NCAA Tournament 2013: Top 10 Point Guards Still Dancing

The parity in college basketball this season has been due greatly in part to the lack of superstar talent. This may be true, but it doesn't mean that there aren't any super talented players, especially when looking at point guards. 

There are guards who are essentially scorers playing the point-guard position and there are pure point guards who look to pass first. And then there are those who are a combination of the two. This year's tournament has seen some exciting games to narrow it down to 16 teams, and on those teams are each of the three types of point guard.

So, how do they all stack up?

10. Brett Comer

Easily the most interesting and exciting story in this year’s tournament is No. 15 seed Florida Gulf Coast. The Eagles out of the Atlantic Sun Conference have shocked the nation twice now by advancing to the Sweet 16.

Comer runs this high-flying offense, and his regular-season stats wouldn’t put him in this list, but his tournament play makes it impossible to exclude him. This season, Comer has averaged 8.1 points and 6.6 assists, but he also turned the ball over 3.5 times a game.

Lately, his play has increased dramatically. In the conference championship, he scored 21 points, which gave him the momentum to drop 12 points and 10 assists on No. 2 seeded Georgetown. He followed that performance with an even better one against San Diego State—Comer dished out 14 assists while adding 10 points of his own. 

9. Keith Appling

It appears that Appling will play against Duke in the Sweet 16, despite missing most of the second half with a shoulder injury in Michigan State’s win over Memphis. This is great news for Tom Izzo, as Appling is a key part of their offense.

The junior point guard led the Spartans in scoring and assists with 13.3 points and 3.4 assists a game. In his first game of the tournament against Valparaiso, he only managed one assist but did put up 15 points. Appling also injured his knee in that game but played against Memphis anyway, where he only had two points and two assists before injuring his right shoulder. 

8. Malcolm Armstead

This is Armstead’s first season with Wichita State after transferring from Oregon. He’s been a great addition to the Shockers, averaging 10.6 points, 4 assists and 1.9 steals per game.

Armstead and the rest of his team played dominant basketball in their first-round win against Pitt. The senior point guard scored 22 points, which led all scorers in the game. In their upset victory over Gonzaga, Armstead did not make a big impact on the stat sheet with eight points and three assists, but he was instrumental in their half-court offense's success. 

7. Michael Carter-Williams

In Syracuse’s last year as a member of the Big East, Carter-Williams has been great leading this powerful Orangemen team. As a point guard, Carter-Williams averages 11.8 points per game, which is still only fourth best on the team.

His real asset comes in his passing ability, where he averaged 7.7 assists this season. Unfortunately, the sophomore point guard sometimes tries to force too many passes, which has led to 3.5 turnovers per game. Carter-Williams also contributes on the defensive end with a remarkable 2.7 steals a game.

Syracuse didn’t need much from Carter-Williams offensively in their first tournament win, as he scored four points on only three shots while getting nine assists. In the next game against California, Carter-Williams still didn’t shoot much but did put up 12 points and three assists. 

6. Mark Lyons

Arizona has flown under the national radar this year in a less-than-stellar Pac 12, and Lyons has done the same due to fantastic point guards on the nation’s top teams. This is unfortunate for the senior transfer from Xavier who leads the team with 15.4 points and 2.9 assists per game.

Lyons is more of a scorer than a pure point guard and is starting to turn heads in the tournament. So far, Lyons could be considered the most valuable player in the tournament by exploding with 23 points in the first game and 27 points in the second. 

5. Jordan Hulls

Everyone knows Indiana’s Cody Zeller and Victor Oladipo, but a key part of the Hoosiers’ success this season has been point guard Jordan Hulls. The senior guard isn’t super impressive and doesn’t put up eye-popping numbers, but he leads their half-court offense, plays good defense and hits clutch shots.

Hulls is averaging 9.9 points and 3.0 assists per game, but the most impressive stat is that he only turns the ball over 1.2 times a game, which is better than anyone on this list.

In their come-from-behind win against Temple, Hulls went out in the first half with a shoulder injury but toughed it out and returned to finish the game. Hulls hit two crucial jump shots to help narrow the deficit when the Hoosiers were struggling on offense. He brings stability and experience to this No. 1 seed. 

4. Aaron Kraft

Craft is not only a great point guard, but he may be the best defensive guard in all of college basketball. Averaging 2.1 steals this season, Craft has shown he is a great offensive player as well. This year he is scoring 10.0 points per game on 43 percent shooting, while managing 4.7 assists.

His defense was on display in Indiana’s first game in the tournament, where although he only scored four points, he racked up six steals. In the second game against Iowa State, Craft’s offense was called upon where he answered with 18 points, including the game-winning three-pointer. 

3. Peyton Siva

The veteran leader for Rick Pitino’s squad is clearly Peyton Siva. The senior point guard has started three years for Louisville and now leads his No.1 overall seeded Cardinals to the Sweet 16.

Siva has had turnover issues his whole career, and that has continued this year with 2.7 per game, but he has improved in every other aspect of the game. Playing the most minutes out of anyone else on the team, Siva is averaging 9.9 points, 5.9 assists and 2.3 steals per game, which are all career-highs.

The point guard hasn’t been asked to do much in the tournament (16 points, 13 assists in two games) as Louisville has cruised through their first two rounds, but Siva will need to play at a high level if they hope to bring home the title.

2. Shane Larkin

Florida Gulf Coast has been the most surprising team in the tournament, but another school in Florida has been the most shocking team throughout the regular season. The Miami Hurricanes were nobodies at the start of the season, in fact they even lost to Florida Gulf Coast, but their dominance in the ACC brought them up to the country’s elite.

Shane Larkin is the reason why.

The sophomore point guard leads the team with 14.6 points per game, but he does so much more. Larkin runs the offense with efficiency and plays stellar defense; his team-leading 4.4 assists and 2.0 steals are testaments to that.  

Larkin has continued his regular-season play into the tournament by nearly posting a double-double in his first game with 10 points and nine assists. The second game required more of his scoring ability as he put up 17 points and five assists in a 63-59 victory over Illinois.

1. Trey Burke

Despite a disappointing performance in Michigan’s opening game against South Dakota State, Trey Burke is still the best point guard in the tournament and in the country.

In that game he struggled from the field shooting 2-for-12, but he also dished out seven assists. In the next game, Michigan dominated Virginia Commonwealth from the start, with Burke adding seven more assists and this time putting up 18 points.

The 6’0” sophomore is averaging 18.8 points and 6.7 assists this season while only turning the ball over 2.2 times per game. Burke is also a solid perimeter defender and a proven leader for this Wolverine team, which adds to the many reasons why he’s earned the top spot.