Canadians to watch in upcoming NCAA men's conference tournaments

Today is officially March, and that means March Madness is right around the corner.

Some men’s conference tournaments have already begun including the Big Ten and Patriot League, with the rest beginning over the next week ― all of the conference tournaments will wrap up by March 11.

And then: BAM! It’s selection Sunday, followed by the madness that is the NCAA tournament.

There are more than 50 Canadian athletes playing on NCAA men’s basketball teams this season. Loads of new names will be entering the tournament this year and with standout performances so far in their rookie seasons, here are the top five freshman players from north of the border to watch out for as the madness gets started.

1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ― University of Kentucky

The Hamilton native has made an immediate impact on a top 25 team. He’s currently averaging almost 13 points, four rebounds and five assists per game. The 6’6″ guard had a season-high 30 points against Vanderbilt back in January, and has scored in double-digits in 19 games wearing the blue and white.

And there are already talks about him being a solid MVP candidate this season for the Wildcats (remember, this team won the NCAA championship just six years ago).

Kentucky is sitting in the number four spot in the Southeastern Conference and will finish their regular season on March 3 with a game against the University of Florida Gators. The SEC tournament begins March 7.

In addition to the above tweet, the only Kentucky freshmen to have more steals than Gilgeous-Alexander are Rajon Rondo, John Wall, Anthony Davis, De’Aaron Fox, Eric Bledsoe and Nerlens Noel.

Let that sink in for a second.

2. Lindell Wigginton ― Iowa State University

The 19-year-old from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, is currently leading the Cyclones in scoring, averaging 16.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and three assists per game. More impressively is his scoring efficiency; he’s shooting over 40 percent from beyond the arch and has hit 65 3-pointers so far this year.

Wigginton’s career-high with the Cyclones is 30 points, set against Baylor on Jan. 13. He was named the Big 12 Co-Newcomer of the Week after averaging 21.5 points for Iowa State in the last week of February. He only needs two points in his final conference game this year to become just the eighth freshman in Big 12 history to score 300 points during the conference season.

The Big 12 conference tournament will be held in Kansas City from March 7 to 10. Iowa is currently in last place.

3. Nickeil Alexander-Walker ― Virginia Tech

Alexander-Walker has made an immediate impact on the HokieBirds this year. He had 12 points (including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer) in the overtime victory over top-ranked Virginia on Feb. 10, and then exploded for 17 points in the 64-63 victory over highly-ranked Duke on Feb. 26.

This season, the Toronto native is averaging 10.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, while shooting 45 percent from the field. His 6’5″ frame makes him a force to be reckoned with on defense, too — he’s already racked-up 16 blocks and 27 steals in his rookie year.

Virginia will play their last conference game on March 3 against the Miami U Hurricanes before beginning their conference tournament on March 6 in Brooklyn. They are currently ranked 7th in the ACC.

4. Oshae Brissett ― Syracuse

The 6’8″ guard from Mississauga could be a one-and-done for the Orange. He’s averaging 14.5 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, with a season-high of 25 points (which he’s matched in three games) and season-high 14 rebounds (which he’s matched twice).

And he’s earned 11 (yes, ELEVEN!) double-doubles this year.

The only ACC freshman averaging more points this season is Duke’s Marvin Bagley III, and the only ACC freshmen with more rebounds are Bagley and Duke’s Wendell Carter Jr.

His hustle, aggression and athleticism has earned him two ACC Rookie of the Week honours; one in December and one in February.

Heading into the conference tournament, Syracuse is ranked 11th in the ACC.

5. Marcus Carr ― PITT

Although Pitt is yet to win a conference game (0-18), Canadian guard Marcus Carr is having himself a pretty good season (stat-wise, at least). He’s averaging almost 10 points, three rebounds and four assists per game, and has earned a total of 122 assists on the season.

The Panthers will be an underdog team in the postseason and don’t have high chances of making the NCAA tournament, so watching Carr in action will need to be a priority for Canadian basketball fans during the ACC conference tournament.

Carr scored a regular season-high 22 points against North Carolina on Feb. 3 following back-to-back 14 and 16-point games ― that 16-point game was against Syracuse on Jan. 27, where the Toronto native also dished out 12 assists.

His court vision is unmatched, and with a roster of mainly freshman, Carr and his team will look to improve their record next season (and they’ll be really, really good in three more years).

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