Freshman Haze: Ranking the Top Frosh, 15-21

The end of the year brings all kinds of pop culture countdowns. You get the best movies, albums and games of the year. The end of the college basketball season is in sight with just a month left of the regular season. It is time for the annual Freshman Haze countdown. I take all of the players, throw them and their stats into a spreadsheet, press sort, and – voila – a ranking! Rankings are based on averages of points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and turnovers. I then added the percentages (field goal, free throw and 3-point). There is no adjustment for competition. This system always ends up with some surprises. Let's look at the lower third of the top 21.

21. Kamar Baldwin, guard, Butler Bulldogs

In Big East play, Baldwin has the been the Bulldogs most consistent offensive player. He has scored at least nine points in his last nine games and averaged 14.2 points over that span. Baldwin is helped in the rankings by being an above-average ball hawk (1.7 steals) and not turning the ball over (1.3 turnovers). He also excels in efficiency with 50.3 percent from the field, 42.6 percent on 3-pointers, and 83.9 percent from the line. Although Butler has lost consecutive home games against Georgetown and Seton Hall, the team is well within the NCAA tournament bubble. Baldwin could have some moments in March.

20. De'Anthony Melton, guard, USC Trojans

The rankings approve of all-around play, so a player like the 6-foot-4 Melton can make the top 20 despite scoring just 9.5 points. The Trojans came into the season with some questions in the backcourt, but it looks like they have an answer in Melton. While he is not a great scorer, he does pretty much everything else. Melton excels on defense with 1.9 steals and 1.3 blocks. He adds 5.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists and his 1.7 turnovers are not too shabby. In Saturday's win over Washington State, Melton attempted just one shot and finished with five points. He was coming off a big line – 16 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and six steals – in the win over Washington. Look for Melton to develop more offensive consistency in future seasons.

19. Marcus LoVett, guard, St. John's Red Storm

We heard about LoVett in 2015-16 when he was a redshirt while he concentrated on his academics. The 6-0 guard has made his mark on the Red Storm and helped them be more competitive in coach Chris Mullin's second season with the Johnnies. LoVett scored at least 19 points in his first four games. He missed three December games with a sprained ankle. Big East play has not intimidated LoVett and he has provided 19.8 points in his last five games. For the season, LoVett is providing 17.2 points on 48.2 percent from the field, 3.8 assists, and 3.2 rebounds. He and Shamorie Ponds could lead the Red Storm back to prominence.

18. Eli Pemberton, guard, Hofstra Pride

Despite the presence of established players such as center Rokas Gustys, point guard Deron Powers, and sophomore guard Justin Wright-Foreman, the Pride has not been competitive in CAA play. The 6-4 Pemberton should be the cherry on top and he may lead Hofstra after this year. He is an excellent 3-point shooter who is making 42.9 percent of his long-range shots to provide 13.3 points. Pemberton is also solid from the field (45.9 percent) and the free-throw line (83.2 percent). He has topped 20 points six times, but three of those occurrences happened in his first five games. Pemberton may get more facilitation duties next year after Powers moves on.

17. Miyi Oni, guard, Yale Bulldogs

I like the fact that players from the Ivy League can appear next to Tier 1 players on this list. Oni is a 6-6 guard who leads the Bulldogs with 12.9 points and 7.1 rebounds. He has helped Yale win its last four conference games by averaging 16.0 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. The team suffered its only loss in conference play against undefeated Princeton on Jan. 14 and Oni was just 1-of-10 from the field on his way to five points. He may get a measure of revenge when the Bulldogs host the Tigers on Feb. 17 in what could the de facto game for the top seed in the new Ivy League tournament.

16. Miles Bridges, guard, Michigan State Spartans

Things looked dire for the Spartans as they faced an incredibly tough nonconference schedule and dropped five games before Big 10 play started. Then the 6-7 Bridges sprained his ankle and missed seven games. The team seemed to stabilize with six wins in those games and the Spartans have been competitive in Big 10 games. Bridges leads the freshman-laden squad with 16.3 points and 8.3 rebounds. He is hitting half of his field goals and 41.3 percent of his 3-pointers, but loses some standing by converting just 61.4 percent of his free-throws. He also nets 2.8 turnovers. The athletic guard could head to the NBA next season, but coach Tom Izzo's team will be a tough out in the Big Dance once again.

15. Kobi McEwen, guard, Utah State Aggies

This list has been dominated by guards. Smaller players usually have to adjust less to the play in college basketball, but there are some bigs in the top 14. Is that a spoiler? We'll see. McEwen has been a find for the Aggies and combines with forward Jalen Moore (16.1 points) to give USU a nice one-two scoring punch. McEwen is providing 15.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. He is knocking down 43.5 percent of his 3-pointers. Conference play has not slowed the 6-4 Canadian. Although Utah State has gone just 4-7, McEwen has produced 17.8 points and four 20-point games against Mountain West competition.