Purdue Basketball: Braden Smith shakes off injury, plays

A day after Purdue basketball fans held their collective breath after sophomore point guard Braden Smith went down with a calf injury, Smith suited up and played Saturday against Wisconsin.

However, he was on a very short leash prior to the tip, according to Purdue basketball coach Matt Painter.

Painter said he told members of his staff to keep an eye on Smith during warm-ups and let him know if his sophomore favored his leg or didn’t look right.

“I said, ‘Hey, you’ve got to be honest, if he’s favoring it or he’s not 100 percent, he doesn’t need to go. They all said, ‘Not at all,’ and he was fine. Obviously, he went out there and did some good things,” Painter told the media after Purdue’s 76-75 loss to Wisconsin Saturday in the Big Ten Tournament.

“He’s a tough guy.”

While Painter had questions about Smith, Purdue basketball big man Zach Edey did not, recalling a story of Smith playing a portion of his high school season at Westfield with a broken foot.

“He’s a tough guy. I’ve never questioned if he’s gonna play, if he’s going to be fine. In high school, he played like half a season with a broken foot. He can go through pain. I have trust in him, whatever he’s going through, he’s going to get it figured out to be able to play,” Edey said.

In 36 minutes, Smith ended the game against the Badgers with seven points, three rebounds and 10 assists.

But, perhaps, most importantly, he played.

“It’s fine. I played the game today, so it feels good,” Smith said.

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