MI State vs Purdue: Braden Smith becomes 5th Division I player with 1,000 career assists

Purdue point guard Braden Smith etched his name into college basketball history at Mackey Arena on Thursday night, becoming just the fifth player in Division I history to record 1,000 career assists. The milestone came during a marquee matchup against No. 13 Michigan State, with Smith delivering his sixth assist of the game midway through the first half.


Smith, who had already broken the Big Ten career assist record earlier this season by surpassing Cassius Winston, entered the matchup with 994 career assists and needed only six more to become just the fifth player in Division I history to reach the 1,000-assist mark. According to Sports Illustrated, only four other players have topped 1,000 assists in Division I history: Bobby Hurley of Duke (1,076), Chris Corchiani of NC State (1,038), Ed Cota of North Carolina (1,030), and Jason Brickman of Long Island (1,007).



With three regular-season games left and the postseason still to come, Smith remains within striking distance of the all-time assist record held by Bobby Hurley, which he established during his career at Duke from 1989 to 1993.

Smith made an immediate impact, assisting on the eighth-ranked 'Purdue Boilermakers' opening basket - a 3-pointer by C.J. Cox. His historic assist arrived with 6:43 remaining before halftime, setting up a Trey Kaufman-Renn basket that counted after a goaltending call. Entering the game, Smith was averaging an impressive 8.7 assists per contest, underlining his role as the engine of Purdue’s offense.

The 6-foot senior continues to add to a decorated resume. According to AP, he was a consensus first-team All-American last season and captured the Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top collegiate point guard.