NCAA Basketball: Analyzing 10 sophomore breakout candidates entering 2024-25 season
The transition from freshman year to sophomore year is well-documented in the college basketball industry. Many players show tremendous promise and upside during their freshman campaign but struggle to assemble consistency on both ends. Of course, this is a natural progression among first-year players, who now have a year under their belt entering the 2024-25 men’s college basketball season.
As November moves inchingly close with practice right around the corner, many second-year players have their eyes set on a breakout sophomore season. Whether they will take on an expanded role or looking to develop -- each situation is different. However, the goal remains the same for each player and each team: a breakout sophomore campaign.
With that in mind, look at 10 second-year sophomore breakout players entering the 2024-25 season.
Jeremy Fears, Michigan State Spartans
It wasn’t the season Jeremy Fears had hoped for, suffering a season-ending gunshot wound to his leg right before Christmas. Despite the frightening situation, Fears worked his way toward recovery and is expected to be a part of the Michigan State Spartans’ three-game trip to Spain this month, according to Robert Bondy of TheSpartansWire.
Despite averaging only 3.5 PPG and 3.5 AP3 in nearly 15 MPG, Fears served a crucial reserve role in only 12 games played last season. With Tyson Walker (graduation) and AJ Hoggard (Vanderbilt) departing, the backcourt is open for Fears to step in and make his mark. Fears, alongside Jaden Akins and Tre Holloman, will share backcourt minutes but it’s Fears -- who has that “true” PG feel to his game -- that will be the difference-maker for the Spartans in 2024-25 as a breakout candidate. Fears is the name to watch out for in East Lansing in the backcourt.
Omaha Biliew, Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Omaha Biliew, the heralded five-star recruit from just an hour south of Ames, did not have the season many had expected in his lone season at Iowa State. In only 20 games played, Biliew averaged just 2.4 PPG and 1.3 RPG in under eight minutes per game. For the majority of Big 12 play, he fell out of the rotation entirely.
Why was this the case? In short, he was on a Cyclone team that went nine deep, won 29 games, and was among the top defensive teams in the country. Even with the upside like Biliew, there was room for Biliew to grow as a player.
Now off to Winston Salem, the fit for Biliew couldn’t be better. Steve Forbes, who has shown his masterclass development of guards (Alondes Williams and Hunter Sallis), will now test his development with the 6-foot-8 forward. Given the jump many have taken under Forbes, Biliew fits the bill as a second-year breakout player under Wake Forest’s efficient offensive system.