The reigning Naismith Player of the Year just added another award to the trophy case on Wednesday afternoon.
Purdue center Zach Edey dropped 28 points and 15 rebounds and won tournament MVP, leading No. 2 Purdue to a 78-75 win over No. 4 Marquette in the Maui Invitational Championship game.
“It’s big time,” Edey said in a postgame interview about winning Purdue’s first Maui Invitational in school history. “I’ve been watching this tournament for three years. It’s a special feeling. We want to keep building off this.”
Edey averaged 25.3 points and 13 rebounds per game in Purdue’s three tournament wins over No. 11 Gonzaga, No. 7 Tennessee, and Marquette.
Edey was dominant all game Wednesday. Marquette center Oso Ighodaro had a strong showing through two games in the Maui Invitational but had a hard time keeping Edey out of the paint.
With the Golden Eagles down just one with 23 seconds left in the game, Purdue guard Braden Smith missed a jumper with the shot clock running down. But Marquette failed to box out Edey as he easily caught the miss and put it back up for the basket to give Purdue a 78-75 lead. Edey’s putback proved to be crucial as the Boilermakers escaped with a three-point win.
Edey’s performance only helps his case to become the first player to win back-to-back Naismith awards since Ralph Sampson won the award three times in a row from 1981-1983. Edey was named the Big 10 Preseason Player of the Year and was a unanimous Big 10 Preseason First Team selection.
After testing NBA waters in May, Edey decided to return to Purdue for his senior season. Another Player of the Year type of season could push Edey to be selected in next year’s draft.
Purdue’s win should also catapult them to become the best team in the country. No. 1 Kansas lost to Marquette on Tuesday which is most likely going to drop them a few spots in the rankings.
Purdue is scheduled to play Texas Southern on Nov. 28 at home for its next game.
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