Ranking the Streakiest Shooters in College Basketball in the 2015-16 Season

There is a variety of ways to interpret the streaky shooter. But we know, for the most part, when we catch a guy hot-handed.

We're here in large part to focus on three-point marksmen. Some aren't consistent threats in the box score—but they constantly have to be on scouting reports, and a fan's radar, because one jumper can lead to some serious indulging. Others are high-volume shooters who can flip on or off like a light switch.

They're all insatiable. Like the way most of us go through a bag of potato chips.

And we don't have just one here, either. We'll look at 11 college basketball players this season who will surely make it onto highlight reels and sports-station tickers, because they'll go off for monster nights. Some will be more expected than others, sure, but all are capable.

Watch these guys rise above their season numbers in volcanic form. It's the beauty of the three-point line, the beauty of the sport. That is, of course, until one of these heat-check guys strikes down upon your team...or one of these guys strikes down upon his own team. 

Brannen Greene, Kansas

Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

If there's one thing that we'd change about Brannen Greene's game, it's his post-make celebration on three-pointers. He takes his fingers and clocks them into the temple area of his head.

It seems unbecoming for a sweet-shooting product from Georgia, who will be an interesting watch for Kansas this year. His playing time may be limited because of all the talent around him—but he's going to get his at a few distinct points, surely.

Greene is 6'7'', so he can get his shot off virtually whenever he wants (sometimes to the great dismay of coach Bill Self). He only averaged about 15 minutes per game last year, but still rattled off nearly three attempts each night from beyond the arc.

He shot 40.4 percent, most notably making all five tries (19 points total) in an early December win at Georgetown.

Greene had an otherworldly stretch in which he was 24-of-32 from long range in Big 12 play, until he hit the skids in early February. Turns out he had a concussion and also some hip pain, which required surgery.

Kansas is still short on outside shooting threats, so it will be vital for Greene to be healthy.

Starting with a Valentine's Day showing when he made just one of five attempts against Baylor, Greene left the Jayhawks' game plan brokenhearted. He missed 28 of his 34 three-point attempts in the last nine games.

He'll be the guy that will salvage one or two wins, but he needs to be more focused and agile defensively (perhaps the hip surgery will be a big part of that) to make a true mark on this season and help the Jayhawks get where they believe they're capable in March.

Conner Frankamp

Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

We move from a current Jayhawk to a former one.

That's because Conner Frankamp will certainly have his moments for Wichita State this season.

It can only be hoped (most importantly) that he has his life in order after a DUI last January. The hometown product, who once went off for 52 in a high school game, hasn't had the easiest transition to WSU.

But he could certainly find his niche around point guard Fred VanVleet and a really solid, veteran team.

Frankamp averaged 2.5 points in 8.3 minutes per game in 2013-14, but his role had increased heading into March.

Quick, who was Kansas' leading scorer in its final game of that season (a loss to Stanford in the round of 32):

A) Andrew Wiggins

B) Joel Embiid

C) Conner Frankamp

Well, we sort of did a John Oliver thing to you here. It was actually none of the above, as senior forward Tarik Black had 18 points.

But let history show Frankamp was second with 12. He made four of his seven three-point tries.

He'll bring it on some unsuspecting team this season, too, especially teams focus on more famous players. 

Xavier Rathan-Mayes, Florida State

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You can't make it if you don't shoot it.

That's apparently Xavier Rathan-Mayes' motto. And we dig it. Perhaps more than Florida State's bench or followers appreciate at all times.

Here's a guy who averaged about 34 minutes and a little more than five three-point tries a game. And he only made 28 percent of them.

And how's this for awesomeness: On Nov. 23 he clanked all five three-pointers in a loss against UMass. So much for those 22 points.

Then two days later he made all five three-point attempts (19 points) in a win against the Citadel.

The 6'4'' junior scored more than 30 points three times, including two of the Seminoles' last five games. And of course, don't forget his legendary 30-point outburst in February...in a loss to Miami.

FSU is must-watch stuff because of this high-volume shooter.

Buddy Hield, Oklahoma

Paul Vernon/Associated Press

Look at those wide-open eyes, the smile creeping through his mouthpiece.

Even in a practice setting, an empty arena, Oklahoma's Buddy Hield loves taking the long jumper.

Here's a guy who averaged 7.4 attempts from the arc per game last season, connecting on nearly 36 percent. It was a slight downgrade from the 2013-14 season, when he was at 7.1/38.6. Hield will need to be more efficient for Oklahoma to reach its big dreams.

But the 6'4'' senior is certainly the straw that stirs the high-tempo Sooners drink.

He made all seven three-pointers in the season-opening game against Southeastern Louisiana, but could also go 4-of-13 from the arc and still score 24 in a win against then-ranked UCLA 10 days later.

Hield is one of the sport's great scorers and personalities, a charmer and a talker. But that shouldn't totally excuse his lack of prudence from the arc in big games.

He made just 41 of 119 three-point attempts (34 percent) in 14 games against top-25 teams last year.

Then he went 7-of-27 (nearly 25 percent) in three NCAA tournament games.

Hield is awesome at getting to the foul line. He'll have to find a happy medium with his shot to make the most of his senior year. But there's no questioning the fact he is an amazing streak shooter.

A.J. English, Iona

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If you haven't watched this New York City-area school (which plays in the MAAC) in recent years, you're missing a real treat. And some whiplash.

Coach Tim Cluess has one of the fastest-playing teams in the country, and the 6'4'' A.J. English is a key part of that.

He hoisted more than eight three-pointers a game last season, making nearly 39 percent.

What's scary for opponents—besides keeping up with the Gaels' breakneck pace—is English (who has NBA genes) shot at least 50 percent from the arc in 11 games that he had at least six attempts.

Of course, it's not a perfect plan. Iona's had its heart broken a couple of critical times in recent years, in large part because it does shoot so fast. One-and-done possessions were particularly killer against BYU in the 2012 NCAA tournament's First Four round.

The Gaels also didn't live up to their big dreams last season, the top seed falling in the MAAC tournament title game to Manhattan.

English missed six of his eight three-point tries that March 9 game and then followed up in the first round of the NIT with a 2-of-10 clunker against Rhode Island to finish the season.

Still, English is worth the watch. He had 28 points against URI and averaged about 25 points in his last four games. 

Phil Forte, Oklahoma State

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Phil Forte (all 5'11'' of him) looks like the kind of guy who might fare OK in a YMCA recreation league.

But we all know he's a gunner who makes the college game funner.

Bad grammar aside, the Oklahoma State senior (compared to many on this list) picks his spots at a decent clip—he averaged 5.8 three-pointers a game last year—and can absolutely kill a team that isn't paying him respect on the arc.

He already ranks fourth in OSU history, with 238 career three-pointers made, and needs 62 more to tie Keiton Page (2008-12) for the school record. Last year the third-team All-Big 12 selection made all six attempts at Oklahoma. 

Forte averaged 15 points (career best) and three times produced that many points from the arc (five makes) alone.

But the Cowboys weren't immune: Live by the Forte, die by the Forte. He is definitely a streaky dude.

OSU lost its last two games (to Oklahoma in the Big 12 tournament and then Oregon in an 8-9 game of the NCAA tournament) while missing 13 of his 14 attempts from the arc.

It sure is fun to watch him work, though.

Chase Fischer, Brigham Young

John Locher/Associated Press

Chase Fischer (who actually started his career at Wake Forest) will be one of the top three-point threats in the West.

That includes being a threat to BYU.

He was 22nd nationally last year in three-point attempts, but that can be a scary proposition. Six players above him made the NCAA tournament last year, but Fischer will have even more free reign in coach Dave Rose's high-tempo product.

That's especially true because the Cougars will need some outside-scoring threats with Tyler Haws having graduated.

Fischer, a 6'3'' junior, shot about 42 percent from the arc—very similar to his one year at Wake (2012-13) in which he had roughly half the floor time.

BYU's concerns lie right in their final game, a wild 94-90 loss to Ole Miss in the First Four round.

Fischer connected on half of his 14 three-point attempts and even scored BYU's first eight points on a layup and a couple of bombs. But the Cougars went Arctic-cold in the second half as they squandered a 17-point halftime lead.

That picture above says it all. Fischer doesn't lack for confidence. But BYU will need him to be prudent, especially as a leader of a team that has a lot of roster changeover from last season.

He's a classic every-other-game type of scorer. Look at Fischer's last four results: missed five of seven attempts from the arc against Santa Clara and then went 7-of-15 (Portland), 3-of-12 (Gonzaga) and 7-of-14 (Ole Miss).

Also, watch for Fischer to share some arc time with new teammate Nick Emery.

He was a star scorer on a Utah-legendary Lone Peak High team, which was crowned national champion in 2013. Emery went on a two-year Mormon mission but has also battled health issues. He traveled with the team to Spain over the summer and averaged about 10 points in a series of exhibition games.

But he'll have a night or two, for certain, when he helps BYU (about 15 miles from his old stamping grounds) pull out a win.

Bryn Forbes, Michigan State

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

What could the Izzo and the Forbes be talking about?

Maybe the three-point line.

In fairness, Bryn Forbes toned it down last season, averaging a career-low 4.2 attempts a game compared to six and 4.9, respectively, in his first two seasons (the first one not coming in East Lansing, but rather Cleveland State).

Here's a guy who could miss five of his six attempts in the season opener against Navy and then be dialed in to make all four in a one-point overtime loss to Notre Dame last winter.

He played quite smart in the Final Four run, making 11 of his 20 arc attempts in the tournament.

But we'll call him a streaky shooter in a good sense. If he gets rolling, so too usually do the Michigan State Spartans.

Trey Lewis, Louisville

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The Cleveland State transfer didn't need to watch film to see how scoring-belabored Louisville was last season.

Trey Lewis scored 24 of his team's 33 points in an ugly 45-33 loss to the Fightin' Pitinos last November.

As the saying goes (sort of), if you can't beat 'em, try to make 'em better.

He set the Cleveland State record for three-pointers in a single season (96) and shot 42.3 percent from three-point range, while taking 6.7 attempts per night.

The obvious question is how the 6'2'' senior will handle the adjustment to ACC competition, which will be fierce nightly.

He was the type who could miss all 12 three-point attempts in a three-game stretch of league play and then pump in seven of 13 tries against Youngstown State (which ended that goose-egg skid).

Along with fellow transfer Damion Lee (Drexel), who averaged 6.3 three-point attempts last year, it's going to be fascinating to see if Rick Pitino bit off more than he can chew regarding finding scoring-oriented players.

Lee had some diabolical nights in non-league games. He made eight of his 11 arc attempts against USC but also missed a combined 18 of his 22 arc tries against Buffalo and Penn State in back-to-back games.

Though he toned down his firing squad in league play.

At least Louisville will be a confident shooting team this year, if not always an assuredly scoring one.

Stefan Moody, Ole Miss

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The NBA has Steph.

The SEC (and college game) have Stef.

Not exactly the same, but Stefan Moody can surely be awesome to watch—and has quite the insatiably streaky hand. He can go Curry in a hurry.

He sparked an amazing second-half comeback in the First Four against BYU, scoring 26 points—an NCAA tournament record for the school—by charging a 15-2 run early in the second half that outdid a 17-point halftime deficit.

The 5'10'' senior (for 2015-16) took 6.5 three-pointers a game as Ole Miss needed some outside scoring punch after Marshall Henderson graduated (Moody took 1.4 more trey tries a game compared to the previous year).

Even with the awesome head of hair, Moody isn't as flashy (and certainly not as polarizing) as Henderson.

But he can still get rolling like him, even as he missed 18 of his first 21 arc shots of the season, over a span of five games. He still managed to shoot 35 percent for the season.

In a three-game SEC stretch, he made 16 of his 34 attempts and fizzled out after that, but did hit a somewhat respectable seven of his 18 looks in a two-game NCAA run.

Bryce Alford, UCLA

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

Alford plays with all the swagger of a coach's son.

Wait, what? Oh, yeah...

Steve Alford (a great shooter in his own day) is his father, though this isn't just nepotism at work—Bryce Alford can fill it up.

The 6'3'' junior took close to seven three-pointers a game and made almost 40 percent of them.

That's even with three Pac-12 games in which he failed to make a three (two against Colorado, one against Utah) and clanked a combined 17 tries.

Yikes.

But of course, the Bruins sneaked into the NCAA tournament, and then Alford made nine of his 11 shots against SMU. Alford was a prudent 5-of-11 in the next two games, as well.

Bryce certainly has a green light from his dad. But he's not his dad.

Steve Alford made 53 percent of his three-point attempts (107-of-202) in Indiana's 1987 national championship season. In the title game against Syracuse, he made seven of 10 three-pointers and scored 23 points.

Keep workin' at it, kid. 

Stats are courtesy of KenPom.com and NCAA.com, unless noted otherwise.