Zach Attack

Player of the Week

Zach Freemantle (Xavier)

It seems to be a reoccurring theme for the Big East this year with players recording career highs every week. The player of the week goes to Zach Freemantle after his dominating 30 point, 15 rebound game. Xavier lost the game, but it was still a sensational performance from him. The Musketeers were also coming off a huge break being shut down from COVID-19. Freemantle nearly averages a double-double a game and is a rising star in the Big East.

Who’s Hot

R.J. Cole (UConn)

Even without James Bouknight UConn has been finding ways to win games. Cole has been the Huskies leading scorer in the past two games. In their last game against Xavier, he came off the bench and dropped his season high 24 points. He also recorded 7 assists in this matchup. This is a scary sight for the Big East because once Bouknight gets back UConn will be a tough team to beat.

Creighton

What a huge win for the Blue Jays over Villanova this past Saturday. They now take the throne as the best team in the Big East for now. Villanova will get a chance for redemption on March 3rd. Creighton has won three straight games. This win against the Wildcats was a huge statement showing the Blue Jays potential. This was by far their best game of the season. They nearly shot 50% from the three and held both Collin Gillespie and Jeremiah Robinson-Earle to under double digits.

Who’s Not

The favorite to win the Big East freshman of the year is coming off his worst game all year. He didn’t score a single point missing all six of his shots. The previous game he dropped 28 points. He is still just a freshman with a lot to learn, but Marquette will not win many games if he performs like he did against Seton Hall, especially since they have no bench depth. Before this game he was Marquette’s leading scorer, but he is now behind D.J. Carton by a small margin.

Butler

Even with star guard Aaron Thompson back, the Bulldogs struggled in their last game against Georgetown. This was a must win for them because they go on a stretch of several tough games against teams such as Villanova, Creighton and Seton Hall. As a team they shot only 39% from the field. Bryce Nze has been playing well until he scored only four points in this matchup.

Top Five Seniors

#5 Denzel Mahoney (Creighton)

The sixth of the man last year has made huge improvements this offseason. Mahoney has had several 20-point games this season and is the second leading scorer on the team, averaging 14.1 points per game. He is also the best defender on the team guarding the opposing team’s most talented player.

#4 Paul Scruggs (Xavier)

Scruggs might be one of the most efficient players in college basketball players and not many people are talking about him since Xavier has been on a bit of a pause. He’s averaging 14.2 points per game while shooting nearly 50% from the field. He also averages 6.4 assists per game, the most in the Big East.

#3 Jahvon Blair (Georgetown)

Although Georgetown may be one of the worsts teams in the Big East, Blair is a talented player who is currently in the top five for points per game in the conference. His biggest game of the year came against Saint John’s in which he scored 25 points. He was also an essential factor in the Hoyas’ upset win over Creighton.

#2 Nate Watson (Providence)

Watson’s career at Providence has been entertaining to watch. He has truly developed into an elite center averaging 17.1 points per game. He’s playing more than he has ever before and has become a lot stronger than what he was his freshman year. His physicality in the paint allows him to play bully ball. He looked unreal when he scored 30 points in their loss against Saint John’s.

#1 Sandro Mamukelashvili (Seton Hall)

No one was talking about him before the season started. His draft stock continues to rise since he is displaying a skillset of an NBA player. He stands at 6’11 but handles the rock like a point guard. He’s had two games this season in which he scored more than 30 points contributing to big wins for the Pirates. He also has a lot of confidence and will knock down threes from deep.

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