High-level basketball teams can be built a lot of different ways — but having a great point guard to pair with an elite big has always been among the preferred formulas. The UConn Huskies had it last season when they won the championship with Tristen Newton and Adama Sanogo. In the NBA, the Denver Nuggets also had it last season when they won the title with Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic.
I can’t promise it’ll forever be a winning combination, having a strong lead guard to pair with a productive big. But it clearly still works in February 2024. And we were reminded of as much Sunday when Purdue’s great point guard (Braden Smith) and great big (Zach Edey) combined for 37 points, 19 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals in a 75-69 victory at Wisconsin that pushed the Boilermakers to 21-2.
“We have an elite point guard and we have an elite center,” said Purdue coach Matt Painter. “So when you go into a [game against us], you’ve got to gameplan for Zach Edey. It’s obvious, right? But then you’ve also got to gameplan for Braden Smith and his ability to pass because they both make other people better.”
With the Q1 win on the road, in a place where Wisconsin hadn’t lost in nearly three months, Purdue remains No. 1 in Monday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings based on the strength of its body of work. Simply put, nobody can match Purdue’s body of work.
The Boilermakers are now 15-2 in the first two quadrants with eight Quadrant 1 wins and zero losses outside of Q1. They have four more victories inside the first two quadrants than anybody else — including UConn, which is No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. Purdue also has six wins over top-25 NET teams; UConn only has two. So even though the Huskies will likely remain No. 1 in the AP poll when it updates later Monday, the truth is that Purdue has the sport’s best resume and would be the No. 1 overall seed if the NCAA Tournament started now.
That’s not meant to take away from UConn.
UConn is awesome.
But Purdue has three times as many wins over top-25 NET teams as UConn and four more wins inside the first two quadrants. Moreover, Purdue is ahead of UConn in the NET, BPI, KPI and also at KenPom.com and BartTorvik.com. And, for what it’s worth, Purdue, not UConn, is currently the favorite to win the 2024 NCAA Tournament at +700, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
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