Purdue’s Friday night game at Champaign had a battle between the Big Ten rivals, adrenaline rush moments and a great performance from Trey Kaufman-Renn. He went on to earn 29 points with seven rebounds against Illinois. This was also his 15th 20-point game of the season. Despite all of it, Purdue lost to Illinois.
The game ended with Purdue losing 88-80. While the loss was heartbreaking, something worse was unfolding off the court. And this time, it wasn’t about basketball. It was about a young boy who had only come to cheer for his brother.
Trey Kaufman-Renn To Take Action Against Illinois After Disheartening Moment
After the performance that Kaufman-Renn gave, the postgame talks should have ideally been about his game. Instead, the Purdue star was addressing something much bigger. He went on to talk to the media and disclosed that Illinois fans hurled racist comments at his 13-year-old brother, Jaylen, during the game.
Kaufman-Renn only heard about what happened after the game ended. His mother and girlfriend, who were seated with Jaylen near the Illinois student section, told him about the kind of statements that were thrown his brother’s way.
To add on to the already disappointing situation, Kaufman-Renn’s family also had to endure being cursed at by some members of the crowd.
Purdue star Trey Kaufman-Renn alleges racist comments were made toward his 13-year-old brother Friday in Champaign.
Purdue is planning to file a report with the Big Ten over the incident, and Illinois says it is gathering more information. https://t.co/barB1kCfvR
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 8, 2025
The Purdue forward addressed the media and spoke about how the Illinois security needs to be better.
“In no way am I saying anything about all Illinois fans, but unfortunately, the students that participated,” Kaufman-Redd said, reported CBS.
Meanwhile, Illinois is investigating the incident and has already issued an apology.
“We take such allegations seriously, and we will continue gathering information to determine appropriate action. In the meantime, we have been in touch with Purdue to apologize and express our disappointment,” said Illinois in their statement.
However, a simple apology is not the resolution that Kaufman-Renn needs.
Kaufman-Renn and Purdue are not letting the incident slide. Purdue is planning on filing a report with the Big Ten.
“The fact that my brother can be put in that situation is really unbelievable,” he said. “For a league like the Big Ten, they just need to be better about that. And let’s also not forget that Purdue is no ordinary team this season!”
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They are the underdogs that the fandom is rooting for. Despite having lost their Player of the Year Zach Edey to the NBA, they still managed a strong 21-win regular season. And Trey Kaufman-Renn is one of the reasons for this win streak.
However, now the focus is no longer on Purdue’s postseason run. It is instead on making sure something like this doesn’t happen again.
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