Purdue G Braden Smith questionable to play vs. Wisconsin

Field Level Media|published: Sat 16th March, 12:08 2024

Mar 15, 2024; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) works around Michigan State Spartans guard Tre Holloman (5) during the first half at Target Center. credits: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

Purdue's Braden Smith is questionable to play in his team's Big Ten semifinal game against Wisconsin on Saturday in Minneapolis, per the conference injury report.

CBS Sports, however, reported that coach Matt Painter said while Smith isn't at 100 percent, he will start.

Smith, an All-Big Ten first-team point guard, sustained a calf strain with 12:26 remaining in the top-seeded Boilermakers' 67-62 win over eighth-seeded Michigan State on Friday.

Smith initially was holding his right knee before being taken to the locker room.

He returned to the game with 8:32 remaining but played tentatively down the stretch, finishing with five points and eight assists.

Purdue coach Matt Painter said Friday that Smith would be re-examined.

"He pulled a calf muscle or got hit in the calf or something like that," Painter said after the game. "I thought he wasn't the same. He wasn't as aggressive. ... Sometimes those things the next day you're perfectly fine, and sometimes they get progressively worse. So we'll just kind of see what's going on and see how he's feeling."

Smith averaged 12.7 points, a team-leading 7.2 assists and 5.8 rebounds in 32 games (all starts) this season.

—Field Level Media

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