Big 12 Basketball Tournament: Kansas State, Texas Tech favored to win

Players To Watch (cont…)

Jarrett Culver – Texas Tech

Jarrett Culver is one of the most underrated players in the whole country. This is a Texas Tech team that prides themselves on the defensive end of the floor and Culver leads them on the offensive end. His ability to make tough shots is a big reason as to why the Red Raiders have been so successful over the past month or so.

This season he has taken his game to a whole nother level. He was productive last season but he didn’t need to be the guy on since they were loaded with talented guys such as Keenan Evans and Zhaire Smith. The Red Raiders were supposed to be a fringe NCAA Tournament but now he led them to something last year’s group couldn’t; a Big 12 title.

A big reason he was able to lead them to a Big 12 title was because of performances just like the one we saw on Saturday against Iowa State when he scored 31 points and absolutely took over down the stretch. He has started all 31 games this season averaging 18.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. All of that led to him being named Big 12 Player of the Year.

Desmond Bane – TCU

TCU is a bubble team and they will need big performances out of Desmond Bane to get into the NCAA Tournament. He delivered in a big way in a road win over Texas as he put up 34 points on 14-20 shooting including 6-8 from three-point range. His ability to make plays on both ends of the floor makes him such a tough matchup and when he’s playing like this TCU is capable of beating anybody.

Bane had established himself as the go-to guy for this team but he still impacts the game in so many ways. He has started all 31 games for this team averaging 15.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. They will need him to at least play up to those numbers to have a chance to compete in Kansas City.

They’ve dealt with injuries and some inconsistent play but there’s still no excuse for this team not to make the NCAA Tournament after the season they had last year. They need Bane to lead them in the Big 12 Tournament as they look to lock up an at-large or maybe even an automatic bid.

Barry Brown – Kansas State

Barry Brown is one of the best two-way players in college basketball. Not many players in the country can defend at the level that he does. His offense is a bit different than most of the elite guards we see in the country today but he still gets the job done. He does a fantastic job attacking the basket and his mid-range jumper is very tough to defend.

Brown has done a phenomenal job leading this Kansas State team. They were supposed to be this good in the preseason but it sure hasn’t been a pretty ride. They were 0-2 in Big 12 play and down by almost 20 at home against West Virginia and he gave his speech to the team and the rest is history. Sure, it isn’t necessarily that simple but since then they have looked like a completely different team, outside the Texas A&M game.

He has started all 31 games this season and has averaged 15.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 2 steals per game. He was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and rightfully so; he has taken over for this team in so many key moments. If it wasn’t for his bad performance in Allen Fieldhouse, he would’ve had a shot to win Big 12 Player of the Year. Nonetheless, Brown has been amazing this season and he has the Wildcats poised for a deep NCAA Tournament run.

Talen Horton-Tucker – Iowa State

Talen Horton-Tucker has had an amazing freshman season, which has made him an NBA prospect quickly. His ability to make plays on the offensive end is unreal has been a huge boost to this offense. It’s a team full of talented guys but Horton-Tucker has been a very pleasant surprise. He was expected to make an impact but he wasn’t thought of much as a potential one-and-done player.

Marial Shayok gets the credit for leading this Cyclones team, and rightfully so, but Horton-Tucker has been the X-factor for this team. It seems as though whenever he has a big game, the team does a lot better. His ability to create plays for himself and others to go along with his deep range makes him tough to defend.

He has started 30 of the 31 games this season but that game was in the season finale against Texas Tech but he did still play 27 minutes so no reason to worry about his playing time. He is averaging 12.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. His play has been key for this team that has struggled and times and let’s hope he holds off on the NBA for at least one more year because he could be a special college player.

Dedric Lawson – Kansas

Dedric Lawson has had a huge season at Kansas after transferring over from Memphis. He is the first player in the conference to average a double-double since Blake Griffin. The Jayhawks have been very inconsistent this season and Lawson has been able to put up big numbers despite facing many double teams when he would touch the ball.

His ability to score the ball in so many ways makes him a matchup nightmare. He developed a three-point shot as the season went along and he is one of the best players in the whole country. The Jayhawks continually struggled this season but then you look up and Lawson had nearly a 20-10 season. Sure some of those came in big losses but it is still impressive nonetheless.

He has started all 31 games and is averaging 19.2 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. His defense in the low post wasn’t great when he was matched up against physical players but he still averaged over a steal and a block per game. It was a disappointing season for Kansas but Lawson has been nothing short of spectacular. He will need to carry this team if they want to make a deep tournament run.