This article is part of our Freshman Haze series.
Do you have the mid-January doldrums? Perhaps the feeling is that you've had enough of winter: you'd like some sun and be able to go outside without a darn jacket. It appears that the doldrums may be hitting some of the best college basketball teams. Kentucky was taken to the wire by Texas A&M (playing without its leading scorer, Jalen Jones), then Duke was ousted from the realm of the unbeaten by some team called North Carolina State. I would chalk both of these games up to midseason, winter doldrums.
This week we continue to plumb the depths of the freshmen class in pursuit of playable first-year performers. Some of these guys came into the season with a good deal of hype and others are just coming onto the national scene. Let's start in Kansas (where some people say basketball was first introduced) and fan out from there.
Kelly Oubre, guard, Kansas Jayhawks
For the first month of the season, it appeared as if the 6-foot-7 Oubre was a forgotten man. He barely got off the Jayhawks bench and did not play more than 15 minutes in the first seven games of the season. Oubre has joined the main rotation and played a season-high 35 minutes in the Jan. 4 win over UNLV. He has scored at least 20 points twice in the last six games, including 23 points with 10 rebounds in the win over Lafayette on Dec. 20. His place should continue to grow because he has excellent
Do you have the mid-January doldrums? Perhaps the feeling is that you've had enough of winter: you'd like some sun and be able to go outside without a darn jacket. It appears that the doldrums may be hitting some of the best college basketball teams. Kentucky was taken to the wire by Texas A&M (playing without its leading scorer, Jalen Jones), then Duke was ousted from the realm of the unbeaten by some team called North Carolina State. I would chalk both of these games up to midseason, winter doldrums.
This week we continue to plumb the depths of the freshmen class in pursuit of playable first-year performers. Some of these guys came into the season with a good deal of hype and others are just coming onto the national scene. Let's start in Kansas (where some people say basketball was first introduced) and fan out from there.
Kelly Oubre, guard, Kansas Jayhawks
For the first month of the season, it appeared as if the 6-foot-7 Oubre was a forgotten man. He barely got off the Jayhawks bench and did not play more than 15 minutes in the first seven games of the season. Oubre has joined the main rotation and played a season-high 35 minutes in the Jan. 4 win over UNLV. He has scored at least 20 points twice in the last six games, including 23 points with 10 rebounds in the win over Lafayette on Dec. 20. His place should continue to grow because he has excellent two-way skills.
Norense Odiase, forward, Texas Tech Red Raiders
Sticking in the Big 12, we have the 6-9 Odiase whose season has gone in the opposite direction as Oubre. He opened the season with a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double in a win over Loyola (MD) and those numbers are still his season highs. He scored in double digits in four of his next seven games, but his propensity to foul has become an increasing issue. Odiase has not scored in double digits in his last eight games and has accrued at least three fouls in six of his last eight games. He is a project worth monitoring.
Toby Hegner, forward, Creighton Bluejays
Creighton is a team that relies on three-pointers. Hegner, a 6-9 native of Berlin, Wisc., has been known to hoist a long range shot from time to time. Through 17 games, he has taken 74.6 percent of his field goals from beyond the arc and converted 36.6 percent of his three-pointers. Hegner has scored in double digits seven times, most recently in the Jan. 7 loss to DePaul with 15 points. The Bluejays have struggled, which might mean more playing time for Hegner.
Donte Grantham, forward, Clemson Tigers
In any fantasy league, player opportunity is a key. Basketball players need to get minutes before they can do anything else. Grantham, a 6-8 forward, is getting all of the playing time he can handle and has produced decent numbers. The player fans of "Downton Abbey" call "Lord" averages 10.0 points and 4.9 rebounds in 30.7 minutes a game. He is only hitting 26.6 percent of his three-pointers and takes 5.3 shots from beyond the arc a game. Perhaps if he spent more time in the paint, he'd get a few more rebounds.
Terry Larrier, guard/forward, VCU Rams
Larrier, a 6-8 swingman from the Bronx, was jewel of the VCU recruiting class. Like Grantham, he has struggled from the field and is hitting just 39.8 percent from the field and 30.9 percent on three-pointers. Larrier has already experienced the hills and valleys of a college basketball season. He scored 21 points in a Nov. 20 win over Maryland-Eastern Shore, but had a stretch of three straight scoreless games soon after. Larrier has been playing better of late with 10.5 points in his last four games.
Rokas Gustys, forward, Hofstra Pride
Gustys looked like he was in for a big freshman season with three double-digit rebounding games in his first five contests. Then he was felled by an ankle injury and did not play for the Pride for seven games in December. The 6-9 Lithuanian is back and made his presence known on Jan. 5 with 11 points, 16 rebounds and five blocks in a win over Delaware. Fouls have limited the rebounder to a combined 25 minutes in his last two games, but he should be an impact boardman going forward.
Wesley Person Jr., guard, Troy Trojans
We finish with a familiar name in the son of an NBA player. Person is a 6-3 Trojan who has not met a three-point shot that he didn't like. The good news is that he has his family's stroke and has hit 40 percent of his long-range shots. Person has scored at least 17 points six times, including a career-high 31 points in the Jan. 5 win over UT-Arlington. He has hit 13 three-pointers in his last three games. He hits 80 percent of his freebies, so opponents will have to respect his ability to drive.
