What Zach Edey, Braden Smith Said After Purdue's Loss to UConn in the National Title Game

Zach Edey scored 37 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Braden Smith finished the game with 12 points and eight assists. Unfortunately, those efforts weren't enough to lift Purdue over UConn. Here's what Edey and Smith said following the game.

Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) and Purdue Boilermakers center Zach Edey (15) attend the / Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY

Purdue enjoyed one heck of a season, but it ended in an unfortunate way on Monday night. The Boilermakers fell 75-60 to UConn, coming up one win short of a national championship. Zach Edey was dominant and Braden Smith bounced back after a tough performance in the Final Four, but it wasn't enough.

Edey ended Monday night's game with 37 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks for the Boilermakers. Smith scored 12 points and dished out eight assists. Everyone else combined for just 11 points for Purdue.

Here's what Edey and Smith had to say following Purdue's loss to UConn in the national championship.

On what UConn did to get Purdue's offense out of rhythm ...

Smith: Yeah, they just did a really good job guarding the three. We got in the paint plenty of times. We just didn't convert on a lot of them. We did our job pretty well. They did a good job guarding the three. We just got to convert on those in the paint.

On what Edey's experience was like at Purdue ...

Edey: I don't know. Like you said, it's tough. It's tough to think about that right now.

Paint, like I've always said, Paint is someone who just give me a chance. I've been trying for four years to pay him back for that. He just came in. Like, he believed in me when not a lot of people believed in me. He gave me the ball. Not a lot of coaches did that. Not a lot of coaches trusted me in that role.

Yeah, sorry. It's tough to really think about something like that right now.

On how Edey handled UConn's defensive pressure ...

Edey: Something I've dealt with all year. Teams kind of game plan around guarding the post a lot of times when they play us. They did a great job showing kind of mixing up some defenses, playing some one on one. Clingan is a great player.

I just got to play better. This is one of those games where I can't go through stretches where I'm not effective. I had a few of those stretches today, and that was the game.

On what Edey hopes his legacy looks like ...

Edey: I don't know. That's kind of for Purdue to decide. I'm not going to tell my own legacy.

I think for me, the big thing is you can say whatever you want about me. You can say -- however I played, you can say whatever. But you can never say that I didn't give it my 100% every single time I stepped on the floor, every single time I went and practiced. That's what I'll always hang my hat on.

I came in, and I never didn't give it 100%.

What Smith will miss most about playing with Edey ...

Smith: Yeah, man, I enjoy just playing with him. He taught me so much. I went from 6'4" center, to a 7'4" center. Definitely a huge change.

Two-time national Player of the Year. The most unselfish person you'll ever meet. Like Coach Paint said, he gets more hate for no reason. For what? He's out there dominating everybody?

Just stuff like that. He's just going out there and enjoying the game he loves. He hasn't played it for long. To have somebody like that that just wants to go out there and play, because that's what he loves, and people want to give him crap for it. Just saying that makes me kind of admire him a little bit more. I realize like, Hey, you're the top of the game and you're still getting hate on because you love the game.

When he's gone, just who he is as a person. He's a great dude. Great dude.

Related stories on Purdue basketball

• WHAT MATT PAINTER SAID: Purdue came up one win short of bringing a national title back to West Lafayette. It was a disappointing end, but the Boilermakers still had a great season. Here's what Purdue coach Matt Painter said after the game. CLICK HERE
• PHOTO GALLERY: Purdue lost to UConn 75-60 in Monday night's national championship. Here's a look at some of the best photos from the game at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix. CLICK HERE
• PURDUE-UCONN GAME STORY: UConn's defense proved to be too much for Purdue on Monday night. The Boilermakers came up one win short of winning a national title. CLICK HERE
• LOOK BACK AT PURDUE'S 1980 FINAL FOUR RUN: As Purdue prepares to play in the nationla championship on Monday night, it's a great time to look back and reflect on the impressive run the Boilermakers made to the Final Four in 1980. CLICK HERE