Sometimes stats lie right to your face. It doesn't matter how advanced the metrics, stories use words not numbers for a reason.

If you just watched the numbers, you'd think that Purdue became a new team as the calendar flipped to 2025.


In the 2024 part of this season, Purdue was 9-4 on the season with convincing losses to Auburn, Penn State, and Marquette while losing a close one to Texas A&M. Purdue was a roughly top-80 defense that didn't force turnovers, didn't defend at the rim, and was barely hanging on to its top-25 ranking.

Braden Smith was good, but maybe not as great as anticipated. Purdue's rotation was in flux. Its defense was a weakness that looked like it'd hold it back from any March aspirations.


But in 2025, Purdue has gone 7-1 while becoming a turnover forcing machine on the defensive end while Braden Smith has resumed his spot on top of the Big Ten Player of the Year Award list.

According to Bart Torvik, in fact, Purdue has been the second best team in the country since 2025 started. Kenpom has Smith as the fourth player in the country and Trey Kaufman-Renn just three spots behind him.


Sometimes, numbers can help tell a story, but the origin of this team's story started in June before they start keeping stats.