Unheralded Sweet 16 stars you should know
This group performing on big stage
INDIANAPOLIS — The Sweet 16 stars you know.
Kispert, Mobley, Zegarowski, Butler, Buddy Buckets — they’ve all been on national TV or talked about enough that even casual college basketball fans know their names.
This is about those guys you might not know, players from smaller schools or who otherwise don’t get the same attention as the prime timers.
They’re just as good, just as important to their teams — maybe more so — and are part of what has made this the maddest of Marches so far.
Max Abmas, Oral Roberts
His last name is pronounced Ace’-miss, which is ironic because he rarely does. The 6-foot-1-inch sophomore was lightly recruited out of Jesuit High School in Dallas and now all the power programs have to be wondering how they missed out on him.
Abmas led the nation in scoring at 24.5 points per game and didn’t care who he was going up against, scoring 33 against Oklahoma State, 28 against Wichita State. His range conjures up images of from-thelogo-shooters like Steph Curry and Damian Lillard, and he’s a dead-eye, shooting 41 percent from the arc.
Cameron Krutwig, Loyola Chicago
The 6-9 senior from Algonquin, Illinois, was a central figure in Loyola Chicago’s Cinderella turn at the 2018 Final Four. Now he’s back and there’s no looking away when he’s on the floor, for reasons far beyond the Krustache.
Krutwig was the first center in 15 years to be named Missouri Valley Conference player of the year after averaging 15.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
Quentin Grimes, Houston
Thriving in Kelvin Sampson’s free-flowing system, Grimes has the Cougars drumming up memories of the Phi Slama Jama days at Houston. He leads the Cougars with 18.1 points and has them on the cusp of their first Elite Eight appearance since 1984.
His half-brother, Tyler
Myers, plays for the NHL’S Winnipeg Jets, so his family is obviously oozing with athletic ability.
Chris Duarte, Oregon
Duarte played through a broken pinky at the end of his junior season and, with the added perspective of becoming a father, dedicated himself to getting bigger and better for his senior season.
Duarte became Oregon’s catalyst at both ends, leading the Ducks with 17.0 points while spearheading coach Dana Altman’s ever-changing defense.
Ethan Thompson, Oregon State
The 6-5 senior guard has carved out a name for himself during four seasons in Corvallis, scoring in bunches, dishing out assists and snaring rebounds.
Thompson led Oregon State in scoring 15.6 points per game while averaging 3.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. He’s also the unquestioned leader on the floor and in the huddle, taking a team picked to finish last in the Pac-12 to its first Sweet 16 since 1982.
His name is Thompson. Ethan Thompson.