This article is part of our Freshman Haze series.
With the country held in the grasp of a cold spell, I figured it was time to shed some warmth in my own special way: via the Freshman Haze. Therefore, this week we start in Miami and we end in Miami. In fact, other than a quick trip to Utah for a legacy act, we mostly stay in the sun belt (even if we do not feature any players from the Sun Belt). We will also mostly feature guards since they move so fast and may generate some more heat.
Bruce Brown, guard, Miami Hurricanes
Here's the deal: if you get a triple-double (yes, even you), you get on the Haze's radar. The 6-foot-5 Brown accomplished that feat Dec. 6 against South Carolina State with 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. The facilitating was the exception to the norm, but Brown did have six more dimes on Dec. 16 against Florida Atlantic. He has scored in double digits in seven of his last eight games and is averaging 10.4 points to go along with 6.9 rebounds. Brown shares the backcourt with senior Davon Reed and junior Ja'Quan Newton, so he may put up bigger numbers in future years.
Charlie Moore, guard, California Golden Bears
The Golden Bears have started 9-2 despite upperclassmen Jabari Bird and Ivan Rabb missing games. How have they stayed afloat? 1. They have beaten a lot of so-so teams and 2. Moore has become a fine scorer. The 6-0 guard came up huge in the
With the country held in the grasp of a cold spell, I figured it was time to shed some warmth in my own special way: via the Freshman Haze. Therefore, this week we start in Miami and we end in Miami. In fact, other than a quick trip to Utah for a legacy act, we mostly stay in the sun belt (even if we do not feature any players from the Sun Belt). We will also mostly feature guards since they move so fast and may generate some more heat.
Bruce Brown, guard, Miami Hurricanes
Here's the deal: if you get a triple-double (yes, even you), you get on the Haze's radar. The 6-foot-5 Brown accomplished that feat Dec. 6 against South Carolina State with 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. The facilitating was the exception to the norm, but Brown did have six more dimes on Dec. 16 against Florida Atlantic. He has scored in double digits in seven of his last eight games and is averaging 10.4 points to go along with 6.9 rebounds. Brown shares the backcourt with senior Davon Reed and junior Ja'Quan Newton, so he may put up bigger numbers in future years.
Charlie Moore, guard, California Golden Bears
The Golden Bears have started 9-2 despite upperclassmen Jabari Bird and Ivan Rabb missing games. How have they stayed afloat? 1. They have beaten a lot of so-so teams and 2. Moore has become a fine scorer. The 6-0 guard came up huge in the second game of the season with a season-high 38 points in the Nov. 16 win over UC-Irvine. He has scored at least 20 points twice more and is averaging 17.1 points. Like all good scorers, Moore gets his points in a variety of ways. He is hitting 45.1 percent of his 3-pointers and gets to the line 5.4 times per game (converting 79.7 percent).
Mustapha Heron, guard, Auburn Tigers
Coach Bruce Pearl has long been known as a master recruiter. It looks like he has set the future of the Tiger program with this year's class. The team is led by redshirt freshman forward Daniel Purifoy, but the 6-5 Heron is doing plenty of damage. He has scored in double digits in every game and topped out with 24 points to go along with 10 boards in the Nov. 17 win over Eastern Kentucky. Heron is averaging 16.1 points and 6.2 rebounds to help Auburn start the season at 8-2. Like Moore, Heron can hit a 3-pointer (40 percent from long range) and gets to the line frequently (7.5 free-throw attempts, 76 percent conversion rate).
Josh Okogie, guard, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Until Malik Monk went off for 47 points over the weekend against North Carolina, the aforementioned Moore and Okogie held the season standard for freshman scoring with 38 points. The 6-4 Okogie poured in 38 points in the Nov. 26 win over Tulane. He was 12-of-20 from the field and 13-of-18 from the line. He has not eclipsed 18 points in any of his other games, but Okogie is averaging 15.1 points to go with 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals. The Yellow Jackets are likely to be in the basement of the ACC, but players like Okogie can make coach Josh Pastner hopeful for next year.
T.J. Haws, guard, BYU Cougars
Eagle-eyed readers may notice that it seems like the name and college look familiar here. TJ Haws is the younger brother of four-year BYU star Tyler, who averaged better than 20 points over his final three seasons as a Cougar (from 2012 to 2015). The younger Haws opened his career with 20 points, but has not topped that total since. He suffered through an early shooting slump in November and was just 1-of-12 on 3-pointers over a three-game span. Haws has rebounded with four straight double-digit scoring games and is now averaging 12.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.0 assists. Like all productive freshmen, Haws is being force fed minutes, playing 30.6 per game.
Jailyn Ingram, forward, Florida Atlantic Owls
The move to Conference USA has not been kind to the Owls. In its first two seasons after moving from the Sun Belt, the team under coach Michael Curry's leadership has only won seven conference games. Help is on the way in the person of the 6-7 Ingram (who was a two-sport star in high school as a wide receiver). He opened the season slowly with just six points in his first three games, then turned on the juice. Ingram put together five straight double-digit scoring games, including 21 points in the Nov. 29 loss to UT-Martin. Before losing by 20 points to Brown's Hurricanes last Friday, the Owls had been playing close with two one-point losses. Ingram is averaging 10.2 points and 4.6 rebounds.
Michael Weathers, guard, Miami (OH) RedHawks
We head to the MAC for the final freshman. This Miami is not very balmy and the temperature is at 16°F at writing time. While the weather may not be pleasant, the play of Weathers provides heat. The 6-2 guard is leading the RedHawks with 19.5 points and 4.8 assists to go with 5.2 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 1.8 blocks. It would be tempting to call Weathers unique, but he is not that. His twin brother, Marcus, is also on the team and leads the squad with 5.4 rebounds while scoring 8.6 points. Michael opened the season with 19 points or more in six of his first seven games, but has averaged just 13.5 points in the last four. When things are rolling for Weathers, he attacks the basket and has attempted 12 or more free throws five times.
