Busting Brackets
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NCAA Basketball: Projecting the top 25 mid-major stars for 2019-20

By Lukas Harkins

COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: The bench celebrates as Sam Merrill #5 of the Utah State Aggies looks on as they play against the Washington Huskies during the second half of the game in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: The bench celebrates as Sam Merrill #5 of the Utah State Aggies looks on as they play against the Washington Huskies during the second half of the game in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 03: Ross of the Waves reacts. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 03: Ross of the Waves reacts. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

19. Colbey Ross, Pepperdine

Guard | 6-foot-1 | 180 lbs | Junior

The first of a few non-Gonzaga WCC players to crack this list, Colbey Ross has been consistently overshadowed by the other top players in the conference in recent years. Of course, practically every player on the Gonzaga roster receives more headlines than anyone else in the conference but Jordan Ford (SMC) and Yoeli Childs (BYU) have also attracted more attention than this Pepperdine guard. Yet, that seems to only motivate Ross to put up better numbers every single season.

The 6-foot-1 guard is now returning to once again lead the way for the Waves after averaging 19.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 7.0 assists per game a season ago. He is a career 40.8% shooter from 3-point range and connected on 85.3% of his ridiculous 279 free-throw attempts last season. It is no secret that Ross is one of the most dangerous offensive threats in the WCC as he is deadly as a perimeter shooter, driver, and passer. He was named to the All-WCC team last season.

While Pepperdine is once again not expected to compete near the top of the West Coast Conference, Ross is still somebody worth discussing as a mid-major star. He is a dynamic all-around threat and can strike fear into the upper-echelon teams in the league. Ross is the type of player that can single-handedly win games on occasion and he therefore makes the Waves a prime candidate to pull off some upsets this season. The team finished 16-18 (6-10 WCC) last season.

Ross is now entering his junior campaign and there might be yet another level that he can reach. Most notably, Ross is already an elite playmaker but needs to trim down his turnovers. Simply becoming more efficient as a creator will take him (and the Waves) to the next level.

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