One of the best point guards in college basketball this season has been Purdue senior Braden Smith, who recently reached a major milestone in conference history. Smith recently became the Big Ten’s all-time leader in assists, and he was honored prior to the team’s game against Washington on Wednesday.
Braden Smith made history in becoming the Big Ten’s all-time leader in assists during Purdue’s win against Wisconsin on Saturday. He had 12 assists in that game, giving him a total of 893 assists at that point. He surpassed former Michigan State Spartan guard Cassius Winston who was the previous record holder with 890 career assists.
Smith continued to add to that total during Purdue’s 81-73 win against Washington, tallying seven assists to go along with 23 points, one rebound and three steals in 28 minutes of play. Following the win, the Boilermakers moved to 14-1 overall on the season, and a perfect 4-0 in Big Ten Conference play. They are currently ranked No. 5 in the country in the AP men’s basketball poll.
A senior, Smith is a rarity in today’s college basketball landscape in that he spent all four seasons at Purdue instead of choosing to enter the transfer portal. He’s been a starter for the team from the get-go as a freshman back during the 2022-23 season.
Coming into Wednesday’s game against Washington, Smith had appeared in all 14 games to that point at a little over 32 minutes per game. He had been averaging 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 9.6 assists and 1.8 steals with splits of 44.3 percent shooting from the field, 38.9 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 74.4 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
With the win over Washington, Purdue has now won six consecutive games since they suffered their first loss of the season back on Dec. 7 against Iowa State. The Boilermakers have their sights set on a national championship with Smith leading the way as the team’s floor leader.
