this season. In the team's first matchup with the Terrapins on Jan. 22, he notched a game-high 24 points and pulled down 16 rebounds.

Spearheading Maryland on the offensive end of the court is graduate transfer guard Jahmir Young. He's averaging 16.2 points and 3.2 assists for the Terrapins after spending the last three seasons at Charlotte.

Maryland is 17-6 overall (8-6 Big Ten) in 2022-23. It boasts a 13-1 record and home and hasn't dropped a conference matchup in the Xfinity Center.

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Related Stories on Purdue Basketball

  • Purdue, Maryland Live Blog: No. 3 Purdue basketball (23-3, 12-3 Big Ten) is back on the road for a matchup against Maryland (17-8, 8-6) at the Xfinity Center in College Park, Md. Here is our live blog, which will keep you up to date on all the news in real time. CLICK HERE
  • Purdue Falls to No. 3 in Latest AP Top 25 Poll: Purdue dropped to No. 3 in the Associated Press Top 25 college basketball poll following a 64-58 loss to Northwestern. The Boilermakers were one of two conference teams ranked this week. CLICK HERE

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Published
D.J. Fezler
D.J. FEZLER

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.