Zach Edey kept a stoic expression as he descended the steps from the court to leave UConn‘s championship celebration behind.
It was the start of a long walk, and Edey seemed determined to keep his composure even as there were glimpses of the emotions teeming within. He briefly put both hands on his head as he walked, then quickly put them back at his sides. He made a left turn, then clutched the front of his jersey with his right fist as he drew closer to the locker room doors.
Once he stepped through them, he pulled the front of his jersey over his face.
“Obviously, everyone shows grief in a different way,” Edey said inside.
And all he could do was mourn the end of Purdue‘s push for never-before-reached heights. His space-eating presence, his back-to-the-basket offense, his ability to use length to score over defenders — he used it all to bring the Boilermakers within 40 minutes of their first national title and a program record for wins. Yet the 7-foot-4 star and two-time Associated Press national player of the year just couldn’t push them past a dominant UConn team on its own march to history.
Edey finished with 37 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in Monday night’s 75-60 loss to the Huskies, who became the first repeat men’s champion in 17 years. He battled the entire way, including in an individual matchup against a strong post presence in the 7-2 Donovan Clingan.
But he also largely fought this one single-handedly, with only Braden Smith (12 points) reaching double figures to set the stage for that somber postgame walk that closed a stellar four-year career.
His teammates were ready to pay tribute, too.
“He’s a legend,” guard Fletcher Loyer said. “He’s accomplished what he’s accomplished because of the work he’s put in. He wasn’t handed anything. Mentally he’s very strong to be in the spotlight and have this much pressure and perform the way he’s performed.
“Many, many, many people could never do that.”
Edey entered the game averaging a national-best 24.9 points while ranking second with 12.2 rebounds, and he also ranked among the national leaders in shooting percentage (.625) and blocks (2.16). He set the program’s career scoring record. And his brilliance had helped Purdue recover from becoming only the second No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed last year (Fairleigh Dickinson) and reach its first NCAA title game since its only other appearance: a loss to John Wooden and UCLA in 1969.
Edey got off to a fast start Monday against Clingan, making 7 of…
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