With the shot clock running out and Purdue's offense struggling, the ball ended up in familiar hands. With just under two seconds left on the shot clock, Braden Smith caught the ball four feet beyond the three point line above the break.


Smith didn't have time to dribble or think about the history he was about to make. Smith just had time to shoot and the shot was pure, splashing through the net and giving Purdue a 14-12 lead against Minnesota.


The three-pointer was a precursor of things to come, but also a reminder of what had already happened. The three gave Smith 1,000 points for his career.


The junior wouldn't be done there, flirting with a triple-double on his way to leading Purdue to an 81-61 drubbing of the Golden Gophers.

Despite a Minnesota defense that was forced to double Smith and leave shooters open, Purdue couldn't take advantage of an out matched Golden Gophers team in the first half.


Minnesota got out to a 4-0 start, looking like a team primed for its first upset and Big Ten win of the season. But Purdue responded immediately with Trey Kaufman-Renn getting on the board with an offensive rebound and put back and then Fletcher Loyer starting off a perfect first half by hitting a mid-range jumper to tie it at four.


Smith would then find Caleb Furst for a lay up as part of an 8-0 response by Purdue.

With Camden Heide and Myles Colvin struggling, Purdue's head coach Matt Painter moved to his fifth starting lineup of the young season.


Out went Heide and Colvin, in came senior Caleb Furst to play next to Trey Kaufman-Renn inside and in came true freshman C.J. Cox for his first career start.

Purdue took a 28-27 lead into the first half. It didn't take long for the Boilers to take over in the second half.


Camden Heide got Purdue going in the second half when Myles Colvin found Heide on the perimeter and a three-point attempt bounced off the front of the rim before hitting the glass and bouncing in.

Trey Kaufman-Renn would throw in two more baskets a few possessions later and then Braden Smith got going. Smith hit a pull up three to give Purdue a 52-43. Caleb Furst added a circus tip-in to take an 11 point lead and Fletcher Loyer nailed a three to go up 57-45.


With Purdue in the bonus, Furst and Loyer combined for six free throw attempts and Purdue would start to pull away when Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer caught fire, combining for 8 second half three-pointers.

The new starting lineup didn't get in the way of Purdue's big three from dominating this one.


Trey Kaufman-Renn struggled with foul trouble but still managed to be a handful in the short roll for Purdue. TKR had 17 points in 27 minutes and found his rhythm in the second half, scoring 9 points on 4 of 5 shooting from the floor.


Speaking of catching a rhythm late, Smith, who missed his first four shots before reaching his 1,000 career mark, didn't hold back on adding to that total in the second half. Smith had 5 threes for the game, but had four of them in the second half on his way to 20 points. Smith flirted, once again, with a triple-double and secured another double-double with points and assists. His final line was 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 10 assists.


Fletcher Loyer on the other hand started hot and finished hot. Loyer was perfect in the first half, knocking down mid-range jumpers off the dribble and finishing at the rim. In the second half, Loyer got his long ball working. Loyer scored a game-high 24 points, including four three-pointers in the second half. He was an efficient 8 of 10 from the floor. Loyer couldn't miss, including hitting a hail mary throw towards the hoop at the end of the game that hit glass and then went through the rim.

Furst, Purdue's lone scholarship senior, was moved back into the starting lineup for the first time this eason. He responded. Furst had 11 points and 6 rebounds in 30 minutes of action. Those are all season-high numbers on the year. Furst continues to be something of Purdue's best energy guy and his ability to rim protect and move on defense, along with rebounding the ball, has provided a big spark over the last handful of games for Painter.