NCAA Tournament 2011: 10 Players Who Will Play Big in the Sweet 16

After three rounds of the NCAA tournament, we have seen upsets, close calls and buzzer beaters.

If that keeps up, the Sweet 16 should be just as exciting.

Four Player of the Year finalists are still playing, a few mid-majors are still dancing (BYU not included), and this is the time when one player will emerge as a tournament hero.

Let's look at some players who could have that big game this week.

Jimmer Fredette

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DENVER, CO - MARCH 19: Jimmer Fredette #32 of the Brigham Young Cougars shoot against the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Pepsi Center on March 19, 2011 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmond

Jimmer will "jimmer" the Gators.

For two reasons.

Reason one, if you happened to see the shots he was hitting against Gonzaga, you know Jimmer is heating up.

And reason two, there is nobody on Florida who can guard him. Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton are way too small.

If Florida tries to go big, the only player they can use is Chandler Parsons and he does not move his feet well enough to stay in front of Jimmer.

Jump shots from half court and sweeping under scoops will be a plenty, and Jimmer will shoot BYU into their first Elite Eight.

Vernon Macklin

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TAMPA, FL - MARCH 19: Vernon Macklin #32 of the Florida Gators attempts a shot against Joshua Smith #34 of the UCLA Bruins during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at St. Pete Times Forum on March 19, 2011 in Tampa, Florida. (

But for Florida, I see Vernon Macklin having a big game.

The 6'10" senior is averaging 11 points and five rebounds per game.

Macklin is too strong and athletic; the BYU bigs won't be able to check him.

Jon Leuer

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TUCSON, AZ - MARCH 19: Jon Leuer #30 of the Wisconsin Badgers dunks against the Kansas State Wildcats in the first half during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at McKale Center on March 19, 2011 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by

Jon Leuer will have his hands full when Wisconsin plays Butler, because Butler has 6'8" Matt Howard and 6'11" Andrew Smith, to guard the Badgers 6'10" leading scorer.

But I like Leuer's game.

He's big and versatile with a great shooting stroke.

That's a matchup problem for Smith, and Howard is prone to foul trouble.

Leuer plays big and Wisconsin advances.

Derrick Williams

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TULSA, OK - MARCH 20: Derrick Williams #23 of the Arizona Wildcats celebrates after defeating the Texas Longhorns 70-69 in the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at BOK Center on March 20, 2011 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Ronald

I said it weeks ago, Duke will not make the Final Four. I'm sticking to it.

Especially since they are going up against Arizona and Derrick Williams.

In my bracket, I have the Wildcats advancing on the broad shoulders of Williams.

He moves so well, I don't think the Plumlees will be able to stay in front without fouling, and Ryan Kelly has no chance of stopping Williams.

But the difference will come on the defensive end. Williams will own the interior, forcing Duke into jumps shots that they will not make.

Kyrie Irving

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CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 20: Kyrie Irving #1 of the Duke Blue Devils looks on while taking on the Michigan Wolverines during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena on March 20, 2011 in Charlotte, North Caroli

Kyrie Irving, the freshman from West Orange, New Jersey, scored 14 points and 11 points in his first two games back from the toe injury that sidelined him for much of the year.

And those two games were in the NCAA tournament, the highest of high pressure situations.

Call it a hunch, but I just got a feeling Irving will really go off against Arizona.

It's the stuff of legends. The perfect story line. The freshman returns from injury and plays valiantly in the Sweet 16.

I still think Arizona wins though.

Jeremy Lamb

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WASHINGTON - MARCH 19: Jeremy Lamb #3 of the Connecticut Huskies dunks against the Cincinnati Bearcats during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Verizon Center on March 19, 2011 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty

Like his fellow freshman Kyrie Irving, I think Jeremy Lamb will have a big game in the Sweet 16 and burst onto the national spotlight.

San Diego State is a big team and could give Kemba Walker some trouble.

But the best part about Walker's game is his ability to suck up all the attention of opposing defenses.

Lamb will sneak up on the Aztecs and provide a game winning performance for UConn.

John Henson

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CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 20: John Henson #31 of the North Carolina Tar Heels dunks the ball in the second half while taking on the Washington Huskies during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena on March 20,

Len Elmore called North Carolina's sophomore forward John Henson the most unique player in the country.

It is Henson's mix of size, length, athleticism and skill that makes him so unique.

He is big enough to bang down low, but his shooting range extends to about 16 feet.

Playing against a pretty midsized team like Marquette, Henson will flourish.

William Buford

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CLEVELAND, OH - MARCH 18: William Buford #44 of the Ohio State Buckeyes handles the ball against the Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners during the second round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Quicken Loans Arena on March 18, 2011 in Cleveland,

Josh Harrellson will probably not shut down Jared Sullinger, but at 6'10", 275 pounds Harrellson should be able to force Sullinger off the block a little bit and keep him off the boards.

The Wildcats won't be doubling the post too much so John Diebler won't get as many three-pointers from Sullinger kick outs.

How does this affect William Buford?

Alas, the ball will be in the hands of Buford, the Buckeyes junior guard and second leading scorer.

Buford can can create his own shot and the upperclassmen will likely be guarded by freshmen.

The shot opportunities and the experience could mean big numbers for Buford in the Sweet 16.

Derwin Kitchen

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CHICAGO, IL - MARCH 20: Derwin Kitchen #22 of the Florida State Seminoles shoots against Tim Abromaitis #21 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the second half during the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the United Center on Ma

Chris Singleton will anchor the Florida State defense against VCU, but Singleton's scoring has been weak since returning from injury.

6'4" senior guard Derwin Kitchen is a bigger than any guard on VCU. A combination of his size and scoring ability will be hard to stop.

Expect him to make up for Singleton's low output.

Plus, he averages almost two steals a game, so he should get a few easy buckets off VCU turnovers.

That's a huge confidence boost for a scorer.

The Morris Twins

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LAS VEGAS - NOVEMBER 26: Markieff Morris (L) #21 and his twin brother Marcus Morris #22 of the Kansas Jayhawks appear on the bench late in the team's 98-41 victory over the Ohio Bobcats during the third round of the Las Vegas Invitational at The Orleans

I will count them as one player. They look exactly the same, and their combination will be hard for Richmond to stop.

Especially because the Morrises can play at any tempo.

If you slow the game down, the Morrises' combination of size and skill will beat you.

And if you speed the game up, they are too athletic to handle.

One of the two, if not both Morrises will bring Kansas to the Elite Eight.