Busting Brackets
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Big 12 Basketball questions: POY picks, top surprises and disappointments

By Tristan Freeman

Nov 7, 2022; Waco, Texas, USA; Baylor Bears guard Keyonte George (1) and forward Flo Thamba (0) react after a play against the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils during the first half at Ferrell Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 7, 2022; Waco, Texas, USA; Baylor Bears guard Keyonte George (1) and forward Flo Thamba (0) react after a play against the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils during the first half at Ferrell Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-USA TODAY Sports /
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Big 12 Basketball
Big 12 Basketball Kansas Jayhawks forward Jalen Wilson Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Who is your prediction for Conference Player of the Year? Possible runner-up?

Watson

Jalen Wilson is averaging 20.6 points and 8.4 rebounds on a Kansas team that just won the national championship and will likely be ranked No. 2 in the country in January 9th’s AP poll. It’s generally hard to argue against the best player on the best team in the league, especially when that player is a national champion who leads the conference in scoring and is second in rebounding. For a runner-up, I’ll go with TCU’s Mike Miles Jr. The Horned Frogs took a bad loss to Northwestern State earlier in the season, but that was without Miles on the floor.

TCU is undefeated with Miles in the lineup and has looked like one of the five to 10 best teams in the county over the last week with wins over Texas Tech and at Baylor. Miles ranks second in the Big 12 in points per game at 19.9 on a .612 true shooting percentage.

Burgess

The POY in the Big 12 is going to sound pretty cliche, but right now it’s Jalen Wilson. The junior has done everything for the Jayhawks in their quest to repeat. The runner-up race is a bit more interesting but I’m going to stay in the state of Kansas and go with Keyontae Johnson and what he has done in his return to the court. He’s leading the Wildcats in scoring and rebounding while torching the nets at over 55% and is the team’s leading three-point shooter.

Rosenberg

Jalen Wilson of Kansas is the best overall player in the conference right now and looks like he’ll earn Big 12 player of the year. He’s averaging close to a double-double on the season at 20.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. This award is his to lose.

Now for runner-up, I’ll have to go with Markquis Nowell of Kansas State. The damage he’s done to opposing defenses is astonishing. He is 11th in the nation and second in the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio with 3.32 only trailing Dajuan Harris Jr. of Kansas. If you’re a fan of a smaller guard who can play offense as well as anyone while also disrupting the passing lanes and forcing turnovers, then he should be your No. 1 pick. He’s averaging 17 points, 8.9 assists, and 2.2 steals per game. If I was a voter, he’d be my pick if the season ended today.

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