No. 1-seeded again, Purdue must overcome Big Ten tournament loss and last year’s debacle

The long faces from Purdue coach Matt Painter and star Zach Edey after last week’s Big Ten tournament overtime loss against Wisconsin weren’t nearly as doom and gloom as last year’s.

Nothing was tougher to swallow for the Boilermakers than the shocking first-round upset to 16th seed Farleigh Dickinson as a No. 1 seed in last season’s NCAA tournament.

At Target Center last Saturday, Purdue still knew it would live to play another day. The disappointment quickly turned to determination after falling short of repeating as Big Ten tournament champions. Edey and Painter still get a chance to redeem themselves.

“We have a good team,” Painter said. “We’ll respond from it, and we’re really looking forward to playing the NCAA Tournament.”

How Purdue bounces back from the monumental upset last year is one of the biggest storylines for this year’s March Madness. Edey’s legacy is cemented as the program’s all-time leading scorer and a two-time national player of the year, but can he lead Painter’s team on a deep NCAA tournament run?

The college basketball world will be watching closely Friday when the Midwest region’s No. 1-seeded Boilermakers (29-4) open with 16th-seeded Grambling State in Indianapolis.

It’s been popular to pick against Purdue after the Big Ten tourney semifinals loss, but there’s no doubting the 7-4, 290-pound Edey is the most dominant force in the game.

“He’s everything you want in a player,” Painter said. “He’s stayed grounded. He keeps his composure, and we’re proud of him for everything he’s accomplished.”

Painter played with Boilermakers great Glenn Robinson in the 1990s under legendary coach Gene Keady. “Big Dog” never got to the Final Four. Is it fair to judge Edey on whether he can take Purdue to its first Final Four since 1980? With his status comes criticism galore for being so good and so big.

“People with his size are normally not very good at basketball,” Painter said. “He’s really good. So, he gets a lot of attention.”

Purdue has responded well after losses, a good sign this year. The Boilermakers won seven straight games after losing for the first time this season in December at Northwestern. They won nine in a row after falling at Nebraska in early January. And they won six consecutive games after losing at Ohio State on Feb. 18.

“Last year it would rattle us and check our confidence,” Edey said about a loss. “This year we know who we are, we know what type of team we are, and we know what we can do.”

Limiting Edey under his averages of 24.4 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks is a game plan most teams often failed to execute this season. But Purdue has struggled when opponents can get the best of its backcourt.

All-Big Ten point guard Braden Smith and fellow sophomore Fletcher Loyer helped lead the Boilermakers to their second straight outright regular season conference title. It took one loss to create uncertainty about them being able to support Edey in his quest to win it all.

Smith hasn’t looked the same since suffering a calf injury in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals. Loyer, Smith and Lance Jones combined for 25 points on 8-for-24 shooting and seven turnovers in the semifinal loss. In comparison, Wisconsin’s AJ Storr, Chucky Hepburn and Max Klesmit combined for 52 points and three turnovers.

Edey, who had 28 points against the Badgers, needed more help from his guards. His confidence hasn’t wavered for his teammates to get it done.

“I’ve got ultimate trust in my teammates to step up and fill whatever role is needed,” Edey said during the Big Ten tournament.

Painter downplayed any issues with Smith’s injury moving forward, so the Boilermakers can only hope there’s no carryover into the NCAA tournament. Smith didn’t appear concerned about last year’s first-round upset to FDU being a factor, either. The Big Ten is counting on it.

“I don’t think we’re really worried about what happened last year,” Smith said. “I don’t think it will happen again. We’re all super excited and ready.”