One reason the Big 12 has exceeded preseason expectations has to do with conference point guards, hyped plenty, performing even better than projected.
Numbers guru Ken Pomeroy of kenpom.com uses a statistical formula for his player-of-the-year rankings and has four point guards among his top 10. Three of them play in the Big 12 and one is not West Virginia’s Jevon Carter, who just outplayed Oklahoma freshman phenom Trae Young in West Virginia’s victory at home against the Sooners on Saturday.
A look at the kenpom.com top 10 POY standings:
| Player | PPG | RPG | APG |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 – Trae Young (Oklahoma, Fr. PG) |
29.4 | 3.9 | 10.2 |
| 2 – Jock Landale Saint Mary’s, Sr. C |
21.3 | 10.2 | 1.6 |
| 3 – Bonzie Colson Notre Dame, Sr. PF |
21.4 | 10.4 | 1.1 |
| 4 – Keenan Evans Texas Tech, Sr. PG |
17.2 | 2.9 | 3.6 |
| 5 – Marvin Bagley Duke, Fr. C |
22.5 | 11.5 | 1.5 |
| 6 – Jalen Brunson Villanova, Jr. PG |
19.4 | 3.3 | 5.2 |
| 7 – Deandre Ayton Arizona, Fr. C |
20.4 | 11.6 | 1.6 |
| 8 – Mikal Bridges Villanova, Jr. SF |
17.8 | 5.6 | 2.1 |
| 9 – Devonte’ Graham Kansas, Sr. PG |
18.6 | 3.6 | 7.4 |
| 10 – Keita Bates-Diop Ohio State, Jr. PF |
20.0 | 8.8 | 1.4 |
