LOS ANGELES − Purdue basketball had to win two games to open the season without its leading returning scorer Trey Kaufman-Renn.
Now the Boilermakers enter a pivotal Tuesday night road game with their current leading scorer listed on the Big Ten availability report.
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Senior point guard Braden Smith is listed as questionable ahead of a 10 p.m. tipoff at UCLA.
Smith briefly left in the opening minutes of Saturday’s win at USC after knocking knees, then limping off the court and into the locker room.
Smith returned and played the remainder of the game after less than three minutes of game time. In 37 minutes, Smith contributed 22 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals.
Afterwards, he was seen walking out of the locker room with his left knee wrapped in ice.
More: UCLA to recognize ‘one of the best players to ever play at Purdue’
Smith leads the nation in assists per game, currently averaging 9.4 to go with 14.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.9 steals. He has led Purdue in scoring four straight games as the fourth-ranked Boilermakers look to extend their win streak to 10 and remain undefeated in the Big Ten.
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Smith has 927 career assists, needing 149 to tie former Duke guard Bobby Hurley’s NCAA career record of 1,076.
Smith has started all 128 games in his college career.
If Smith is unable to play, it likely would mean freshman Omer Mayer earns his first career start. Mayer is averaging 5.6 points and 1.5 assists in less than 15 minutes per game.
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on X and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Purdue basketball guard Braden Smith is questionable vs. UCLA
