Player of the Week
Alex Karaban, UConn Huskies
What a week it was for the Huskies, as they’ve completely solidified themselves as an at-large no matter what happens in the Big East tournament and picked up their biggest win since the national championship on Thursday. Alex Karaban has had an off and on season. I distinctly remember about a month or two ago when he lost the Huskies a game off of missed free throws at the end of the game, there was a lot of talk about how he couldn’t be the Huskies best player if they wanted to win a ring. I bought into that talk. I’m now selling that stock. Karaban was almost perfect against Marquette, scoring 21 and hitting a huge 3 with about 30 seconds left to win the game. The Huskies have had an up and down year and so has Karaban. This win is pivotal not just for the team, but for Karaban as a whole. This was his signature performance this season and it simply could not have come at a better time for Dan Hurley’s team. We all know that a 4-7 seeded UConn team can win it all… now we need to see if they can do it again. Karaban averaged 19 a game with 6 rebounds and a block this week, the biggest week of his college career.
Who’s Hot?
Xavier Musketeers
They might have done it. Experts and bracket analysts have proclaimed that Xavier will be one of the last teams in the tournament… barring a terrible last two weeks of the season. This team is textbook getting hot at the right time. They’ve won 6 straight to catapult themselves to a 20-win season, their first since head coach Sean Miller’s first season at the helm in 2022. The team as a whole has been playing out of their mind over this 6-game stretch. Zach Freemantle especially has been fantastic during this stretch and all season for them. The 6’9 junior is their leading scorer and leader of the roster. He averages 17 points a game this season, his fifth as a Musketeer, and has been their guy down the stretch in these must-win games. Xavier doesn’t have the greatest history as a team in March, but I’m excited to see them play in the tournament. Remember: this is a roster that has beat both Marquette and UConn this season. They truly could make a run.
Saint John’s Red Storm
Jimmy Fallon and the Storm made a nice sea shanty tribute to their successes this season on his show this week. When you make it onto Fallon as a college basketball team before March Madness even starts, you’re doing something right. The Godfather has brought New York college hoops back to the forefront of the sport, an accomplishment that should not be overlooked. Second year teams under the tutelage of Pitino are always excellent, but the work he’s done with the players should not be overlooked. RJ Luis is a store. Zuby Ejiofor is a junkyard dog. The whole team is excellent on the boards, they average the 13th most boards per game in college basketball. They play a gritty style of ball that should (and will) translate to the grind of the tournament very well. My favorite stat about Saint John’s is their 4 losses: these losses have come by a combined SEVEN points, one of those losses from a lucky halfcourt buzzer beater early in the season. They have yet to get truly beaten. No one has figured them out yet. They are inevitable.
Who’s Not? (Recap edition)
Let’s talk about the bottom of the barrel this season, and some of the non-competitiors as well. Firstly I want to talk about Nova. The Wildcats had a good (for this decade’s standards) season and were pretty resurgent as a whole, they were able to secure 4 AP top 25 wins, more than Marquette, Creighton or Saint John’s. The main story here is obviously Eric Dixon, who will likely be a finalist for player of the year and finish the season as it’s leading scorer; the first in Nova history. Then there’s Georgetown. The Hoyas had a good season as well, the main headline in my opinion with this roster is Thomas Sorber. Sorber was a 2-star recruit and ended up being one of the best freshmen in the country this season. He had 5 double doubles this season, and a 25 point, 15 rebound outing against Providence. They’re in good shape for the future. Then you have the real bottom feeders of the regular season. DePaul was bad this year but was able to pick up a nice win against UConn a few weeks ago. A good nugget in an otherwise bad year. Seton Hall is the only team in the conference not to get a road win at all this season, however they’ll have one more shot at one against UConn this week; giving them an opportunity to end the season on a great note. Providence and Butler both had very underwhelming endings to their season after floating in the middle of the pack for most of this season.
One thing to note though… there is still the Big East tournament. Some of these could takes could age poorly, and for the sake of parity I truly hope that they do. It’s almost that time of the year… one game? Anything can happen.
Power Rankings
5. Xavier Musketeers
Xavier has made this 5 spot a pretty easy pick for me. They’re one of the hottest teams in the sport right now, let’s see what comes of this winning streak.
4. Marquette Golden Eagles
A tough loss to an Alex Karaban masterclass, however their three game losing streak a month ago to the three teams ahead of them still sours me on them for the time being. Hoping Shaka Smart can prove me wrong this year.
3. Creighton Blue Jays
The Jays had an incredible middle of the season run, however their losing record to AP top 25 teams does scare me a bit. Still on the Kalk train, though. Him and Steve Ashworth can hoop.
2. UConn Huskies
The most AP top 25 wins in the conference belongs to the Huskies. They’ve been here; they know how to win the big games even if they have a very young roster.
1. Saint John’s Red Storm
*Godfather theme song begins playing* Ride the lightning, baby.