NCAA Basketball: Best rebounders from all 32 conferences for 2020-21 season

Big South – Phlandrous Fleming Jr. (Charleston Southern)

Fleming does everything for the Buccaneers, and I mean everything. He was their leading scorer, led the team in assists, led the team in rebounding, and was their best defender. He was rewarded for his defensive prowess as the conference’s defensive player of the year. Usually, when a player is that good on the defensive end, they will find themselves in the right position for many rebounds.

The senior was a force on the defensive glass securing over 220 defensive rebounds and the guard like so many others on this list took advantage of the opportunity for the increased playing time. When he saw more time on the court, he made it count and was able to increase his overall rebounding totals by 100 total and about four per game. Fleming is likely going to average close to a double-double again this year.

Big Ten – Yvan Ouedraogo (Nebraska)

It is no secret that Nebraska did not have many high points last year. With an entirely new roster and a new head coach it is not surprising. What they did have though was one of the best young players in the league. The French big man at points showed his dominance however he is still raw and still young, he played the entire year at the age of 17.

I know that Nebraska was bad, and yes Luka Garza is still in the league, but Ouedraogo had some moments that showed why the Nebraska staff was so high on him. He is a dominant rebounder and can accumulate rebounds quickly as evidenced by his game against Northwestern that saw him set a Nebraska freshman record with 19 rebounds. He also set the freshman record for rebounds in a season (203).

Ouedraogo is a very trendy pick for the breakout player of the year in the league. He is going to have a better cast around him and a year of development under his belt. He may win the rebounding title going away and continue to live up to the lofty expectations this coaching staff has for him.

Big West – Brad Greene (UC Irvine)

UC Irvine was the best rebounding team in the conference last year and they were dominant on the offensive glass all year. Their redshirt senior big man was a huge catalyst for the great rebounding numbers. The senior only averaged 7.7 rebounds over the course of the entire season but he upped that to over 9 rebounds per game in Big West play.

The Anteaters averaged 11 offensive rebounds per game which drastically changes a game and extends possessions for the best team in the Big West. Greene was the leader in this department as he averaged over two offensive rebounds per game.

Greene had a breakout season last year and what makes these numbers the most impressive is the fact that the big man did this earning just a shade over 20 minutes per game. Greene is one of the most efficient rebounders in the country. He makes the most of his minutes.

Colonial – James Butler (Drexel)

Many fans don’t watch or follow the Colonial, but they should want to start. The Colonial was home to some of the best mid-major players in the country. They had two elite scorers in Nathan Knight and Grant Riller and they also had arguably the best rebounder in the country in Butler from Drexel. Butler finished in the top five in the country in overall rebounds per game with 11.7 and he was also a force on the offensive glass as well.

Butler grabbed 387 rebounds a season ago which was the highest total at Drexel in 24 years and the second-most in school history. The big man isn’t as quite as prolific as Tshbiewe is on the offensive glass, but he is very good on that end of the floor.

The senior averaged a little over three offensive rebounds per game and usually with Butler he was skilled enough to turn that into instant offense for the Dragons. Butler is going to make a strong case this year for the top rebounder in the country.