Edwards Named NCAA.com National Player of the Week
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue sophomore Carsen Edwards was named NCAA.com’s March Madness National Player of the Week after leading the ninth-ranked Boilermakers to a pair of wins during the week.
Edwards lifted Purdue to wins over Illinois (93-86) and Minnesota (84-60) to help the Boilermakers enter the Big Ten Tournament on a three-game winning streak.
“Edwards has vaulted himself into the position of possible Big Ten player of the year and first-team all-American status. He also may just be the national player of the year, or at least could make a strong case,” NCAA.com’s Andy Katz wrote.
Edwards, a 6-foot, 1-inch guard from Atascocita, Texas, averaged 29.0 points, 5.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game, while shooting 17-of-31 from the field, 7-of-14 from 3-point range and 17-of-20 from the free throw line during the two-game stint.
In Thursday’s 93-86 win over Illinois, he scored a career-high 40 points, including 25 in the decisive second half, while adding five rebounds, three assists and two steals. The 40 points were the most for a sophomore since Robinson had 42 against Wisconsin on Feb. 13, 1993, and the most for a Purdue guard since Rick Mount had 61 points against Iowa on Feb. 28, 1970. He was just three points shy of the sophomore single-game scoring record (43), set by Dave Schellhase and Terry Dischinger, and his 40 points were the second most for a Big Ten player in a league game in the last 20 years (Illinois’ Brandon Paul — 43 points).
Then in Sunday’s win over Minnesota, he scored 18 points with seven assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocked shots in the 84-60 win over the Golden Gophers.
Edwards has scored in double figures in 14 straight games and now has 923 career points in 66 career games. For the season, he leads the Boilermakers in scoring at 18.2 points per game while adding 3.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists. He is shooting 47.4 percent from the field, 40.5 percent from 3-point range and 82.5 percent from the free throw line.
Edwards and the 26-5 Boilermakers will be the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament, facing either Indiana, Minnesota or Rutgers on Friday at 9 p.m. ET, in Madison Square Garden.
