College Hoops Barometer: Risers & Fallers

Drake's consecutive games streak of covering the spread was finally halted by Illinois State, though the Bulldogs stayed undefeated on the season.  Drake then took out its frustrations the following game versus the Redbirds, shellacking Illinois State by 35.  The Bulldogs are now ranked and seeking just their second NCAA Tournament berth in the last 50 years.  The heyday of the Drake basketball program came between 1969-1971, when the Bulldogs went to three-straight Elite Eights, including a Final Four appearance in 1969.  Since that time, though, Drake has made the big dance just once, a 2008 appearance.

This year's version of the Bulldogs looks poised to make some noise, though they will still have to contend with Cameron Krutwig and Loyola Chicago.  That's right, the Fighting Sister Jean's are 15-3 on the season, including 10-1 in Missouri Valley Conference action.  In other words, it is far from a guarantee that Drake ends up with the automatic bid from the MVC.  These squads clash around Valentine's Day, and the Bulldogs will likely be pushed to their limits in those two contests.

Here are some names to watch as the college hoops schedule gets into the heart of conference play.

UPGRADE

Moses Wright, F/C, Georgia Tech 

The guards for the Yellow Jackets, particularly Jose Alvarado and Michael Devoe, got most of the pub prior to the season.  However, Wright has been a ferocious interior force, flexing his muscle of late.  He compiled a double-double last Tuesday at Duke with 12 rebounds and 14 points, but also dished out a career-high six assists.  He followed up that performance with 23 points and eight rebounds Saturday in an upset win versus Florida State.  Wright also stole a career-best six balls.  At Louisville on Monday, Wright threw a block party, swatting seven shots.  Wright also tallied his third double-double in three games with 15 points and 16 rebounds.  Wright played all but two minutes combined in those last three contests.  Wright is sixth in the ACC in scoring, fifth in rebounding and blocks, and third in steals.  If the Yellow Jackets weren't just 4-4 in conference play, Wright would be a legitimate candidate for ACC Player of the Year.

Drew Timme, F/C, Gonzaga 

We've danced around Timme in this column for over a month now, so it's about time to give him his due.  As the 'Zags continue to maul the opposition, Timme has been a constant, steady, unifying force.  The sophomore is averaging 18.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per tilt for the undefeated Bulldogs.  Timme has scored in double figures in all but one outing this season (nine points in a 45-point blowout over lowly Dixie State in which he played a season-low 19 minutes).  He leads the West Coach Conference in field goal percentage, hitting 62-percent of his shots from the floor.  Timme is an extremely capable passer for his size, tallying four assists apiece in three separate contests.  He also had a three-block output at Saint Mary's in the middle of January.  Gonzaga is loaded and primed for a run to the Final Four, and Timme is the anchor in the middle.

Nijel Pack, G, Kansas State 

Pack has been surging of late, and the unfortunate knee injury to teammate DaJuan Gordon should only open the door further for Pack to continue his recent ascent.  The freshman Pack poured in a career-high 26 points Saturday versus Texas A&M, albeit in a losing cause.  Pack has reached double-digits in points in six of the last seven games.  By contrast, he scored in double-figures in three of the first eight outings of his collegiate career.  Pack also has at least five dimes in eight contests during his freshman campaign.  He is 11th in the Big 12 conference in dishing.  The Wildcats aren't going anywhere this season, especially with the aforementioned Gordon expected to be sidelined for some time.  However, Kansas State has a slew of freshmen gaining experience, with Pack at the top of the list.

James Akinjo, G, Arizona 

The junior has been a one-man wrecking crew for the Wildcats over the last month or so.  In the last six games, Akinjo is averaging 18.3 points and 6.7 assists per contest.  That includes three 20-plus point performances.  Akinjo also stole five passes in a lopsided win at Oregon State.  The Georgetown transfer was Big East Freshman of the Year in 2018, but played just seven games in 2019 before moving on to Arizona.  Akinjo leads the Wildcats in points, assists and steals, and perhaps it is no surprise that they have won four of their last five games buoyed by his inspired play.  The season-ending injury to Jemarl Baker has only increased Akinjo's usage as well.

CHECK STATUS

Ty Etienne, G, Wichita State 

Etienne looks to be the next star guard for the Shockers, following in the footsteps of the likes of Ron Baker and Fred Van Vleet.  Etienne can really fill it up.  The sophomore has five games with at least 20 points, including tying his career-high with 29 points Saturday in an OT win against Central Florida.  Etienne takes nearly eight three-pointers per game.  He is also adept at getting to the foul line, averaging almost six free throws per game.  Etienne can be more of a streaky, volume scorer, though; Etienne is hitting less than 39-percent from both the field as well as three-point range.  He managed just three points in a loss at Memphis last Thursday.  Nevertheless, Etienne still leads the American Athletic Conference in scoring, and he is also second on the Shockers in assists with 2.3 dimes per tilt.  Etienne, junior Dexter Dennis and UConn transfer Alterique Gilbert form a talented trio in the backcourt for Wichita State.

Mike Miles, G, TCU 

Miles racked up a career-high 28 points at Mizzou on Saturday in a thrilling overtime loss to the Tigers.  It was the fourth time as a freshman Miles reached the 20-point plateau.  While Florida transfer RJ Nembhard has more notoriety in the backcourt, Miles has been no slouch himself.  He accumulated five rebounds, five assists, three steals and one block versus the Tigers to go along with his career best total in points.  Miles also had two games earlier this season in which he snatched nine rebounds apiece.  Of course, growing pains have also been present for the neophyte.  Miles had zero points in 28 minutes in a lopsided loss to Kansas last month.  Still, the freshman is shooting an impressive 43.5-percent from downtown, which is eighth in the Big 12.  His stock is rising in an incredibly competitive conference.

Juwan Durham, F/C, Notre Dame 

Durham showed out for the Irish in Tuesday's blowout win over Wake Forest.  The 6-foot-11 senior tallied 18 points, nine rebounds, two assists, four blocks and one steal in the 79-58 thrashing of the Demon Deacons.  Durham has been rolling of late, reaching double-figures in points in five of the last six contests.  By contrast, he registered double-digits in scoring in just two of Notre Dame's first 10 outings of the season.  He also managed the fourth double-double of his collegiate career against BC in the middle of January.  Durham is fourth in the ACC in blocks as well.  Notre Dame has won four of the last five games, and perhaps that is no surprise it has corresponded with the improved play of Durham.

Michael O'Connell, G, Stanford 

The Cardinal backcourt has been ravaged by injuries, though this has created an opportunity for the freshman O'Connell, who has now started the last seven games for Stanford.  O'Connell has played particularly well over the last three contests, averaging 10.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.3 steals per tilt.  O'Connell went from DNPs to the starting point guard position in the span of a month.  Daejon Davis and Bryce Wills remain sidelined with knee ailments, while Ziaire Williams has missed four-straight contests due to COVID-19 protocols.  The return of any of these starters, let alone all three of them, would certainly impact O'Connell's playing time.  The freshman from Long Island has averaged 33.1 minutes over the last eight contests.  For now, though, O'Connell will receive plenty of run.

DOWNGRADE

Darius Days, F, LSU 

A knee injury will sideline Days for at least a couple of weeks.  The leading rebounder for the Tigers, Days pulled down 7.9 boards per contest.  He accumulated four double-doubles prior to the injury.  The junior was also averaging 12.1 points per tilt, and was one of four members of the Tigers squad managing double-digits in points per outing.  Shareef O'Neal could be the chief beneficiary of Davis's absence. Shaq's son has yet to live up to his promise between UCLA and LSU, although certainly O'Neal's diagnosed heart condition could not have been foreseen.  Senior Josh LeBlanc will also be a candidate for extra minutes.

Justin Lewis, F, Marquette 

Lewis will be shelved in the short term due to an unspecified lower leg issue.  The freshman forward had been averaging 8.6 points and 6.2 rebounds in 16 games as a bench player for the Golden Eagles.  However, Lewis had been coming on stronger of late, managing 10.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per tilt in the four games prior to suffering the injury.  Seniors Theo John and Jamal Cain will be asked to pick up the rebounding slack with Lewis sidelined; Lewis was second on the squad in boards per tilt.  More pressure will also be placed on freshman Dawson Garcia, who leads Marquette in both points and rebounds.

Devon Daniels, G, NC State 

The Wolfpack received crushing news last week when it was determined Daniels had suffered a torn ACL versus Wake Forest.  Daniels was having a standout senior campaign prior to the injury, averaging 16.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.7 steals per contest.  Daniels led the squad in scoring and thievery, was second in dishing and third in rebounding.  Freshman Cam Hayes entered the starting lineup in place of Daniels against Syracuse, though managed just one point to go along with three rebounds and four assists.  The NC State backcourt is now incredibly thin; look for upperclassmen Braxton Beverly and Thomas Allen to attempt to fill most of the void left by Daniels.

Desi Sills, G, Arkansas 

Sills injured his shoulder Tuesday versus Mississippi State, playing just four minutes in the 61-45 triumph over the Bulldogs.  While the injury is not considered serious, Sills may be held out of Saturday's clash with Texas A&M.  It has also been a tale of two seasons for Sills, who has struggled of late.  He started the first eight games of the season, managing 12.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.5 steals per contest.  However, over the last eight games, Sills has been shuffled between the bench and starting lineup and is averaging just 8.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 0.8 steals per tilt.  A balky shoulder certainly will not help the cause for Sills.  The backcourt trio of Moses Moody, JD Notae and Jalen Tate will continue to lead the Razorbacks, whether Sills misses any time or not.