Minnesota vs Washington: CJ Wilcox and Studs That Will Lead Huskies to NIT Final

While most of the talk has been about the NCAA Tournament's Final Four in New Orleans, there is another Final Four that has taken shape in college basketball. That, of course, is the NIT's Final Four, which will commence at New York's famed Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.

The big matchup to watch will pit the No. 1-seeded Washington Huskies against the upstart No. 6-seeded Minnesota Golden Gophers. Many felt that the Huskies were snubbed in terms of making the Big Dance, and those people seem to have had a point as Washington has been dominant in its run through the NIT.

Here are three star players who will help the Huskies plow through the Golden Gophers en route to the NIT final against either Stanford or Massachusetts.

C.J. Wilcox

When it comes to Washington it's all about guard play, and one of the many spark plugs in the backcourt for the Huskies is sophomore C.J. Wilcox.

On a team with plenty of interchangeable parts, Wilcox is an incredibly important player. Not only is he third on the team in scoring with 14.3 points per game, but he pitches in 3.4 rebounds and one steal per contest as well. The biggest attribute that Wilcox brings to the table, though, is his shooting.

Wilcox has been the Huskies' best three-point marksman this season as he leads the team in makes from long range with 72, as well as three-point percentage at 41 percent. Also, he is the leading free-throw shooter by a wide margin at nearly 85 percent.

If this game comes down to the wire, then Wilcox will have to come up huge as he will be the guy who is counted upon to be clutch at the charity stripe late in the contest.

Terrence Ross

The Huskies have several players who do a lot of things well, but none is more versatile than guard Terrence Ross. The 6'6" sophomore is supremely athletic and that allows him to excel at nearly every aspect of the game.

Ross leads the team in scoring with 16.3 points per game and he also hits the glass hard with 6.4 rebounds per contest as well. Not only is he capable of playing around the tin, but Ross is more than capable of dominating the perimeter both offensively and defensively.

Ross is second on the team in three-point shooting with 69 trifectas and he is a pain on defense as his active hands net him 1.2 steals per game. Ross can truly do it all on the basketball court and is perhaps the main reason why Washington can get away with playing four guards.

If not for Ross' ability to rebound on defend, the Huskies wouldn't be as successful as they are this season.

Tony Wroten

It's no easy task for a freshman to step right in and dominate the Pac-12, but that is precisely what guard Tony Wroten did this season. Wroten most definitely isn't a great shooter, but his size and tenacity make him an extremely difficult player to deal with.

With averages of 16.2 points, five rebounds, 3.8 assists and nearly two steals per game, Wroten is the engine that makes the Huskies go. Because of that, he will need to come up huge on Tuesday night.

There is no question that Wroten has some deficiencies in his game as he shoots a mere 16 percent from downtown and turns the ball over four times per game, but the positives far outweigh the negatives when it comes to his contributions.

Wroten's ability to get into the paint not only creates scoring chances for himself, but it opens things up for his teammates as well, and that will be paramount against Minnesota.