2014 NCAA Tournament: Terran Petteway a breakout star ready to supernova

Mar 14, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Terran Petteway (5) sits on the bench dejected after losing 71-67 to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten college basketball tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

For the next few days you are going to read about possible Cinderellas, snubs and sneaky soon-to-be superstars. Which is great. Although, those usually come at you in slideshow format. However, we felt that a certain Nebraska Cornhuskers stud needed his own post so people will be fully prepared for the onslaught of awesomeness that is Terran Petteway.

Many a college basketball fan doesn’t know of Mr. Petteway’s exploits. That tends to happen when you play for a historically ho-hum basketball program. Now that the program is on the rise, Tim Miles is quickly becoming a coaching darling and the national spotlight is about to hit the school, though, Petteway has the opportunity to become a household name in just a short time.

The weird thing about that, though, is the fact that Terran Petteway has played all year like a guy who deserved more eyeballs glued to the picture-box when he was in action. That’s not just because he is a lottery-level like talent for the NBA Draft or that his 18.1 points shows that he is a quality bucket-maker, it’s because he might be one of the five best players in the entire nation.

Wait…what?!

Just because you haven’t heard about him all year or the team name on his jersey doesn’t resonate with you as does some of the traditional powers, does not mean Petteway doesn’t belong in that discussion. While it is (and has been) easy to go through the same player narrative talk all year — Jabari, Doug, Wiggins, Nick Johnson (who is still somehow underrated himself), etc. — Petteway has snuck through and become a somewhat hidden gem.

As of right now, however, perfect storm is brewing to make him a national hero. Yeah, like a gosh slam super hero even.

On the 21st (Friday), Nebraska will face the Baylor Bears at 12:40 pm Eastern Standard Time. Which means you need to mark your calendar. Why is that date and time so important? Because Nebraska is going to play the role of underdog against a hot Baylor team. A game that the Cornhuskers are not supposed to win. Which really means they have a really good chance to win, because NCAA Tournament basketball.

That’s going to be the game in which a national audience will get to see and appreciate all that is Terran Petteway. His ability to score buckets in bunches, his underrated assist game and a versatility that makes him an always interesting NBA commodity.

All of that jazz is great. But what you really need to pay attention to, for the sake of entertainment purposes at least, is that he has the potential to go bonkers with the buckets at any moment — and we mean bonkers.

Petteway scored over 20 points eight times this year, over 30 twice and will be relied upon to be the main manufacturer of baskets during Nebraska’s entire tournament run.

Here is what I am trying to say without going all hyperbolic on you.

The right mixture is in place for Petteway to become one of the NCAA Tournament’s true breakout stars. Not just a good player who finally gets his due, but the type that transcends college basketball and becomes somewhat of a household name (think Steph Curry in Davidson’s first NCAA Tournament run with him).

I could be wrong. Nebraska would need to win more than just one game and even beating Baylor in the opener will be tough, but I wouldn’t bet more money on any other under-appreciated player in this NCAA Tournament to breakout from the pack more than Terran Petteway.

Oh, and we didn’t even mention his endearingly fantastic facial and cranium hair…

Now you know, before you knew, unless you already did, but get some because Terran Petteway.