Leading Man

Player of the Week

D'Angelo Harrison – St. John’s (G, Sr., 6-4, 204, Missouri City, Texas)

Harrison, who became the third St. John’s player to score 2,000 points in the previous game and was honored before tip-off, recorded his 100th career double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds in the Red Storm’s 84-66 victory over Creighton. It was his 50th career 20-point game. He shot 5-for-8 from the floor, including 2-for-4 from the 3-point line, and a perfect 9-for-9 from the foul line. He also added six assists and did not commit a turnover. His layup-and-one sent the Johnnies into halftime up 52-30. At the 15:30 mark in the second half, he drilled a 3-pointer that increased his team’s cushion to 23, their largest lead of the game.

The senior guard got his 101st double-double in the following game, scoring a career-high 33 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the Red Storm’s 86-78 win over DePaul. It was his fourth career 30-point performance. He had another efficient night shooting the ball, going 10-for-14 from the floor, 6-for-8 from beyond the arc, and 7-for-7 from the charity stripe. Harrison nearly had a double-double by halftime with 11 points and seven rebounds. He made eight of his first 10 baskets and five of his first six 3-point shots.

Harrison was a one-man wrecking crew in this game. He hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cap off a 13-2 run that gave St. John’s its largest lead of the game at 57-44. The Texas native put the exclamation point on the win after he electrified the crowd of 5,040 with a fastbreak dunk with one minute to play. The highlight began with a block by Sir’Dominic Pointer at the other end.

Through two games this week, Harrison averaged 27.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists. He was 68 percent shooting from the field, 66 percent from the 3-point line, and 100 percent from the free throw line.

Who’s Hot?

Kellen Dunham – No. 18 Butler (G, Jr., 6-6, 185, Pendleton, Ind.)

Dunham led No. 18 Butler in scoring for the second straight game when scored a game-high 24 points in the Bulldog’s 83-73 win over DePaul. The junior guard was 6-for-12 shooting from the floor and 8-for-8 from the foul line. His 15 points in the first half helped his team get off to a strong start, as they led 40-27 at the break. He has scored in double figures in 22 of 23 games this season, leading the Bulldogs in scoring 11 times. The win lifted Butler to sole possession of second place in the Big East and set the stage for a Valentine’s Day showdown with first place No. 6 Villanova at 6 p.m. (ET)

LaDonate Henton – Providence (F, Sr., 6-6, 215, Lansing, Mich.)

Henton didn’t have a particularly lights out week shooting the ball, but he scored 24 points on 9-for-21 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds in the Friars loss to Xavier before posting 23 points in their loss to Villanova. Although ‘Superman’ couldn’t save his team from suffering two straight losses, he did have good individual performances. Against the Musketeers, he paced the Friars with 10 points and six rebounds as they led at the half, 40-34. In the Villanova game, the Wildcats went on a 14-3 run in the second half and led by 14 points with 8:16 remaining. Providence tried to make a comeback as they reduced the lead to 48-42 by way of an eight-point run with 6:51 left. Six of those points were scored by Henton. Villanova took over again, making 20 of their final 28 foul shots. The Friars cut the lead to five with seven seconds left off a Henton 3-pointer but eventually ran out of time.

Who’s Not?

Isaiah Whitehead – Seton Hall (G, Fr., 6-4, 195, Brooklyn, N.Y.)

Since returning from injury, Whitehead has shot just 27 percent from the field over his last four games. He’s had a tough time finding rhythm on offense, and no one should expect him to so soon. He missed the previous nine games due to a stress fracture, which are difficult injuries to deal with. Although his shots haven’t been falling, it isn’t like he’s playing timid. Over the past four games he’s shot the ball 30 times and has 25 free throw attempts, making 76 percent of his freebies. His aggressive style of play should help him round back into pre-injury form sooner rather than later.

Duane Wilson –  Marquette (G, Fr., 6-2, 185, Milwaukee, Wi.)

Wilson scored nine points on 2-for-8 shooting in Marquette’s win over Seton Hall. He made just one of his three 3-point attempts from downtown. The freshman guard scored 12 points in the following game against Xavier, but took 12 shots to get them and made only four. Wilson has not shot over 44 percent in any of his last five games. In 24 games, he’s shot over 50 percent just six times.

Top Five Teams in Big East (Power Rankings Edition)

1. No. 6 Villanova (22-2, 9-2 Big East)

The Wildcats are a virtual lock for the NCAA Tournament, and have been for a while now. They’ve won five games in the row and have a good chance of winning the remainder of their games. In addition, they are the undisputed favorite for the Big East championship. Upsets happen every year and there’s some quality teams in the conference, but I can’t see them not winning it. The Wildcats were dominate again this week, picking up a 16-point win over Georgetown before defeating Providence on the road.

2. No. 18 Butler (18-6, 8-3 Big East)

The Bulldogs are one of those “other” quality teams in the Big East. If is wasn’t for an Isaac Copeland 3-pointer in their last loss to Georgetown, then Butler would be on an eight-game win streak. Because of that loss, they are on a five-game win streak instead, which ties Villanova for the longest current streak in the conference. Butler got a 10-point win over DePaul before their highly anticipated Valentine’s Day matchup with the Wildcats.

3. Xavier (16-9, 7-6 Big East)

The Musketeers are probably the most inconsistent team in the Big East. A prime example of that is when they lost in overtime to the conference’s worst team in Creighton. Then turned around and beat Providence by almost double digits. Despite their inconsistencies, the Musketeers have a top-20 strength of schedule and a season sweep of Georgetown. Next week, they have a chance to pick up a nice non-conference win against Cincinnati. Winning that game and their remaining contests with St. John’s and Creighton would most certainly solidify them a seed in the tournament. If they manage to win one of their two home games against Butler, and a matchup against Villanova, then they’ll be awarded a higher seed for sure.

4. St. John’s (16-8, 5-6 Big East)

The Johnnies picked up two home victories this week: an 84-66 win over Creighton and an 86-76 victory against DePaul. These were two games that they were supposed to win. Although they’re on a two-game win streak, it still remains to be seen what they can down the stretch because they’ve had an up and down season thus far. Out of their six remaining games, two of them are against Georgetown and they also have matchups with Xavier, Seton Hall and Villanova. Among other things, D’Angelo Harrison scored a season-high 33 points against DePaul, furthering his case for Big East Player of the Year.

5. Georgetown (16-8, 8-5 Big East)

Every loss that the Hoyas has suffered has come against top-50 teams. In the tournament, they’ll be playing against the best of the best. After two straight losses to Providence and Villanova, the Hoyas were able to handily defeat Seton Hall to end off their week. Georgetown put on a defensive showcase, turning 15 Pirates’ turnovers into 27 points. Guards D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera and Isaac Copeland are one of the best tandems in the Big East. Both scored 20 or more points against the Pirates while the team’s suffocating defense held The Hall to under 30 percent shooting in the second half. Georgetown will be a major sleeper come tournament time.