College Hoops Barometer: Risers & Fallers

Washington State guard Myles Rice provides a feel-good story for the 2023-2024 campaign.  Rice redshirted his first season with the Cougars, then was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma in September, 2022.  He missed the entire subsequent year for the Cougars as he received treatment.  Finally cancer-free, Rice is still technically a freshman but has not played like someone who basically sat out of game action for two-straight seasons.  Rice is averaging 15.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists per tilt for Wazzu.  Rice collected 21 points and nine rebounds Saturday in a victory over Oregon, pushing the Washington State win-streak to five games.  This recent surge has vaulted the Cougars into second place in the conference, just one game behind current league leader Arizona.  With Rice at the helm, Washington State could be primed for its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2008.

Let's take a look at some other players in the headlines in this edition of the College Hoops Barometer.

UPGRADE

Judah Mintz, G, Syracuse – Mintz played all 40 minutes of 'Cuse's 86-79 upset victory over North Carolina on Tuesday.  Mintz hit the 20-point mark for the 12th time this season with a game-high 25 points.  Mintz is currently fourth in the ACC in scoring.  He also accumulated five rebounds, four assists and three steals in the triumph.  Mintz is third in the conference in both dishing and thievery as well.  The Orange are 16-9 on the season, including 7-7 in an extremely competitive ACC, so Tuesday's win could be vital to Syracuse's NCAA Tournament hopes.  Mintz will continue to be the driving force for the Orange.

Keshon Gilbert, G, Iowa State – The UNLV transfer has formed a potent backcourt combo with Tamin Lipsey for the Cyclones.  Gilbert is averaging career bests of 13.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per contest.  Iowa State has won six of its last seven contests; during that time period, Gilbert is averaging more than 15 points and almost six rebounds per clash.  Gilbert has also racked up a combined 12 steals over that span.  Iowa State already beat Kansas and has a crucial road matchup with Houston next weekend, who currently sits tied with the Cyclones atop the Big 12 standings.

Ishmael Leggett, G, Pittsburgh – While Blake Hinson and Carlton Carrington get most of the pub for the Panthers, the Rhode Island transfer Leggett has been crucial to the squad's success.  The Panthers are riding a four-game winning streak, including most recently beating a ranked Virginia team that had not lost in a month.  Leggett impacting that contest in a variety of ways, tallying 13 points, eight rebounds, two assists and three steals.  He hit two treys, connected on 7-of-8 free-throws and grabbed four offensive rebounds.  In sum during the four-game streak, Leggett is managing 13.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2.0 steals, despite coming off the bench for all contests.  The surge gets the Panthers back in contention for a tourney berth.

CHECK STATUS

Langston Love, G, Baylor – Love has missed the last two games for the Bears due to an undisclosed issue.  Love has operated as Baylor's sixth-man essentially this season, though is averaging double figures in points while playing fairly heavy minutes at times for a ranked squad.  Love poured in a season-high 24 points at the end of January in a win at UCF.  He also recorded a double-double in the previous game with 11 points and 10 rebounds during a narrow loss to TCU.  It remains to be seen why Love has been sidelined over these last two contests, but his instant offense off the bench will be missed if he fails to return to the court in short order.

Olivier Nkamhoua, F, Michigan – The transfer from Tennessee has started every game this season for the Wolverines, though he has hit a bit of a wall of late.  Over the first 18 games this year, Nkamhoua averaged 17.0 points per tilt.  He scored in double figures in 17 of 18 contests, narrowly missing with nine points in an early-season triumph over St. John's.  By contrast, over the last seven contests, Nkamhoua is managing just 9.6 points per clash.  He has been held in single digits in scoring in four of those seven contests, shooting just 41.5-percent from the floor overall.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, Michigan has lost six of those seven contests.  Michigan is going to miss the big dance for the second-straight season after missing the NCAA Tournament just once in the previous 10 years.

Henry Coleman, F, Texas A&M – Coleman is another baller whose production has tailed off as the season has worn on.  He started the season off with a bang, collecting double-doubles in three of the first four contests for the Aggies.  He briefly missed time due to an ankle injury, but then returned to collect two more double-doubles before the end of the calendar year.  In the last 10 contests, though, Coleman is managing just 6.7 points and 3.9 rebounds.  He missed another game for undisclosed reasons during this stretch, while also sifting to the bench after starting the first 15 games he appeared in for A&M.  Coleman has gone from potential superstar to reserve piece in the span of a couple of months.

DOWNGRADE

Ty Berry, G, Northwestern – The senior will be lost for the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery for a torn meniscus.  Berry had increased his scoring, rebounding and assists in each of his campaigns at Northwestern, culminating in averages of 11.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists as a senior prior to the injury.  Berry had started all 23 games he appeared in for the Wildcats, so his absence puts a damper on Northwestern's March Madness hopes.  Still, sophomore Nick Martinelli started in Berry's place Sunday against Penn State and contributed 11 points, eight rebounds, two assists and one block in his first collegiate start.  More importantly, the Wildcats defeated the Nittany Lions by a score of 68-63.  Expect Martinelli to continue starting in Berry's spot as the Wildcats continue their march towards March.

JoVon McClanahan, G, Hawaii – The senior and one of the leaders of the Rainbow Warriors has missed the last two games due to a shoulder injury.  McClanahan is averaging 10.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per contest, figures that are on par with his numbers from a season ago.  Hawaii has won both games McClanahan has been sidelined, using a combination of reserves freshman Tom Beattie and sophomore Kody Williams, as well as star forward Bernardo da Silva, as facilitators.  However, McClanahan averages double as many assists as any other player on the team, so the squad would certainly like to get its floor general back for the stretch run.

Sean East, G, Missouri – The leading scorer for the Tigers has missed the last two games due to a knee ailment.  When healthy, East is averaging 15.6 points per tilt to go along with 3.5 rebounds and 4.1 dimes per contest.  Not only does East lead the squad in dishing, but he is fifth in the entire SEC in assists.  Mizzou has been trounced in consecutive games without the services of its offensive catalyst, though admittedly the Tigers were not having much team success even with East in the lineup.  Mizzou is limping towards the finish line this season, currently on an 11-game losing streak.  The Tigers have yet to win a conference game this season, and the absence of East for an extended period of time will not help their cause.