Player of the Week
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State
Smart posted his 2nd dominating performance of the season against great competition. He went for 25 pts 9 reb 3 ast and 5 steals and was a huge part of ending Kansas’ 33 game home win streak, and was also their first loss in conference this year. Smart has been up and down this year, but in big games he really shines, and that’s something I look forward to seeing come tourney time. His dreadful 4-for-21 shooting performance on Wednesday against Baylor illustrates his lack of shooting ability. We’ll give him a mulligan for that considering the Cowboys still won the game and he was helped the team in so many other areas with 8 boards, 7 assists, 4 steals and no turnovers. While it’s unlikely he will get serious consideration for the #1 overall pick due to his shooting deficiencies, he could end up one of the best players to come out of this year’s draft due to his amazing determination.
Who’s Hot
Will Clyburn, Iowa State
It looks like Clyburn has finally adjusted to his surroundings at ISU because he’s looking like a true star right now for the Cyclones. Over his past four games he’s averaging 21.3 ppg on 54% from the floor, 40% from deep and getting to the line almost 7 times per game. That stretch includes three conference wins, one over then #11 ranked KSU and a two point loss to Oklahoma State. Clyburn can be the guy who really makes this a dangerous Cyclone team with all-around scoring ability, as well as his length and rebounding. He’s certainly helping his case as far as the draft is concerned.
Who’s Not
Kyan Anderson, TCU
While it’s not all his fault, Anderson has played very poorly during this 8 game skid that TCU is on right now. It hurts that Garlon Green has missed some time and that TCU is new to the conference, but Anderson has just been off for a while now. During the losing streak he’s averaging 8.3 ppg on a mind-boggling 28.9% from the floor. It would be somewhat acceptable if he was playing his role at PG well but he’s averaging 2.8 apg during that stretch (compared to 3.7 before it) and has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 0.85 (compared to 1.26 pre-losing streak). Anderson is a good player and only a sophomore but he is without a doubt the coldest player in the conference right now.
Top 5 Shooters
1. Tyrus McGee: The senior from ISU leads the conference in made 3pt shots, and he’s hitting them at a deadly 43% clip on six attempts per game. While his free throw shooting is down this year to about 79%, he hit 83% last year and nearly 40% from deep.
2. Ben McLemore: Percentage wise, McLemore is tops in the Big 12 in 3pt shooting, and 2nd in FT shooting with awesome percentages of 45.5% and 87.1% respectively. I’m not quite ready to say he’s the best shooter in the entire conference, but he’s already proved me wrong this season.
3. Brady Heslip: This is a huge down-year for Heslip, but he’s still a guy I would never want to leave open. He’s still hitting nearly 40% of his 3pt attempts, and I’m more inclined to believe he’s normally closer to last year’s 92.1 FT% then this year’s 76.5%.
4. Phil Forte:He’s been overshadowed by Smart but Forte is another freshman gem for Oklahoma State. He’s 2nd in the conference in made 3pt shots, and shooting a conference leading 90% from the charity stripe. I can only imagine what he’ll be doing as a junior and senior.
5. Pierre Jackson: Jackson tends to chuck up a lot of ill-advised shots, but in terms of true shooting ability he’s still very good. He’s down from last year but still hitting 36% from deep and nearly 80% from the line while having to be the main focus of the defense and trying to bail Baylor out when needed.
Conference Standings
1. Kansas 19-2 (7-1)
2. Kansas State 18-4 (7-2)
3. Iowa State 16-6 (6-3)
4. Oklahoma State 15-5 (5-3)
5. Baylor 14-7 (5-3)
6. Oklahoma 14-7 (5-4)
7. West Virginia 11-11 (4-5)
8. Texas 10-12 (2-7)
7. Texas Tech 9-11 (2-7)
10. TCU 9-12 (0-8)