It’s been years since the old-school center dominated college basketball. UCLA ran the sport for years with Lew Alcindor and Bill Walton. In the 80s, Ralph Sampson, Akeem Olajuwon, and Patrick Ewing were the most feared forces in the sport, then came Christian Laettner and Duke, but many of our most famous March Madness heroes of the 21st century are small, quick guards, who controlled the game with skill rather than size. Think Kemba Walker, Steph Curry, J.J. Redick, Jalen Brunson, or even Trey Burke and Jimmer Fredette.
However, the big man might be making a comeback. Last season, UConn’s Adama Sanogo was the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four, nearly averaging a double-double for the tournament. But the country’s most feared five-man, Zach Edey, and Purdue were bounced in the first round by No. 16 seed Farleigh Dickinson, the smallest team in the tournament, and questions prevailed about if you could truly win built around an old-school center.
This year, Edey is back, likely the back-to-back National Player of the Year, Purdue is a No. 1 seed again, and the Boilermakers just breezed through the first weekend, without ever breaking a sweat. If there was pressure on Purdue after last season’s disappointment, Matt Painter’s team certainly didn’t show it.
In the Round of 32, Purdue faced Utah State and Mountain West Player of the Year Great Osobor, a 6-foot-8 big man, but it was the 7-foot-4 Edey who was the greatest on the floor Sunday afternoon in Indianapolis.
Edey went for 23 points and 14 rebounds in a 106-67 dominant win. The senior was unstoppable, making eight of his 11 shots and seven of his eight free throws and adding three assists, three blocks, and a steal in just 27 minutes of play.
Utah State was in foul trouble from nearly the first whistle, Edey attracting so much attention that Purdue forward Trey Kaufman-Renn grabbed multiple early offensive rebounds, forcing the Aggies into fouls as they scrambled to prevent a putback attempt.
Edey has had a historic career at Purdue, but to be considered one of the greats in college basketball, he’ll need to cement his legacy this March. Step one is complete and now it’s on to Detroit for the Midwest Regional against Gonzaga, a team Purdue beat in the Maui Invitational back in November. How’d that go? Well, Edey dropped a casual 25 points with 14 boards and three blocks in a 10-point win.