College Basketball: 15 Top Returning Shooting Guards In the Country

It’s looking like a big year for forwards in college basketball—Harrison Barnes, Jared Sullinger, et al.—but that doesn’t mean fans should be ignoring the backcourt. The departures of standouts like Kemba Walker and Jimmer Fredette have opened the door for a new generation of stars.

Many of them, like UConn’s Jeremy Lamb, will be coming out of the shadows of more-heralded teammates and getting their own chances to be primary offensive options. All can be counted on to put plenty of points on the scoreboard in 2011-12.

Herein, a look at the 15 best returning players in the country at the SG spot.

15. Ramone Moore, Temple

Though he nearly jumped to the NBA, Ramone Moore changed his mind in time to give Temple one more season of big-time scoring. The rising senior averaged 14.9 points a game for the Owls last year.

With star forward Lavoy Allen having graduated, Moore will need to carry an even bigger share of the offensive load in 2011-12. With the NBA in his sights, he’s likely to make his final season at Temple count.

14. Orlando Johnson, UCSB

Say what you like about the competition he faced in the Big West, but Orlando Johnson can flat out score.

Johnson finished 15th in the country last season with 21.1 points a game, leading the Gauchos to the conference tournament title and putting up 21 points in an NCAA tournament loss to Florida.

With Johnson and James Nunnally both returning for UCSB, the Gauchos have a reasonable shot to get back to the NCAAs this season. If they can, don’t be surprised to see Johnson on some March Madness highlight reels next spring.

13. William Buford, Ohio State

William Buford may be more role player than star, but he’s one heck of a role player.

Even with Jared Sullinger serving as the focal point of the Buckeye offense, Buford averaged 14.4 points a game last year.

A potent 44.2 percent shooter from three-point land, Buford gets many of his points spotting up when Sullinger or point guard Aaron Craft draws a double-team.

With both of those standout freshmen back for a second season in Columbus, rising senior Buford will get plenty of chances to scorch the nets in 2011-12.

12. Kenny Boynton, Florida

Erving Walker’s outstanding postseason effort left backcourt mate Kenny Boynton something of a forgotten man in March.

After finishing less than a point behind Walker for the team scoring lead last season, though, Boynton isn’t about to be ignored this year.

With the Gators breaking in a new frontcourt, Boynton will likely pick up much of the scoring slack. His 14.1-point average is a safe bet to rise substantially in 2011-12.

11. Kevin Foster, Santa Clara

Kevin Foster isn’t exactly a household name, but Gonzaga fans will remember him well. The 6’2” redshirt sophomore hung 36 on the Zags in an upset Santa Clara victory last January.

For the season, Foster averaged 19.4 points a game for the Broncos. With Gonzaga’s Stephen Gray gone, it’s hard to see any guard in the WCC outplaying Foster next season.

10. Will Barton, Memphis

Though he’ll be just a sophomore this year, Will Barton is the leader of a Memphis squad that looks set for a breakout season.

As a freshman, Barton averaged 12.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals a contest in leading Memphis to an upset win in the Conference USA tournament and a near upset of Arizona in the NCAAs.

The athletic Barton is already a force on both ends of the floor (although he could stand to improve on his .265 shooting from beyond the arc), and a year of experience will only help him and his young teammates.

When the Tigers make their return trip to the NCAAs next March, they won’t be underdogs anymore.

9. Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette

Even if he didn’t match the gaudy shooting percentages—including 47.4 from beyond the arc—of his sophomore season, Darius Johnson-Odom had a more-than-impressive year in 2010-11.

The 6’2” junior averaged 15.9 points a game, narrowly missing the team lead for the 20th-ranked Golden Eagles.

With running mate Jimmy Butler gone to the NBA, Johnson-Odom will have a heavy load to carry on offense if his team is going to compete in the Big East.

He may have to create more of his own looks, but he's certainly shown that he can make the shots when he gets them.

8. C.J. McCollum, Lehigh

Few fans outside of the Patriot League have even heard of C.J. McCollum, but anonymity hasn’t stopped him from putting points on the board.

The 6’3” McCollum is the leading returning scorer in the country, having averaged 21.8 points a game for the Mountain Hawks last season.

He’s not just a scorer, either, as he finished 13th in the nation with 2.5 steals a game in 2010-11.

Unfortunately for the rising junior, his team isn’t likely to beat out defending conference champ Bucknell, which returns four starters—for a trip to this season’s NCAA tournament.

No matter how well McCollum plays in 2011-12, he’ll continue doing it in obscurity.

7. Doron Lamb, Kentucky

Overshadowed in Kentucky’s loaded freshman class of a year ago, Doron Lamb still did his part in getting the Wildcats to the Final Four.

The 6’4” Lamb averaged 13 points a game despite sharing a backcourt with NBA-bound Brandon Knight and DeAndre Liggins.

With those two off to the pros, Lamb will provide the outside game to balance Terrence Jones’ post offense this season.

Expect some big scoring numbers from a player who shot an eye-popping 48.6 percent from three-point range last year.

6. Bradford Burgess, VCU

Seniors Jamie Skeen and Joey Rodriguez may be gone from VCU’s miracle Final Four squad, but the Rams’ most NBA-ready player is still on campus.

That would be 6’6” sharpshooter Bradford Burgess, who will look to lead the team back to the NCAA tournament next spring.

Burgess averaged 14 points a game, including 43.4 percent shooting from beyond the arc, in VCU’s frenetic offense.

With Skeen no longer an option in the half-court game, expect Burgess’ shot totals, and point totals, to jump in 2011-12.

5. Marcus Denmon, Missouri

One of the few half-court threats in Missouri’s transition-heavy offense, Marcus Denmon averaged 17.1 points a game last year.

He was especially dangerous from beyond the arc, where he hit nearly 45 percent of his shots.

Denmon is also an outstanding defender who led the Tigers with 2.0 steals per contest in 2010-11.

Although Mizzou is likely to dial back its press (and fast break) somewhat now that head coach Mike Anderson has been replaced by Frank Haith, Denmon is sure to make plenty of plays on both ends of the floor this season.

4. Jeremy Lamb, UConn

There weren’t many points to go around for the Huskies after Kemba Walker got his last year, which helps explain why Jeremy Lamb averaged just 11.1 a game.

Even with that pedestrian total, he’s UConn’s leading scorer among returning players.

Lamb stepped up big in the NCAA tournament, scoring a season-high 24 in the win over San Diego State and using his impressive length (at 6’5”) and leaping ability to hold Butler’s Shelvin Mack to 13 points in the championship game.

With Walker gone, Lamb will have to carry the Huskies’ offense this year (though the addition of uber-recruit Andre Drummond will take some of the pressure off).

He has the potential to challenge for the Big East scoring title in his sophomore season.

3. Jared Cunningham, Oregon State

Although he’s not half-bad as a scorer—14.2 points a game in 2010-11—it’s on defense that Jared Cunningham stands out.

The 6’4” rising junior averaged 2.8 steals per game, fifth in the country last season.

Although the Pac-12 lacks a clear frontrunner, Cunningham’s Beavers (11-20 overall last season) aren’t likely to be a winning team this year.

Even if he’s short on help, though, Cunningham himself will be one of the conference’s best players.

2. Ashton Gibbs, Pitt

This pick comes with an asterisk, as the departure of Brad Wanamaker (or his own NBA aspirations) may push Ashton Gibbs into more of a point guard’s role this season.

Whatever his position, though, he’ll be one of the few scoring threats on the defense-first Panthers.

The 6’2” Gibbs averaged 16.7 points a game last season, a number bolstered by shooting an astounding 49 percent from three-point range.

While he’s unlikely to repeat that feat, his ability to score both off the dribble and from long range will make him tough to contain this season.

1. John Jenkins, Vanderbilt

John Jenkins is going to have to come up with one impressive encore.

After all, it will take some doing to top a sophomore season in which he led the SEC with 19.5 points a game.

With all five starters returning, Vandy is in a great position to improve on its surprisingly mediocre 9-7 SEC record.

If the Commodores do make noise in conference play this time around, Jenkins will be right in the middle of it.