LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Sometimes, Carsen Edwards continues shooting because only he can carry Purdue to victory. Sometimes, the star guard keeps firing because he is due to break out.

And sometimes — as in his career-high 42-point outing, featuring nine 3-pointers, in a second-round blowout of defending national champion Villanova — teammates get out of the way simply because they want to enjoy the show.

“It’s insane. Because you feel like you’re just a witness,” center Matt Haarms said. “He pulls up and it goes in, and then by the third one, you’re like, ‘Do I rebound?’ On the sixth one, you’re like, ‘No, I definitely don’t rebound.’ ”

The epic performance only heightened the belief that Edwards can lead the third-seeded Boilermakers (25-9) to their first Elite Eight in 19 years with a win over second-seeded Tennessee (31-5) in a Midwest Region semifinal Thursday, and first Final Four since 1980. As the only returning starter from last year’s Sweet 16 team, the 6-foot-1 junior led Purdue to a share of the Big Ten title despite being the only player to average more than 12 points (23.6), and remains the rare player left in NCAA Tournament who can single-handedly end any team’s season.

“Really, from the time that he comes across half court, you better know where he is,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. “There’s a lot that goes into guarding guys like that where you don’t want to lose them. … He’s so tough to guard because he’s got the green light. He can shoot it deep. I think that Purdue is a team that really understands their roles and his teammates understand what he can do for them.

“He is a very, very explosive guy. You know he’s going to get his shots. And so you’ve got to be on edge. They do a great job in their offense, running him off double, triple screen, their dribble hand-off actions. He does a great job himself moving without the ball.”

Even when Edwards is off — like when the junior was bothered by a back injury, and shot 31.3 percent from the field in the 10 games prior to the second round — the alternative feels inevitable.

“I kind of look at it like a hitter in baseball. You take a .300 hitter that is struggling, and the percentages are going to weigh out. He’s got some hits coming his way,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said. “He didn’t shoot well for about a month there. He had a tough stretch. But he’s tough, and he’s got a short memory, which is great for a guy that scores the ball a lot.”

On Wednesday, Edwards showed little interest in the defining moment of his career. He’s convinced himself — and Purdue — the best is still to come.

“I honestly don’t want to reflect on it now,” Edwards said. “It was a good experience, and had some shots fall for me … but I just want to focus on the next game coming up and doing the right things to help my team win.”