Mid-major college basketball stars to know for conference tournament season

Here are 20 mid-major college basketball stars to know as conference tournaments heat up around the country.

Enough about Cooper Flagg! These are the smaller school stars you will learn to love during college basketball’s conference tournament season.

PJ Haggerty, SO, G, Memphis (American)

You aren’t going to find another player on this list with legitimate All-American aspirations. The most impactful transfer in college basketball this season currently leads the Tigers in scoring (21.4 ppg), assists (3.8 apg) and steals (1.9 spg).

Bennett Stirtz, JR, G, Drake (Missouri Valley)

Drake heads to Arch Madness with a sparkling 27-3 record and Stirtz is one of the biggest reasons why. In his first season in Division-I, the junior guard is leading the Bulldogs in points (18.9), assists (5.9) and steals (2.2) per game. He’s also gotten better as the season has gone on, averaging 21.4 points on 57.8 percent shooting from the floor since Jan. 29.

Marquel Sutton, SR, G, Omaha (Summit League)

The recently crowned Summit League Player of the Year got to where he is the old-fashioned way. Sutton has never played for another Division-I school and has steadily improved in each of his seasons with the Mavericks.

Sutton ranked second among Summit League scorers, averaging 21.3 ppg in league games, and was third in rebounding at 7.7 rpg. He scored 20 or more points in 10 of Omaha’s last 11 conference games, and scored a career-high 36 on Feb. 22 in a win over South Dakota that clinched Omaha’s first ever regular season title.

Jaron Pierre Jr., SR, G, Jacksonville State (Conference USA)

After redshirting last season at Wichita State, Pierre made the move to Jacksonville State and promptly became Conference USA’s most explosive offensive threat. He enters the postseason ranked fourth in the nation in scoring at 21.8 ppg. Pierre scored 30 points or more three times in the month of February, including a 36-point performance against Middle Tennessee where he set a new school record with 10 made three-pointers.

Pierre’s strong play this season has drawn the attention from more than a handful of NBA scouts.

Bez Mbeng, SR, G, Yale (Ivy League)

No player in college basketball has been as consistent a stat-stuffer as the 6’4 Mbeng has been this season. His three triple-doubles are the most of any player in Division-I. Two of those triple-doubles came over Yale’s final three games of the regular season.

Augustas Marciulionis, SR, G, Saint Mary’s (West Coast)

Marciulionis became the first Saint Mary’s player since Steve Gray in 1962-63 and the only Gael besides Gray to repeat as West Coast Conference Player of the Year. The senior floor general is averaging 14.4 points and 6.1 assists per game, while also leading Saint Mary’s with 43 steals. He enters the postseason ranked 11th in the country in assists with 189.

Tyler Tejada, SO, G, Towson (Coastal Athletic Association)

The silky smooth 6’9 sophomore plays about as aesthetically pleasing a brand of basketball as you’re going to see at this level.

Last season’s Coastal Athletic Association Rookie of the Year has drawn the attention of NBA scouts and power conference coaches alike this season.

Quimari Peterson, SR, G, East Tennessee State (Southern)

After hardly seeing the court as a freshman at Indiana State in 2021-22, Peterson has starred at East Tennessee State the past two seasons. He has taken his game to another level this year, averaging 19.5 ppg and scoring in double figures in every game but one for the Bucs.

Adam Clark, SO, G, Merrimack (Metro Atlantic Athletic)

The diminutive Clark — who goes by “Budd” — has been a virtual lock to score 20 points every time he’s stepped on the court this season. He enters the postseason leading the MAAC in scoring (20.1 ppg) and ranking third in assists (5.7 apg).

Ryan Nembhard, SR, G, Gonzaga (West Coast)

The nation’s leader in assists by a wide margin (10.0 apg), Nembhard was named first team All-West Coast Conference for a second consecutive season earlier this week. If the Zags are able to make a surprising(?) run to the Sweet 16 for a 10th straight year later this month, Nembhard will likely be the biggest reason why.

Jacob Ognacevic, SR, F, Lipscomb (Atlantic Sun)

The Atlantic Sun Player of the Year, Ognacevic leads the league in scoring at 20.3 ppg. He scored 20 in Lipscomb’s quarterfinal rout of Central Arkansas on Tuesday.

Barrington Hargress, SO, G, UC Riverside (Big West)

There is an abundance of fun talent in the Big West this season, but “B-Sheisty” might be at the top of the list. Hargress leads the conference in scoring and dropped 40 in Riverside’s upset of league leader UC San Diego back in January. He also scored 31 and hit a halfcourt overtime-forcer in a November victory over a Colorado State team that suddenly has NCAA tournament at-large bid aspirations.

Tayton Conerway, SR, G, Troy (Sun Belt)

Conerway leads the Sun Belt in steals per game (3.0) and ranks third in assists (5.1 per game) while also averaging a team-best 13.7 points and 4.3 rebounds (tied for second on the team). He is the first Trojan named Sun Belt Player of the Year, and first conference player of the year period for Troy since 2004, when the program was a member of the Atlantic Sun.

Yaxel Lendeborg, SR, F, UAB (American)

If anyone is going to upset Memphis and steal an NCAA tournament bid in Fort Worth next week, UAB seems like the most likely candidate, and Lendeborg seems like the biggest reason why. The 6’9 senior forward is averaging a double-double (17.3 points/10.7 rebounds) to go along with 4.2 assists per game. He is a very safe bet to hear his name called in this summer’s NBA Draft.

Trent McLaughlin, SR, G, Northern Arizona (Big Sky)

It would be a major surprise if the seventh-seeded Lumberjacks claimed the Big Sky’s auto-bid, but their games (or game) will be worth tuning into because of McLaughlin. The nation’s second-leading scorer (22.1 ppg) has made seven or more three-pointers in a game four times this season.

Gabe Dynes, SO, C, Youngstown State (Horizon League)

How about some defensive love here? Alvaro Folgueiras of Robert Morris was the Horizon League’s Player of the Year, but Youngstown State’s Dynes has an opportunity to have the biggest impact on the league’s tournament. The 7’3 sophomore has improved steadily throughout his second season of college basketball, and enters the postseason second in the nation in blocked shots (3.1 bpg).

Abdi Bashir, SO, G, Monmouth (Coastal Athletic Association)

Bashir leads the nation in three-point shooting and heads into the postseason on an absolute tear. He knocked down 19 triples in the final three games of the regular season, and has hit eight or more on four separate occasions. If Bashir continues on his recent trend, the sixth-seeded Hawks are a real threat to shake up the CAA tournament.

Earl Timberlake, SR, G, Bryant (America East)

The former highly-touted recruit who had initial stops at Miami and Memphis has settled into a starring role at Bryant, which just locked up its first America East regular season title. Timberlake does a little bit of everything for the Bulldogs, averaging 15.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.7 blocks per game.

Brian Moore Jr., SR, G, Norfolk State (MEAC)

The Murray State transfer has been lights out for the Spartans this season, averaging 18.9 ppg. Now he’ll be tasked with getting Norfolk back into the NCAA tournament for the third time in the last five years.

Terrence Brown, SO, G, Fairleigh Dickinson (Northeast)

The nation’s 10th-leading scorer, Brown hasn’t been held to fewer than 10 points in a game this season. Central Connecticut is the runaway favorite to win the NEC tournament, but Brown and the Knights could spell danger for the Blue Devils if they square off in the semifinals.

BONUS PLAYER: Blaise Threatt, SR, G, Weber State (Big Sky)

Because he’s really good and his name is Blaise Threatt.

BONUS BONUS PLAYER: Kobe Williamson, SR, G, Seattle (WAC)

Because he looks like this and this is the last year we get to talk about him.

The Redhawks are a longshot to win the WAC tournament, but just imagine this man on “One Shining Moment.”