3/21/2026 Boilermaker Saturday Chat: History Edition
Rants, ravings, and somewhat sensical opinions following the wild, wacky, and wide-wide world of Purdue sports.
I like history. In my short trip to St. Louis, I have already visited 2 museums. The Gateway Arch is a historic art piece, which towers over the skyline along the river. Alongside that, there is the St. Louis Old Cathedral, aka the Basilica of St. Louis King of France. This is a beautiful Catholic church, dating back several centuries. I always go out of my way to absorb any local history that I can.
Sports history is another thing that I geek out about. No, we’re not talking about when Hulk Hogan body slammed Andre the Giant. We are talking about real, sports history. When records are broken and immortality is cemented.
I have been blessed to see several historic events in my decades of covering sports. I was in Madison when the Big Ten assist record was broken. This one, however, is one that I will remember forever.
The Game:
#2 Purdue 104, #15 Queens 71
#2 seed Purdue pulled the simultaneous molly-whomp, boat-race against #15 Queens. My media seats were directly in front of the Queens fan section. The fans were very classy, very passionate. While they may have been a little too confident coming into the game, they quickly read the writing on the wall and were extremely complimentary of the Boilermakers. I also have to admire the passionate “BOOOOM!” cheers coming from the Queens fans when their players hit 3s late in the second half, down 30+. Might as well have fun with it!
Braden Smith had fun this game, and found his shot in the process. He scored from everywhere on the floor. At the hoop. Midrange. From 3… leading the way with 26 points. The biggest part of the game, however, was early in the opening half, Braden Smith found TKR in the lane. A dribble and a quick euro-step, and history was made. Braden Smith surpassed Bobby Hurley as the all time assist leader in NCAA history.
Trey Kaufman-Renn had 25 points and 9 rebounds. Fletcher Loyer had 14 points while drilling 4 threes. 10 Boilermakers played, 9 scored, and Purdue rolled.
Break It Down:
This was a tough day for the NBA analysts who don’t watch college basketball all season, then make hot-take picks saying Purdue will lose in the first round.
Yes, Purdue has had a history of a few bad losses here and there. The inverse, however, is more frequent. Purdue normally plays to seed, and as a #2 seed, they took care of the #15 seed. They didn’t squeak by, they pounded Queens. The Boilermakers pressed their foot to the floor, and never stopped pushing.
The game itself was overshadowed. As it absolutely should have been. Braden Smith cementing himself in basketball immortality, a sure-fire Hall of Famer, is the story of Friday’s game.
Braden Smith. Boilermaker. Ever grateful.
A Look Ahead:
The Boilermakers have caught the early slot on Sunday, taking on #7 Seed Miami (12:10 PM, CBS). Miami can cause tremendous problems with their athleticism. With the strong Purdue contingent in St. Louis, you’d think that the Boilermakers might be able to rattle the Hurricanes. Not so fast my friend, Miami defeated the defacto home team #10 Mizzou just last night. I don’t think that they are going to be too rattled by the crowd.
[Editor’s Note: Depending on the outcome of the Sunday contest, with immediate travel following the game, the regularly scheduled Water Cooler Chat may be delayed on Monday.]
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