'We Know What It Takes': Purdue Hungry for Another Final Four Run
Listen to Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer talk and you might think you're hearing the exact same interview. The junior guards were happy to lead Purdue to its first Final Four appearance since 1980, but neither was satisfied with the final outcome.
The roster may look a little different in West Lafayette, but the goals are still the same. After reaching the National Championship Game a season ago, there's a desire to return.
"We now know what it takes to get there," Smith said after Purdue's first official practice on Monday. "I think we have the pieces to get there ... we have a really good and motivated group. Like I said, we know what it takes."
Success doesn't just happen, though. It takes a lot of time, effort, passion and dedication. That has been a big lesson Purdue has learned over the past two seasons — losing to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson in 2023 before making a run to the national title game last spring.
"Just how hard you've got to work," Loyer said when asked about his biggest takeaway from last year. "I think we know what it takes to get there. Obviously, my freshman year, we fell short of our goal and we worked a lot harder in the offseason. Last year, we made it to where we wanted to be, but we didn't finish the job."
Winning is all Smith and Loyer have known since arriving in West Lafayette. In their first two seasons at Purdue, the backcourt combination has played an integral role in claiming back-to-back Big Ten regular season championships, winning a Big Ten Tournament title and reaching the National Championship Game.
Purdue returns three starters from last year's 34-5 squad, along with a number of contributors. Smith and Loyer make up one of the country's top backcourts and Trey Kaufman-Renn provides stability in the frontcourt. Senior Caleb Furst is expected to have a bigger impact and Myles Colvin and Cam Heide could see a lot more minutes. Plus, coach Matt Painter brought in a top-20 recruiting class.
Yes, a lot of production is gone — notably with two-time National Player of the Year Zach Edey departing — but there are still a lot of talented pieces left in West Lafayette. Many times, that past success places a heavy burden on players to perform. Loyer doesn't believe that's what's happening at Purdue.
"I wouldn't say it's pressure, it's an opportunity to keep Purdue going," Loyer said. "We've been at the mountaintop the last couple of years. Winning another Big Ten championship and making it back to the Final Four is our goal. We'll continue to push each other to get there."
After the poor performance in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, Purdue used anger and disappointment to fuel its fire. It was on a mission to change the narrative that the Boilers couldn't perform in March.
That motivation resulted in a trip to the National Championship Game a year later. You can't help but wonder if that success creates any change in Purdue's approach leading into the 2024-25 campaign.
Ultimately, though, Smith, Loyer and everyone else in West Lafayette are driven by the result in final game of the year — a 75-60 loss to UConn.
"It's the same mindset — we want to win at the end of the year," Smith said. "That's what we did after our freshman year, that's what we did after last year. You always want to be perfect.
"We didn't win, so we obviously have room for improvement."
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