NCAA Basketball: 5 mid-major players who should be on your radar in 2021-22

Grant Sherfield | Guard | 6’2″| Junior

2020-21 stats: 18.6 points, 6.1 assists, and 3.7 rebounds per game 

Desmond Cambridge Jr. | Guard | 6’4″| Senior

2020-21 stats: 16.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game

Nevada may not have performed at the level they wanted to last year, but it would preposterous to say that they weren’t any positives that the Wolf Pack took away from the 2020-21 season. For starters, Nevada was able to end NCAA Tournament talk surrounding Boise State by beating the Broncos twice in the regular and once in the postseason.

Oh, and more importantly, the Wolf Pack established that Grant Sherfield and Desmond Cambridge Jr. make up one of the most underrated backcourts in the country. The dynamic duo didn’t get a chance to take the floor together in 2019-20, but based on how well they gelled from start to finish in 2020-21, I’m sure that many individuals were convinced that they had been terrorizing opposing Mountain West backcourts for 2-3 years.

Sherfield led the way with 18.6 points per game while Cambridge finished 2nd on the team in scoring with 16.3 points per game. Steve Alford clearly wanted Sherfield and Cambridge to generate a majority of the Wolf Pack’s points night in and night out, because the two guards finished 1st and second on the squad in percentage of shots taken while on the floor (Cambridge-32%, Sherfield-28.6%).

Whenever I get a chance to turn on my TV and watch Grant Sherfield in action, I am always blown away by his ability to make defenders pay for failing to play him straight up. What do I mean when I say that? Well, many defenders like to cheat while defending ball screens nowadays by jumping to their right or left (depending on which side the screen is coming from), but defenders who employ that tactic against Sherfield rarely succeed.

Instead of allowing his defenders to dictate what he does next, Sherfield likes to take control by completing a brisk in-and-out dribble move before crossing over and navigating toward the middle of the floor. Once this occurs, you should expect the 6’2″ guard to play fundamentally sound basketball in the paint and keep his head up 24/7.

Yes, I understand that converting basic layups around the rim won’t get spectators out of their seats, but if you are able to net 18.6 points and draw 5.6 fouls per contest (which ranked 99th nationally), I think it’s safe to say that your style of play is helping you obtain positive results at the basket.

When opposing big men decide to step up and prevent him from scoring in the paint, I can assure you that Sherfield will feel more inclined to throw effortless bounce passes to his teammates rather than fancy no-look dimes. How did that work out for Sherfield in 2020-21? Well, I don’t know about you, but I would feel pretty good about finishing the season with an assist rate that was worthy of a top 10 national ranking (39.0 assist rate- 7th in the country).

It’s also important to note that Sherfield displayed some potential as a three-pointer shooter last year (he shot 36.7% from deep), which is why you should expect him to rise up over defenders and launch threes with confidence this season when the time is right.

Speaking of confidence, let’s take some time to discuss Sherfield’s partner in crime, Desmond Cambridge Jr., who always seems to have a “next play” sort of mentality when he plays the game of basketball. If you want to be successful at any level of basketball, you must practice having short term memory when things don’t go your way.

Last season, Cambridge did had moments where he missed 2 or 3 consecutive shots, but did that deter him from moving without the ball and looking for his shot going forward? Absolutely not, because the 6’4″ guard is a natural scorer who understands that it would be foolish to allow a couple of misfired jumpers to destroy his confidence.

The area of Cambridge’s game that impresses me the most is his outstanding footwork on the perimeter. Just about every guard wants to reach the basket and make plays at the rim as soon as they catch the ball, but many of them struggle to get their footwork in order before they complete straight-line drives.

Luckily, Cambridge knows that referees won’t hesitate to blow their whistles when players shuffle their feet and explode to the basket without putting the ball on the floor first, which is why having happy feet is something that Cambridge avoids at all costs. When Cambridge finally arrives at the rim, helpside defenders quickly discover that they are dealing with a plus athlete who won’t shy away from contact at the rim.

While many of Cambridge’s opponents seemed to respect his offensive game last year, they didn’t appear to think much of him as a post defender. For whatever reason, they believed that they could overpower him in the low post and score at ease whenever they pleased. However, Cambridge demonstrated that he’s more than capable of holding his ground and forcing his opponents to shoot over one of his outstretched arms a few feet away from the basket.

So, as you now know, the sky is the limit for the Wolf Pack’s 1-2 punch and if Nevada has NCAA Tournament aspirations this season, Sherfield and Cambridge will need to excel as late-game closers (The Wolf Pack lost several contests by 10 points or less last year). Look for the two lethal bucket getters to take the Mountain West Conference by storm again this season and guide Nevada to a successful 2021-22 campaign.