College Hoops Barometer: Poythress Bit by Injury Bug

Diamond Stone. That is not the name of a high-end jewelry store, nor a luxury masonry business. No, Diamond Stone is a freshman center for the highly ranked Maryland Terrapins. In fact, the Terps have climbed to the No. 2 spot in the rankings this week. As an aside, Villanova is No. 1 this week, marking the sixth squad to spend time in the top slot this season. A wild and whacky NCAA Tournament looks to be on the horizon.

Back to Stone, though. You wouldn't call him a Diamond in the rough. He was a McDonald's All-American coming out of high school, and one of the top recruits in the country. Diamond signed with Maryland instead of local Wisconsin, a Stone's throw away from his hometown of Milwaukee. He is 6-foot-10, 255, and a behemoth in the post. Stone flexed his muscle most recently at Nebraska on Feb. 3, nearly collecting a triple-double in a 70-65 win over Nebraska. Stone tallied 16 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high eight rejections for the game. Protecting the interior is not his only talent, though, as Stone racked up 39 points against Penn State just prior to the New York. Stone shot a staggering 25 free throws in that contest, hitting 19. Diamond happens to be a sharp foul shooter, connecting on 78.8 percent from the charity stripe. Diamond Stone appears to be just scratching the surface of his potential, a scary thought for the opposition as March Madness approaches.

Here are the rest of the movers and shakers in this edition of the College Hoops Barometer.

UPGRADE

Gary Payton II, G, Oregon State - The progeny of "The Glove" exhibits many of the talents of his famous father. The younger Payton is a more than capable disher with a specialization in thievery. While no one is anointing the younger version as a future NBA Hall of Famer just yet, GPII is already a better rebounder than his Dad. The junior Payton has averaged at least 7.5 rebounds in each of the last two seasons for the Beavers, despite being 6-3. He has six games this year with double-digit rebounds. It has been well documented that the elder Payton was a notorious trash talker, a trait not inherited by his son despite bearing the same name. Payton the younger lets his play on the court do the talking, including a near triple-double Jan. 24 against USC followed by a seven-steal performance in his last game against Colorado. This Payton may be quiet, but his game speaks very loudly.

Kelan Martin, F, Butler - Martin often gets overlooked on a squad with sharpshooter Kellen Dunham and senior leader Roosevelt Jones. However, it has been the sophomore Martin recently who has taken his game to new heights. Martin had a stretch of three-straight double-doubles in the middle of January. He followed that up on Feb. 2 with a career-high 35 points against Georgetown. Martin flashed his all-around offensive game, not only canning three-pointers but drawing contact and getting to the free-throw line. In fact, he hit 12-of-13 free throws in arguably his best game as a collegian against the Hoyas. Over the last seven games, Martin is averaging 21 points and 7.7 rebounds. By contrast, he averaged 13.5 points and 5.6 boards through the first 16 games of the season. Martin has clearly been surging of late for the Bulldogs.

Nigel Hayes, F, Wisconsin - The mass exodus from last year's team that lost in the Championship Game left Hayes as the primary option for the Badgers, after playing more of a complementary role behind Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker as a sophomore. Hayes has responded by scoring in double figures in all but one game this season. He has been particularly potent over his last five games, averaging 21.8 points over that span. Perhaps not surprisingly, the Badgers won all five of those contests, including victories over ranked opponents in Michigan State and Indiana. Hayes has also proven a sound rebounder, including a stretch earlier this year of three consecutive double-doubles. The Badgers may not be ticketed for the Final Four this season, but Hayes is doing everything he can to keep Wisconsin relevant and tournament-worthy.

Jaylen Adams, G, St. Bonaventure - Adams and teammate Marcus Posley make a formidable backcourt duo for the Bonnies, though the ascension of Adams has been the bigger surprise this season. Adams has enjoyed a superb stretch lately, averaging 21.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists. Adams punctuated his recent hot streak with a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer against Saint Louis on Sunday. Overall, he has improved by leaps and bounds from just one year ago. As a freshman, he shot 38.6 percent from the field, 32.4 percent from long distance and 78.3 percent from the foul line. As a sophomore, Adams is hitting 46.2 percent of his shots from the floor, 44.5 percent from three-point range and 87.9 percent from the charity stripe. He is also the leading distributer for St. Bonaventure. Adams was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week, as the Bonnies cruised to a three-game win streak.

CHECK STATUS

Jawun Evans, G, Oklahoma State - The leading scorer for the Cowboys missed last Saturday's game against Iowa State due to a shoulder injury. Evans has had some growing pains for the subpar Cowboys, though he has also had some magnificent high points. Evans nearly led a monumental upset against Oklahoma on Jan. 13, pouring in 42 points in a narrow 74-72 loss to the Sooners. He also collected seven rebounds and six assists in that game. Evans has notched 10 games with at least five rebounds, and 11 games with at least five assists. On the year, the freshman is averaging 12.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.9 assists.

Stephen Zimmerman, F/C, UNLV - The big man for the Rebels is considered a possible lottery pick in this June's NBA draft, should he decide to take his talents to the next level following one year in Sin City. Zimmerman's 7-0 but has the skill set of a small forward. Still, the southpaw keeps his game largely inside the three-point line, accumulating six double-doubles this season. However, Zimmerman sprained his left knee in Sunday's Double OT loss to Fresno State, and is questionable for action this week. The interior of the Rebels will suffer tremendously without Zimmerman, as UNLV is already without its other top rebounder, Ben Carter, who tore his ACL and is lost for the year.

Alex Poythress, F, Kentucky - While the Wildcats have become almost synonymous with "One and Done" players, Poythress is the exception. The senior has spent four years at Kentucky, albeit in more of a complementary role. Still, he is enjoying his best season as a senior, replacing the curiously and surprisingly ineffective freshman Skal Labissiere. Poythress is averaging 10 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest, while shooting a career-high 59.7 percent from the field. He has been bitten by the injury bug as well, though. Poythress, who missed Kentucky's last two games with a knee injury, is set to undergo a minor medical procedure and is expected to be out out 10 to 14 days.

Malique Trent, G, TCU - Trent has had a bit of a roller coaster season for the Horned Frogs, showing a slight inability to stay on the court. He was suspended for three games in January for violating team rules, then sprained his wrist in a blowout loss to Kansas. The loss of their leading scorer and assist man would be devastating for the mediocre Horned Frogs. Chauncey Collins and Brandon Parrish would be asked to shoulder more of the scoring and distributing loads should Trent be forced to miss any time.

DOWNGRADE

Jameel McKay, F, Iowa State - The high-flying Cyclones may have suffered a crushing blow, as McKay has been suspended indefinitely. Although the exact details resulting in the suspension have not been released, McKay indicated it was practice related, and that he was not in any legal trouble. The "indefinite" label is often shed once the player exhibits that he has learned from his transgressions. As a result, McKay could end up missing just one game, likely for some sort of insubordination. However, should McKay ride the pine for a lengthier period of times, the Cyclones would be forced to come to grips with losing their leading rebounder and a double-double threat each and every time he steps on the floor.

Shavon Shields, F, Nebraska - Shields suffered a scary head injury in Saturday's win over Rutgers, and had to be taken from the court on a stretcher. Shields appeared to hit his head on the floor, and briefly lost consciousness. The health of Shields is paramount to his return to the basketball court, and thankfully a CT Scan came back negative, and he was released from the hospital on the same date. Shields is second on the squad in both scoring and rebounding, managing 15.7 points and five rebounds per contest.

Kamau Stokes, G, Kansas State - The freshman guard likely will miss the remainder of his inaugural campaign with the Wildcats after undergoing knee surgery. The diminutive guard averaged the third most minutes per game for K-State, parlaying that court time into 9.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Following his rehab, Stokes will need to work on his shooting stroke. Stokes shot just 36.5 percent from the field this year, including 34 percent from downtown. However, it is worth noting that he did connect on six three-pointers en route to a career-high 24 points against North Carolina earlier this season. In other words, the potential is there, but consistency is the objective.

Kareem Canty, G, Auburn - It's been a trying season for Coach Bruce Pearl and the rest of the Tigers, as the lack of success on the court has led to issues off the hardwood. Already senior Cinmeon Bowers has been suspended for attitude problems, allegedly stemming from the team's poor record. Canty allegedly had a verbal altercation with coaches at practice last week, resulting in him being suspended and sidelined for last Saturday's loss at Georgia. Canty is the leading scorer and disher for the Tigers, averaging 18.3 points and 5.3 dimes per outing. The Marshall transfer will be almost impossible to replace, though the Tigers were riding a four-game losing streak even before his suspension. Oddly enough, coach Pearl stated that the aforementioned Bowers, a forward/center, would replace Canty at point guard. An interesting storyline to watch, as Bowers is not Magic Johnson.