Edey Tabbed Sporting News’ National Player of the Year – Purdue Boilermakers

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – For the first time in almost 30 years, a Purdue men’s basketball player has been named the National Player of the Year junior center Zach Edey was tabbed by The Sporting News as its recipient.

Zach Edey becomes the third Purdue men’s basketball player in school history to be named a National Player of the Year, joining Glenn Robinson (1994) and John Wooden (1932) as National Player of the Year winners. He joins Robinson as winners of the Sporting News’ top honor.

Edey is on pace to join Robinson as consensus National Player of the Year winners.

Yesterday, Edey joined an exclusive list of Boilermakers to win the Big Ten Player of the Year, joining the late Caleb Swanigan (2017), JaJuan Johnson (2011), Glenn Robinson (1994) and Steve Scheffler (1990) as winners of the league’s top honor.

Edey was also named to the Sporting News’ first-team All-America squad. Should he be named All-American by the AP, the USBWA and NABC in the next few weeks, Edey would become Purdue’s fourth consensus All-American in the last seven years, joining Swanigan (2017), Carsen Edwards (2019) and Jaden Ivey (2022).

Edey, a 7-foot, 4-inch center from Toronto, currently averages 21.9 points, 12.8 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.5 assists per game while shooting almost 60 percent from the field and nearly 75 percent from the free throw line – ranking eighth nationally in scoring and second in rebounds. He also leads the country with 23 double-doubles.

 

He is one of just two Big Ten players in the last 30 years (Michigan’s Chris Webber) to have at least 600 points, 350 rebounds and 50 blocked shots and is on pace to become the first player since Navy’s David Robinson in 1985-86 to have at least 750 points, 450 rebounds and 50 blocked shots in a season.

 

His nine games of 25 points and 10 rebounds are the most for a major-college player since the 2006-07 season behind just Luke Harangody, Blake Griffin and Kevin Durant. Lastly, he is on pace to become the first Big Ten player in over 50 years to average 22.0 points and 13.0 rebounds per game in a season.

Edey became the second player in Big Ten history and the first since Ohio State’s Gary Bradds in 1963-64 to lead the league in scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage, and he is one of just nine players (Blake Griffin, Ike Diogu, Antawn Jamison, Tim Duncan, Shaquille O’Neal, Bill Walton, Lew Alcindor, Gary Bradds) to lead a major-college conference in all three categories in NCAA history. Griffin was the last to do so in 2009.

Edey has also been named a semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award.

The No. 5-ranked Boilermakers are the top seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament in Chicago.