March Madness Stars to Watch in 2025 Men's Conference Tournaments

While the 2025 men's NCAA tournament looms on the horizon, the races for conference championships are first on the calendar.

Throughout the league competitions, some recent March Madness standouts—such as Alabama guard Mark Sears and Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner—will command a postseason spotlight once again.

Fortunately for most of these guys, their respective team is not in danger of missing the Big Dance. The invitations are simply waiting to be delivered.

Behind these top players, though, a program might use a conference tourney to bolster its resume for Selection Sunday.

All projected seeds from the most recent Bracket Matrix update.

Mark Sears, Alabama

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On the path to a Final Four appearance last season, Alabama leaned heavily on All-American guard Mark Sears.

The veteran posted 24.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists per contest, shooting 45.5 percent from three-point range. Notably, he also averaged just 2.2 turnovers to help the program make its first national semifinal.

What might he manage for the encore?

Before we find out that answer, however, Sears will be leading Bama in the hotly contested SEC tournament. The league features four of the most-respected teams in the country.

If the Crimson Tide win the SEC, they might even snatch a No. 1 seed for March Madness.

Norchad Omier, Baylor

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How about a little blast from the longer past?

Two years ago, Norchad Omier played a vital role of Miami putting together its first-ever run to the Final Four. He averaged 10.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals for that upstart Miami team.

Omier has since transferred to Baylor, where he's tallied 15.7 points and a conference-best 10.5 rebounds per game.

The bouncy forward's athleticism in the post is absolutely vital to balance a wing-heavy rotation. Josh Ojianwuna is the Bears' only other regular contributor who stands above 6'6".

Baylor, which is currently a projected No. 10 seed, would benefit from a couple of wins in the Big 12 tournament to avoid even the slightest bubble conversation.

Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton

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Ryan Kalkbrenner, a fifth-year player, has appeared in March Madness every season since his college debut in 2020-21.

After holding a small role as a freshman, Kalkbrenner notched a double-double in Creighton's lone NCAA outing as a sophomore. The 7-footer averaged 20.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks when Creighton made the Elite Eight in his junior year before registering 18.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game during the Bluejays' run to the Sweet 16 last season.

That's a pretty extensive March Madness history, to say the least.

Creighton is smack in the middle of the 8/9 seed discussion right now, so a deep run in the Big East tournament could help the Kalkbrenner and Co. avoid a possible second-round matchup with a No. 1 seed.

Ryan Nembhard, Gonzaga

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Ryan Nembhard, incidentally, shared the floor with Kalkbrenner for two seasons and memorably had a 30-point game for Creighton in the 2023 NCAA tourney.

Now, he's leading the Gonzaga scoring attack.

This will be his second Big Dance with the Zags, who are also flirting with the 8/9 seed window as the West Coast Conference tournament begins.

Gonzaga was highly dependent on Nembhard's passing ability when he averaged 9.0 points and 9.3 assists on the team's run to the Sweet 16 last season, and that reliance has only grown in 2024-25. He's provided 10.9 points and a nation-best 10.0 assists per game.

Nembhard will be the catalyst of any success for Gonzaga in the postseason.

LJ Cryer, Houston

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LJ Cryer only played a handful of minutes as Baylor won a national title in 2021 but has since held a pivotal role in two other NCAA tournament trips.

Back in 2023, he scored 30 points for Baylor in a second-round matchup. Cryer transferred to Houston after that campaign and averaged 17.3 points in three March Madness contests for the Cougars last season.

Soon enough, Houston will be eyeing a national championship. Cryer, who is atop the Big 12 with a 42.0 three-point percentage, will be leading that charge.

And as long as the Coogs avoid an early exit in the Big 12 tourney, they'll probably be holding a No. 1 seed for the third straight year.

Kam Jones, Marquette

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In each of the last two NCAA tournaments, Marquette has earned a No. 2 seed but failed to advance past the Sweet 16.

That obstacle may be even tougher to navigate in 2025, considering the Golden Eagles are trending for a fifth or sixth seed. They likely won't be favored in a second-round matchup, let alone the following games.

Sure doesn't hurt to have Kam Jones steering the team, though.

The veteran guard averaged 16.5 points in two March Madness games in 2023 and jumped to 22.0 points in three outings last season.

Marquette has an opportunity in the Big East tournament to land a couple of marquee wins and boost its perception as another trip to the Big Dance looms.

Braden Smith, Purdue

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Zach Edey carried Purdue to the national final in 2024. Inarguably true.

Nevertheless, the Boilermakers probably wouldn't have advanced as far without Braden Smith. Edey's sidekick rarely left the court, averaging 8.7 assists to a modest 2.3 turnovers per game.

The challenge for Smith this season is staying efficient as a shooter in the biggest games. Edey's dominance down low atoned for some of Smith's inconsistencies last year, but the Boilers—even as Trey Kaufman-Renn is excellent—don't have that luxury again.

Smith is a versatile and gifted guard, and his ability to handle increased pressure in the Big Ten tournament will be monitored closely.