Most in college basketball are familiar with the exploits of Dee Brown, Raymond Felton, J.J. Reddick, Chris Paul, and Hakim Warrick, but there are many other stars in college basketball who are leading their teams to outstanding seasons and a hopeful berth in the NCAA tournament in March.
Many of these players have flown under the radar all season and others have had their brief moments in the spotlight. Although not as well-known as the players from marquee teams and/or conferences, most of the under-recognized players are worth the price of admission as much as their more famous brethren.
Illinois is off to its best start in school history. Ask the causal college basketball fan to name a player on the Fighting Illini and most will name Dee Brown or Deron Williams. The third member of the Illini's three-guard attack is Luther Head. Head is quietly leading the Illini is scoring and has been their leading scorer in 11 games, including a stretch of five consecutive in mid-January. Despite more publicity for his teammates, Head might wind up with the Silver Basketball that signifies the Big 10's best player. He is putting up 16.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg, and 4.1 apg.
The West Coast Conference has been dominated by Gonzaga since they announced their presence on the national stage in 1999 with their run to the Elite Eight. St. Mary's made a name for themselves early in the season with their run to the semifinals of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden. The Gales have been led by the dynamic duo of Paul Marigney and Daniel Kickert. Marigney is putting up 14.8 ppg and 1.6 steals. He is also shooting 78 percent from the line and 41.1 percent from three-point range. Kickert has put up 14.5 ppg and 6.9 rpg.
In conference play, both have upped their averages. Marigney is posting 17.4 in the West Coast and Kickert has blistered the WCC for 17.0 ppg in conference play. Marigney announced his presence on the national scene when he scorched Gonzaga for 30 in an 89-81 Gaels victory. Kickert had 28 points, 9 rebounds, and hit 12-13 from the free throw line in the Gales' big win over Bay Area rival San Francisco to keep their lead in the race the WCC title. The Gaels have a rematch with Gonzaga on February 4th.
Andrew Bogut of Utah is well-known to those that follow college basketball closely. Ask a casual fan to name the best centers in college basketball this year, and it's likely that many wouldn't know who Bogut was. The seven-foot Aussie is putting up 20.0 points and 12.2 rebounds per game. He has also posted 14 double-doubles and has been named the Mountain West Player of the Week four times. Many wrote off Utah after Rick Majerus was forced to retire because of poor health. All the Utes have done in Ray Giacoletti's first season is post a 17-3 overall record and a Mountain West leading 5-0 record as of January 31.
Miami has been a big surprise in their first season under Frank Haith and their inaugural season in the ACC. The Hurricanes currently sit in sixth place with a 4-4 record in the conference and 13-6 overall, ahead of last year's national runner-up Georgia Tech and perennial NCAA tournament participant NC State. The leader for the 'Canes, Guillermo Diaz, has been one of the ACC's biggest clutch performers. He put up 30 at North Carolina and had 26 and shot 5-9 from three-point range in a 67-66 win against NC State Diaz is averaging 18.4 ppg and is shooting 40.4 percent from three point range.
After starting only 6-4 in the non-conference part of their schedule, Stanford has had a big resurgence in the Pac-10. In Trent Johnson's first season, not much was expected of the Cardinal after losing head coach Mike Montgomery and a bevy of stars. After coming off the bench a year ago playing behind Josh Childress and Matt Lottich, Dan Grunfeld has helped put the Cardinal back on the map. Grunfeld is averaging 18.2 ppg, after only posting 3.4 ppg last season. He hit for a season high 29 in the Cardinal's 87-76 upset win over Arizona.
When looking at the Big East at the beginning of the season, most predicted the UConn, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse would be the class of the conference as they had been for the last few years. In its last season before moving to the ACC, Boston College has stamped its presence on the Big East. The Eagles are 18-0 entering February. Despite their lofty record, BC moved into the top five this week for the first time this week.
They are as anonymous as a team with an 18-0 record can get. Junior power forward Craig Smith is leading BC is scoring (18.7 ppg) and rebounding (8.7 rpg). He has posted double-doubles in four games and has reached double figures in scoring in 43 consecutive games, including all 18 this season. He also shoots 71 percent from the free throw line and posts 1.4 steals per game. He posted season-highs of 30 points and 14 rebounds against Duquesne.
With less than six weeks remaining until Selection Sunday, these players will go a long way towards determining if their team's name is called. They are all players to watch throughout February and into March.
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