College Basketball's All-Week 15 1st Team: Top Performers at Every Position

Week 15 of the college basketball season gave us some oldies but goodies.

You may have heard of guys named Tyler Ulis and Denzel Valentine. Yes, we have the Kentucky Wildcats point guard and Michigan State Spartans Swiss army knife back in the mix. The same goes for North Carolina Tar Heels big man Brice Johnson. These three were just too good to ignore.

We also have a surging surprise from the Alabama Crimson Tide. And we couldn't ignore a Duke freshman, because...who knew Duke still had enough guys to have a bench?

As usual, we'll introduce you to a new player or two who had fantastic weeks.

That's what makes college basketball so great: Anyone can erupt with a huge performance, and the weekly stars can come in all shapes and sizes. There are games of all sizes, too. That's what we'll examine here.

Every week, we pick a first- and second-teamer at all five positions, plus a duo off the bench (we even have some fun there with the Kentucky Wildcats). We consider stat-stuffing games but also take a look at cumulative consistency against strong competition and players who have performed above their season averages from last Sunday through Saturday night's games.

Let us know what you think of our picks and share your own in the comments section.

Point Guard: Tyler Ulis, Kentucky

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First Team: Tyler Ulis, Kentucky

Feb. 18 vs. Tennessee: 11 points, nine assists, four rebounds

Feb. 20 at Texas A&M: 22 points, 11 assists, four rebounds

Tyler Ulis did seemingly everything possible to give the Wildcats a chance at Texas A&M. The sophomore sank a jumper to give Kentucky a 76-75 edge with 1:11 remaining. His pass set up a Marcus Lee dunk with 43.9 seconds left in the second half. Most impressively, Ulis has had at least four assists in a school-record 21 consecutive games, per ESPN.com.

Second Team: Jaylen Adams, St. Bonaventure

Feb. 17 at La Salle: 12 points, six assists, three rebounds

Feb. 20 at Dayton: 31 points, six assists, six rebounds

The only thing keeping Jaylen Adams off the top spot was he didn't play particularly well in a loss at La Salle. But he sure recovered, and the Bonnies earned a massive Atlantic 10 win at a nationally ranked Flyers team. The sophomore matched his career high in points to improve his team to 18-7 and get it in bubble consideration. Sure, a lot of teams are on that bubble, but St. Bonaventure's resume beats some of the alternatives.

Shooting Guard: Retin Obasohan, Alabama

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First Team: Retin Obasohan, Alabama

Feb. 17 at LSU: 35 points, four rebounds, three assists

Feb. 20 vs. Mississippi State: 22 points, six rebounds, three assists

One of the most improved players in the country this season has the Crimson Tide on track for an at-large bid, though it was a split week. Retin Obasohan career high against LSU gave Alabama a victory that could look like a major bubble outcome down the road.

Bama lost a tough one three days later, but the Belgian still produced 8-of-18 shooting (compared to 11-of-18 against LSU), and the 70-percent foul shooter made 16-of-19 for the week.

Second Team: A.J. English, Iona

Feb. 15 vs. Quinnipiac: 16 points, six assists, five rebounds

Feb. 19 at Monmouth: 31 points, seven rebounds, five assists

A.J. English can be a combo guard, and we wanted to make sure he gets noticed because his performance at MAAC leader Monmouth hurt its at-large NCAA tournament resume as the Gaels stole one on the road. It's becoming a terrific rivalry with some venom, and English poisoned Monmouth with a 9-of-17 shooting effort, hitting half of his 10 three-pointer attempts.

That performance could be one to keep in mind on Selection Sunday as it pertains to the Hawks.

Small Forward (Wing): Denzel Valentine, Michigan State

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First Team: Denzel Valentine, Michigan State

Feb. 14 vs. Indiana: 30 points, 13 assists, five rebounds

Feb. 18 vs. Wisconsin: 24 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds

Does Oklahoma Sooners senior Buddy Hield have National Player of the Year honors locked up? Channeling our best Lee Corso...not so fast, my friends. Michigan State star Denzel Valentine put together a couple of games that led to big wins as he approached a triple-double each time.

And you just knew Valentine was going to have a big game Feb. 14 (Valentine's Day, duh). To have 13 assists and just one turnover? Well, be still, coach Tom Izzo's heart.

Second Team: Marcus Georges-Hunt, Georgia Tech

Feb. 17 at Florida State: 27 points, four assists, two rebounds

Feb. 20 vs. Notre Dame: 19 points, seven assists, three rebounds

Marcus Georges-Hunt hit a short shot with time running out to beat nationally ranked Notre Dame. That lifted the Yellow Jackets to back-to-back wins in ACC games for the first time since late in the 2013-14 season.

Power Forward: Johnathan Motley, Baylor

Eric Gay/Associated Press

First Team: Johnathan Motley, Baylor

Feb. 16 vs. Iowa State: 27 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks

Feb. 20 at Texas: 24 points, four rebounds, two blocks

Johnathan Motley can be classified as a forward or a center. But in light of Brice Johnson's big week for North Carolina, we put the Baylor big man here. He deserves it. The 6'9" sophomore scored well above his 11.5-point average in two games and made 22 of 30 shots for the week. That includes sinking his first dozen attempts against Texas until missing in the closing 1:15.

He's filled in quite well for star Rico Gathers, who has been limited because of the flu.

Second Team: Troy Williams, Indiana

Feb. 14 at Michigan State: Zero points, four rebounds

Feb. 17 vs. Nebraska: 18 points, five rebounds, three assists

Feb. 20 vs. Purdue: 19 points, two assists, four steals

The Hoosiers are a better team when Troy Williams is productive. That is why they lost at Michigan State badly but won the other two games. Against ranked Purdue, he matched teammate Yogi Ferrell's 14 first-half points, setting the tone for a valuable win.

Center: Brice Johnson, North Carolina

Gerry Broome/Associated Press

First team: Brice Johnson, North Carolina

Feb. 17 vs. Duke: 29 points, 19 rebounds

Feb. 20 vs. Miami: 16 points, 15 rebounds

The only thing we can say for his week, really, is this: Get Brice Johnson more shots. The 6'9" senior took a tidy 28 in two games that were a disappointing split. The Tar Heels should have won at home against short-handed Duke, especially with Johnson dominating on 13-of-17 shooting. However, the Blue Devils pulled it out, 74-73.

Johnson had just two shot attempts in the last 13 minutes. UNC bounced back strong in Chapel Hill against the Hurricanes, though. Johnson missed just eight shots in two tough games.

Second Team: Khadeem Lattin, Oklahoma

Feb. 17 at Texas Tech: Zero points, three rebounds, one assist

Feb. 20 at West Virginia: Nine points, 13 rebounds, six blocks

We like to nominate guys who have breakthroughs for themselves and their team. Khadeem Lattin was spectacular from start to finish against West Virginia on Saturday. The scrambling Sooners got off their recent 1-3 skid, getting five early blocked shots from Lattin (the Mountaineers attacked inside early) as well as a key putback and game-sealing dunk.

Lattin's play should provide an epiphany of sorts for the Sooners. He averages 5.8 points but had put up just 12 combined over the previous four games.

Off the Bench: Luke Kennard, Duke

Gerry Broome/Associated Press

First Team: Luke Kennard, Duke

Feb. 17 at North Carolina: 15 points, one rebound

Feb. 20 at Louisville: Nine points, three assists

We're giving guard Luke Kennard some recognition because...well, who knew Duke still had a bench? The injury-slaughtered Blue Devils received a big game from the freshman as they stormed through rival North Carolina's house for a classic win. He hit a three-pointer with 2:40 left for a 72-71 lead after a long stretch of playing from behind.

He was less effective (3-of-10 shooting) against Louisville but still earns the nod for averaging 34 minutes in the two-game week, when he averages only 25.1. (Of note, he started against the Cards in another forced lineup shift for Duke.)

Second Team: D.J. Hogg, Texas A&M

Feb. 16 vs. Ole Miss: 10 points, one rebound

Feb. 20 vs. Kentucky: 10 points, one rebound

Hand it to the highly touted freshman—D.J. Hogg was consistent this week. He was a shockingly identical 4-of-8 from the field and made two of the five three-point attempts in each game. He came in averaging about six points, so if the Aggies have another steady bench burst ready to go—watch out.