No. 24 Arizona – Trey Townsend
The 2023-24 Horizon League Player of the Year hasn’t been as effective offensively with a move to the Big 12, averaging just 8.0 PPG and 5.0 RPG after a career-year at Oakland last season. However, he’s had to battle some tough competition through the Wildcats 2-2 start including a loss at Wisconsin in which Townsend contributed a season-high 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting.
Arizona State – Alston Mason
Amidst a solid 5-1 start that saw the Sun Devils only early loss come at the hands of No. 6 Gonzaga, Mason has been the early veteran catalyst to lead Bobby Hurley’s offense. After a freshman season spent in the Big 12 with Oklahoma, Mason played the last two years at Missouri State averaging 17.5 PPG as a junior. To manage a recent neutral court win over a well-respected mid-major in Grand Canyon, Mason added 19 points and five assists to rebound from the Gonzaga loss.
No. 17 Baylor – Norchad Omier
Between stints at both Arkansas State and Miami (FL), Omeir has averaged a double-double at every stop along the way so it’s no surprise he’s doing the same for nationally ranked Baylor. Averaging 16.5 PPG and 10.0 RPG, Omier is already the Bears leading contributor and even dropped 24 points and 10 boards as Baylor edged out No. 22 St. John’s 99-98 in double-OT just last week.
BYU – Keba Keita
During this 5-0 start from the Cougars, Keita has been a double-double machine including 14 points and 10 rebounds against UC-Riverside before 11 points, 13 boards and three assists over Queens. Though he went down with an injury in BYU’s win over Idaho before missing the most recent contest against Mississippi Valley State, Keita’s early impact hasn’t gone unnoticed. With Ole Miss and Providence up next for the Cougars, a returning Keita could be critical to any success on the interior against two physical opponents.Â
