Edwards’ versatility helps drive Purdue

WEST LAFAYETTE, IND. » Purdue’s Vincent Edwards never had a choice when it came to playing basketball. It was in his blood. His father, Bill, played professionally in Europe for more than a decade. His mother, Glennetta Patton, played the game in college and helped coach one of Edwards’ youth teams. His older brothers, Bill Jr. and Darius, each played Division I ball and even today, family get-togethers sometimes consist of pick-up games at a gym in his hometown of Middletown, Ohio.

All the competition, the jawing, the instruction and the good-natured ribbing from parents and siblings alike taught Edwards what he needed to do to become a success on the court.

“They bullied me, they roughed me up, they pushed me physically and mentally and my mom did it, too,” he said. “But my parents taught me that if you could do a lot of things, it would be hard to keep you off the floor. I just always wanted to play.”

Getting Edwards off the court seems be getting harder by the day.

He’s a serious gym rat by nature and a fan of the game. He knows the history of the sport and his father’s legacy as Wright State’s career scoring and rebounding leader.

For now, the Boilermakers’ senior forward owns family bragging rights.

He has appeared in and won more NCAA Tournament games than everyone else combined. He’s the only one to reach the Sweet