NCAA Basketball: Sensational sophomores of 2016

5. Thomas Bryant (Indiana)

The 6-foot-10, 245-pound sophomore big man, Thomas Bryant, chose to return to Indiana, keeping the Big Ten’s top front court intact for at least one more season.

Related Story: Top freshman for 2016-17

Bryant averaged 11.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and one assist per game as a freshman. In 22.6 minutes per game, Bryant hit an impressive 68.3 percent of his shots. He even hit five of the 15 three-pointers he attempted and shot better than 70 percent from the free-throw line.

Bryant returns to Bloomington with a talented cast of players including senior forward Collin Hartman, junior sharpshooter James Blackmon Jr., and sophomore forwards Juwan Morgan and OG Anunoby. Also joining the Hoosiers in 2016 is top-50 freshman power forward De’Ron Davis.

Bryant was impressive in his freshman season at Indiana, but maybe never more so than in the Hoosiers’ Round-of-32 victory over Kentucky to advance to the Sweet 16. Bryant led the Hoosiers with 19 points and pulled down five rebounds in the win, solidifying his place on a team that looks to repeat as Big Ten champions in 2017.

Bryant only played 22 minutes per game as a freshman, but his statistics averaged out over 40 minutes would be 21 points and 10.2 rebounds. It’s safe to assume that Bryant will log closer to 30 minutes a game this season, so his per-game averages should get a huge bump up this year.

Bryant was voted third team All-Conference as a freshman. Even in a Big Ten Conference loaded with talent, it seems hard to imagine that Bryant will not compete for first team All-Conference honors this season.

Next: 4. Caleb Swanigan