College Basketball: Top 25 Players from Outside the 6 Major Conferences

As Jimmer Fredette reminded the world last season, the power conferences of college hoops have no monopoly on top-flight players. Fredette is gone to the NBA, but a wealth of talent remains in the mid-majors and below.

Even Virginia Commonwealth, which suffered enormous graduation losses from last year’s Final Four squad, still boasts one of the nation’s best in shooting guard Bradford Burgess. The senior sniper, a perfect fit for the Rams’ three-point-heavy offense, has the skills to lead VCU back to the NCAA tournament come March.

Read on for a further look at Burgess and the 25 best players to be found outside the major conferences.

25. Chace Stanback, UNLV

On an undersized UNLV squad, 6’8” Chace Stanback became a frontcourt player with perimeter skills. Stanback led the team with 6.0 rebounds a game last season, while scoring 13 points a night.

Stanback, who will be suspended for the season opener after pleading guilty to DUI, will replace Tre’Von Willis as the leader of a Rebels team that could be in for a big year.

With other MWC powers suffering crippling graduation and draft losses (San Diego State) or leaving the conference entirely (BYU), UNLV has a great chance to capture its first regular season conference title in a decade.

24. Samme Givens, Drexel

As brilliant as Kenneth Faried was last season, he may not even have been the country’s most impressive undersized rebounder. Samme Givens—6’5” to Faried’s 6’8”—finished 20th in the nation with 10.1 boards a game.

Unfortunately for Drexel, Givens’ scoring touch (12.2 points a game) can't compare with his instincts on the glass. Still, he’s a safe bet to be among the nation’s rebounding leaders once again in his senior year with the Dragons.

23. T.J. McConnell, Duquesne

Unheralded Duquesne boasted two of the country’s most dangerous defenders in 2010-11. Damian Saunders has graduated, but ball-hawking guard T.J. McConnell returns to keep the Dukes’ defense clicking.

As a freshman, the 6’0” McConnell finished fourth in the nation with 2.9 steals a game. He may not be able to top that figure, but expect him to improve on his 10.7 points and team-high 4.3 assists per game in his sophomore year.

22. Cameron Moore, UAB

Cameron Moore spent 2010-11 showing the Blazers what they’d been missing by keeping him on the bench for two years. The 6’10” forward led the team with 9.4 rebounds a game while finishing second with 14.0 points a night.

The Blazers’ superlative backcourt—team scoring leader Jamarr Sanders and national assist champ Aaron Johnson—has graduated, making this entirely Moore’s team. Expect him to thrive under that pressure in his senior season.

21. Ramone Moore, Temple

In his first year as a starter, Ramone Moore came into his own in 2010-11. The 6’4” shooting guard led the Owls with 14.9 points a game, while also averaging 4.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists.

The graduation of Lavoy Allen will cost Temple dearly on the inside, putting even more pressure on Moore to excel in his senior season.

With fellow senior Juan Fernandez running the point, though, Moore—who nearly declared for the NBA draft this spring—has a good chance to put up some huge scoring numbers in his final year on campus.

20. Ken Horton, Central Connecticut State

Say what you will about the level of competition Ken Horton faces in the Northeast Conference, but Horton’s stats rank him among the top forwards in the country.

The 6’6” Horton averaged 19.5 points and 8.9 rebounds a game last season, not to mention 1.6 blocks (all team highs).

Even with Horton’s considerable help, the Blue Devils managed only an 11-7 record in conference play last season. There’s little more Horton can contribute to make his senior year more successful, but don’t expect his numbers to be anything but stellar.

19. Augustine Rubit, South Alabama

Stuck on a struggling South Alabama team in the frequently-ignored Sun Belt conference, Augustine Rubit didn’t get much attention as a freshman. Nevertheless, the 6’6” center got his college career off to an impressive start.

Rubit averaged 11 rebounds a game, placing him sixth in the nation in 2010-11, while also scoring 13.1 points a night.

He may not be able to repeat his stellar .559 shooting percentage, but don’t be surprised if Rubit’s other numbers soar even higher now that he has a full season of college experience behind him.

18. Hank Thorns, TCU

Few transfers in recent memory have provided a more pleasant surprise for their new teams than Hank Thorns. After two indifferent seasons at Virginia Tech, the 5’9” Thorns blew up in his first year as a Horned Frog, finishing fourth in the nation with 7.0 assists per game.

Thorns is only a competent scorer (10.7 points a night), but his passing is the most effective weapon in TCU’s arsenal.

With an experienced lineup around him (four starters return in all), he gives the Mountain West’s worst team a chance to make a serious improvement in 2011-12.

17. Robert Sacre, Gonzaga

With Steven Gray’s departure, the Zags will be leaning heavily on their frontcourt this season, and no player will shoulder more of that load than Robert Sacre. The center led the team with 6.2 rebounds a game last season, while scoring 12.5 points a night.

Unsurprisingly, the seven-footer Sacre has also been a valuable shot blocker, averaging 1.9 rejections a game each of the last two seasons. He’ll have every opportunity to post the best numbers of his career in his final season as a Bulldog.

16. Scott Machado, Iona

Otherwise-unheralded Iona ranked fifth in the nation last season with 17.4 assists per game. It isn’t hard to find where the credit belongs: junior PG Scott Machado averaged 7.5 dimes a game, third-best in the country.

Machado’s numbers skyrocketed with the arrival of juco forward Michael Glover last season. With both players returning for their senior seasons, Machado should be up at the top of the national leader boards once again.

15. Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure

St. Bonaventure was about as mediocre as it gets last season—16-15 overall, 8-8 in the A-10—but star forward Andrew Nicholson was anything but. Nicholson averaged 20.8 points a game last season, third-best in the country among returning players.

The 6’9” Nicholson also led the team with 7.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. Back for his senior year, he’ll likely continue his one-man-gang performance for the Bonnies.

14. Chris De La Rosa, UMBC

It’s never a good sign for an offense when one of the best point guards in the country can’t save it. UMBC finished 5-25, ranking 284th in the nation in scoring, despite the services of Chris De La Rosa.

De La Rosa, then a junior, finished 14th in the nation with 6.0 assists per game while also leading the Retrievers with 15.5 points a night. The 5’10” guard even averaged 3.9 rebounds a contest, for all the good it did his struggling team.

13. C.J. Aiken, St. Joseph's

On an otherwise unimpressive St. Joe’s squad, C.J. Aiken made quite a splash. The 6’9” freshman finished third in the country (tops among returning players) with 3.5 blocks per game.

The rest of Aiken’s game is still a work in progress, as he averaged only 7.4 points and 4.3 rebounds a night. Fortunately for him, he can count on his defense to keep him on the floor while he develops in other areas.

12. Greg Mangano, Yale

It’s looking like a year for the unexpected in the Ivy League. Perennial also-ran Harvard appears ready to make a run at the conference crown, while similarly underwhelming Yale may boast the league’s best individual player in Greg Mangano.

The 6’10” senior forward led the conference with 10 rebounds a game last season, while finishing 10th in the country with 3.0 blocks per contest.

Mangano also contributed a team-high 16.3 points a night (second-best in the conference), and could put up even bigger numbers in his final season in New Haven.

11. Orlando Johnson, UCSB

Sometimes one terrific player makes all the difference when it comes to the postseason. What Kemba Walker was in the Big East, Orlando Johnson became in the Big West, leading an 18-13 Gauchos squad to the conference tournament title and a trip to the NCAAs.

The 6’5” swing man ranked 15th in the country with 21.1 points a game, while also leading the team with 6.3 rebounds and finishing second with 2.9 assists.

With classmate and running mate James Nunnally back in the frontcourt, Johnson could get one last shot to lead a March Madness upset as a senior.

10. Jay Threatt, Delaware State

Delaware State’s Jay Threatt isn’t going to win many games as a scorer—his 9.7 points a game last year were a career high—but he’s still one of the nation’s most dangerous guards. The 5’11” Threatt tied for second in the country last season with 3.1 steals per game.

Threatt (no relation to former Laker Sedale) also dished out 6.0 assists a game, despite a dearth of scoring talent among his teammates.

The Hornets would be better off if he doesn’t finish second on the team in rebounding again (3.9 boards a night), but they’ll be just as happy to have another year of Threatt’s performance everywhere on the floor and the stat sheet.

9. Arsalan Kazemi, Rice

The first Division I scholarship player from Iran, Arsalan Kazemi is certainly making a strong first impression. Rice’s leading scorer at 15.2 points a game, Kazemi also averaged 11 rebounds a contest, good for seventh in the country.

The 6’7” Kazemi is only a junior, so he could be even more impressive in 2011-12. That’s bad news for Conference USA opponents, but good news for an Owls team looking to improve on last year’s 14-18 finish.

8. C.J. McCollum, Lehigh

Few players in the country can match C.J. McCollum for production on both ends of the floor. The Lehigh shooting guard is the nation’s leading returning scorer at 21.8 points per game, and his 2.5 steals a night ranked 13th in the country last season.

The 6’3” McCollum also chipped in 7.8 rebounds a game in 2010-11. He’s got a lot to live up to in his junior season, but with the Mountain Hawks returning most of last season’s very young core, he should have an even better team around him to help him succeed.

7. Chris Gaston, Fordham

Chris Gaston is about the only thing keeping the Rams on the map after a disastrous 1-15 campaign in A-10 play. Fortunately for Fordham, if the team only gets one weapon, Gaston is quite a weapon.

The 6’7” forward has led the team in scoring each of his first two seasons (a combined 17 points per game) and is the nation’s leading returning rebounder at 11.3 boards a night.

He may not have NBA length, but the junior has already established himself as one of the most dangerous forwards in the college game.

6. Kyle O'Quinn, Norfolk State

The Norfolk State Spartans didn’t make much of a ripple in last year’s MEAC, but don’t blame Kyle O’Quinn for it. The 6’10” forward was fifth in the country with 11.1 rebounds a game and fourth with 3.4 blocks per contest.

O’Quinn also did plenty of work on the offensive end, leading the Spartans with 16.4 points a night. If he can put up a comparably impressive year as a senior, he might even become the program’s first NBA draftee since 1988—two years before O’Quinn was born.

5. D.J. Cooper, Ohio

In a season filled with elite scoring point guards, D.J. Cooper was bound to be overlooked. Even on an Ohio team with minimal national exposure, though, Cooper proved himself as a top-notch backcourt presence.

The 5’11” Cooper led the team with 16.2 points and 2.3 steals per game, and his 7.5 assists were the nation’s best average for any returning player. He even contributed 5.1 rebounds a night, and there’s little doubt that he’ll be asked to carry the Bobcats again in 2011-12.

4. Bradford Burgess, VCU

The rest of the vaunted Virginia Commonwealth backcourt has graduated, but Bradford Burgess returns to lead the Rams on another NCAA tournament run.

The 6’6” Burgess was one of the top marksmen in VCU’s perimeter-first offense, averaging 14 points a game (second on the team) while hitting 43.4 percent of his three-point tries.

Burgess, who also finished second on the squad with 6.1 rebounds a game, will provide the senior leadership for an otherwise raw team.

If he can get some help in the post from sophomores Juvonte Reddic and D.J. Haley, he could be draining threes well into March once again.

3. Matthew Dellavedova, St. Mary's

The graduation of star point guard Mickey McConnell opens the door for Matthew Dellavedova to take over a very good St. Mary’s team. Dellavedova finished second to McConnell with 5.2 assists a game last season while also scoring 13.3 points a night.

With an experienced team around him, Dellavedova’s numbers are only likely to go up in his junior season. He may not be able to get the Gaels past perpetual rival Gonzaga, but he should be able to lead them to an NCAA tournament berth either way.

2. Will Barton, Memphis

The face of a young Tigers team that came of age in the tournament last year, Will Barton is set to be one of the breakout stars of 2011-12. The 6’6” shooting guard led Memphis with 12.3 points a game last season, while finishing second in rebounds (4.9) and steals (1.5).

Barton’s size and athleticism make him an imposing defender as well as a dangerous scorer. If he can improve his outside shooting (.265 from beyond the arc), the sophomore will take his place among the best 2-guards in the country.

1. Tu Holloway, Xavier

Tu Holloway did an impressive job establishing his bona fides as a leader by carrying an otherwise-unremarkable Musketeers squad to a 15-1 conference record and a No. 6 seed in the NCAA tournament.

He didn’t do too badly on the stat sheet, either, averaging 20.2 points and 5.5 assists per game to lead the team in both categories.

Holloway’s 6’0” stature can put him at a disadvantage against bigger opponents, as when Marquette held him to five points on 1-for-8 shooting in Xavier’s second-round exit from the tournament.

Even when foes know what’s coming, though, the more common outcome (this year as last year) will be for Holloway to continue putting up points and Xavier to continue racking up victories.