Southland Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

10. Demarcus Sharp

Sharp had himself quite the voyage at the collegiate level, though it culminated in great success in the Southland. This 6’3 point guard from Charleston, Missouri spent a year apiece at Moberly Area CC and Colby CC before finding his D1 footing at Missouri State back in 2020. After two decent seasons with the Bears, though he’d play just eight games as a senior, he’d follow assistant Corey Gipson to Northwestern State. This past year was Gipson’s first as a collegiate head coach and Sharp was a major factor in the Demons’ success.

Sharp’s fifth collegiate season saw him average 19.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.0 assists for Northwestern State, becoming the leading scorer for the Demons in a successful 22-win campaign. He had a pair of 30-point efforts early in the season before dropping 40 points on eventual conference champion Texas A&M-Corpus Christi late in the year. Sharp would actually score 63 points combined in two Southland Tournament games, though the Demons would fall short.

For an incredible season at Northwestern State, Sharp was named the Southland Player of the Year and earned a place on the league’s All-Defense team. He was the conference’s top scorer and was among the Top 5 in assists, steals, and blocks during an electric campaign for the Demons. Unfortunately, this would be his lone season in the Southland as he’s followed Gipson to Austin Peay for what will be his final year of eligibility next season.