The 10 Best Players in NCAA Tournament 

NCAA March Madness is basketball’s biggest championship. Players from around the country and clubs come here to compete for the most honorable college basketball trophy. The NCAA tournament creates opportunities for players to enter the big league. Not all the players get to play in the NBA but because of their performance, the contribution they always remain the club’s most valuable assets.

Here, we made a list of the best players in the NCAA tournament. These players also have a huge potential for the NBA draft.

Names	Position
1. Drew Timme	Power Forward / Center
2. Oscar Tshiebwe	Power Forward / Center
3. Armando Linwood Bacot Jr	Power Forward / Center
4. Marcus Sasser	Shooting Guard / Point Guard
5. Trayce Jackson-Davi	Power Forward / Center
6. Kofi Cockburn	Center
7. Ochai Agbaj	Shooting Guard
8. Hunter Dickinson	Center
9. Jaime Jaquez Jr.	Small Forward / Shooting Guard
10. Zach Edey	Center

1. Drew Timme

Position: Power Forward / Center

Team: Gonzaga Bulldogs

League: West Coast Conference

Drew Timme is one of the most skilled NCAA tournament players. His specialty is to frame and his ability to battle in the opponent’s basket made him a top-class rising star of the NCAA.

Name	Drew Timme
Date of Birth	September 9, 2000
Birth Place	Richardson, Texas
Current Age	22
Occupation	Power forward / Center
Career	College- 2019-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $80,000
Height	6 ft 10 in
Weight	107 kg
Ethnicity	American
Eye Color	Blue
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	15.7
Rebounds Per Game	6.4
Assists Per Game	2.1

Career:

• Time had a very successful junior career, he was the District 8-6A Most Valuable Player and also second-team All-State by USA Today. He finished his junior career with an average of 27.7 points, 17.9 rebounds, and 4.3 assists.
• In his senior, he got offers from Texas A&M, Michigan State, Illinois, Arizona, Alabama, Texas, and Gonzaga. Time chose to go with Gonzaga in 2019.
• In 2020 February, Timme scored 20 points a season-highest point against Saint Mary and won the game by 90-60.
• The second season started quite goodly for Timme, he was awarded the Preseason All-WCC team as well as the watchlist for the Karl Malone Award.
• One of his notable victories in 2020 came on November 27, Timme scored 28 points and 10 rebounds against Auburn and won the game by 90-67 points.
• At the end of 2020, Timmie’s average earning point was 19, with 7.0 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game. He helped the team to reach the title game.
• On November 13, 2021, Timme scored 37 points, his career highest, and added seven rebounds and three assists in an 86–74 win against fifth-ranked Texas.

Achievement

• Awarded Karl Malone Award 2021
• Won the WCC Player of the Year 2022
• Two-time First-team All-WCC 2021, 2022
• 2× Consensus second-team All-American 2021, 2022

Interesting Fact and Controversy

• Time is quite famous for making harsh comments about his opponents. For the time he said, “We are not friends for the next 40 minutes” or “We don’t know if we will win or lose but we won’t go soft on them.”
• Cause of his mustaches Timme makes quite an impression, many people consider him a villain.

2. Oscar Tshiebwe

Position: Power forward / Center

Team: Kentucky Wildcats

League: Southeastern Conference

Oscar Tshiebwe is the running season’s most important and valuable player. There is a huge chance that this time he will be drafted for NBA. Tshiebwe was the 2022 National college player of the year, NCAA season rebounds leader, and holds many other achievements.

Name	Oscar Tshiebwe
Date of Birth	27 November 1999
Birth Place	Lubumbashi, DR Congo
Current Age	23
Occupation	Power Forward / Center
Career	College-2019-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $1 Million
Height	6 ft 9 in
Weight	118 kg
Ethnicity	Congolese
Eye Color	Dark Brown
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	12.8
Rebounds Per Game	11.3
Assists Per Game	.7

Career:

• Tshiebwe led him to the Class 1A title of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association. As junior his average points were 21.1 per game.
• Tshiebwe played an amazing game in his senior year pointing 23.4 average 18 rebounds, and five blocks per game. In his senior year, Tshiebwe was named Pennsylvania Gatorade Player Of The Year and was a Class 6A All-State first-team pick.
• On October 20, 2018, Tshiebwe finalize his decision to play with West Virginia.
• Tshiebwe was named the Big 12 newcomer of the week as he double-double with 20 points and 17 rebounds at Pittsburg.
• Tshiebwe led his team to the victory in Cancun Challenge championship game, scoring 19 points and 18 rebounds against Wichita State. He was also honored with MVP.
• In his second year, Tshiebwe played 10 games with West Virginia, averaging 8.5 points and 7.8 rebounds, and then left for Kentucky. He chose Kentucky over Miami, NC State, and Illinois.
• He debuted for Kentucky against Duke, and earned 17 points and 20 rebounds, though they lost the game by 79-71 points.
• One of his best games in 2022 was against Western Kentucky, set a Rupp Arena-record 28 rebounds with 14 points, and won the game by 95-60.

Achievement

At the end of 2022, Tshiebwe was named Sporting News National Player of the Year and also the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year.

• Kentucky Colonel 2022
• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award 2022
• NCAA season rebounds leader 2022
• SEC Player of the Year
• SEC All-Defensive Team

Fun Facts and Controversy

• Tshiebwe is often called the “Dancing Machine” for his amazing skill in the center.

3. Armando Bacot

Position: Power Forward / Center

Team: North Carolina Tar Heels

League: Atlantic Coast Conference

Last season Armando Bacot was an absolute beast and unstoppable. He was the team’s biggest hope. He is undoubtedly the best player in the NCAA tournament.

Name	Armando Linwood Bacot Jr
Date of Birth	March 6, 2000
Birth Place	Richmond, Virginia
Current Age	22
Occupation	Power forward / Center
Career	College-2019-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $3 Million
Height	6 ft 11 in
Weight	107 kg
Ethnicity	American
Eye Color	Black
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	13.0
Rebounds Per Game	10.0
Assists Per Game	1.2

Career:

• Bacot played his high school games with Trinity Episcopal School and IMG Academy.
• He was ranked a five-star recruit by ESPN and Rivals, and a four-star recruit by 247Sports. Bacot got offers from Duke, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Villanova, And Vcu and committed to play for North Carolina.
• Bacot started to show his potential when he helped the team to get victory over Elon by 75-62 on November 20, 2019. He scored 22 points and 14 rebounds in that game.
• On November 29, he stepped onto the court against Oregon and scored 23 points and 12 rebounds.
• On December 4, Bacot played against Ohio State and hurt his left ankle. Everyone thought he will miss a few games, however, Bacot return in the next game and scored 11 points.
• Bacot freshmen year went well, averaging 9.6 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, shooting 46.9 percent from the floor.
• In his sophomore season, Bacot averaged points was 12.3 and 7.8 rebounds per game, shooting 62.8 percent from the floor. He was declared for the 2021 NBA draft but later withdrew his name from the draft to remain in Chapel Hill for his junior season.
• Bacot became the captain of UNC alongside sophomores R. J. Davis and Caleb Love. He set his career highest 29 points and 21 rebounds on January 8, 2022, against Virginia.
• Bacot helped UNC to enter into the final four of the national championship game. He scored 475 rebounds in that season, the highest fourth record in NCAA history.
• However, North Carolina lost the tournament to Kansas. In that match earned 15 points and 15 rebounds, becoming the first to have a double-double in all six tournament games.

Achievement

• First-team All-ACC 2022
• Third-team All-ACC 2021
• Jordan Brand Classic 2019

4. Marcus Sasser

Position: Shooting Guard / Power Guard

Team: Houston Cougars

League: Atlantic Coast Conference

Marcus Sasser was thinking of taking his game to the next level this 2021-22 season but a toe injury hampered his journey after 12 games. However, he is thinking of starting the game where he left off.

Name	Marcus Jerome Sasser Jr.
Date of Birth	September 21, 2000
Birth Place	Dallas, Texas, U.S
Current Age	22
Occupation	Shooting Guard / Point Guard
Career	College-2019-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $3 Million
Height	6 ft 2 in
Weight	88 kg
Ethnicity	American
Eye Color	Not Available
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	12.0
Rebounds Per Game	2.6
Assists Per Game	2.1

Career:

• Sasser played his junior-level basketball with Red Oak High School where his uncle guided him. He got offers from Colorado State, Smu, and Utep and decided to go with Houston. He was named District 14-5A’s Most Valuable Player and Class 5A All-State.
• Sasser had trouble at the beginning. He joined the starting lineup in the second half of the freshmen season.
• He pulled off the season’s highest point 26 against SMU in a 73–72 overtime loss game. Sasser ended the freshman season with an average of 8.1 points and shot 35.2 percent from three-point range.
• After an outstanding season, Sasser was named American Athletic Conference All-Freshman Team.
• In the next year, Sasser helped his team to reach the final four of the NCAA tournament championship. His sophomore career average point was 13.7 and 2.6 rebounds per game.

Achievement

• Second-Team All-AAC 2021
• AAC All-Freshman Team 2023

Fun Fact and Controversy

People talked about the issue of Sasser’s withdrawal from the NBA draft. He could easily get into the game in the second overall pick. Some of his fans are happy to see him back in the college game cause they think, Sasser should stay one more year with Houston.

5. Trayce Jackson-Davis

Position: Power Forward / Center

Team: Indiana Hoosiers

League: Big Ten Conference

Trayce Jackson-Davis had to be the best player in the NCAA tournament. He is the main reason for Indiana Hoosiers getting some big trophies and leading the season. Jackson-Davis is the new Tom Crean for Hoosiers who guided the program to an outright league championship in 2016.

Name	Trayce Jackson-Davis
Date of Birth	February 22, 2000
Birth Place	Long Beach, California, United States
Current Age	22
Occupation	Power Forward / Center
Career	College-2019-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $1 Million
Height	6 ft 9 in
Weight	111 kg
Ethnicity	American
Eye Color	Not Available
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	16.9
Rebounds Per Game	8.5
Assists Per Game	1.5

Career:

• Jackson-Davis played junior basketball with the Center Grove High School, score averaged 21.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, 4.1 blocks, and 2.6 assists per game while shooting 67.0 percent from the field. He helped his team to get 20 wins in a season.
• In his senior year, Jackson-Davis made an average of 21.6 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.9 blocks, 1.7 assists, and one steal per game in a total of 29 games. He has 1,768 career points while entering the state semifinals.
• Jackson-Davis was a four-star recruit by Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN. On November 30, 2018, he committed to play for Indiana.
• Jackson-Davis debuted his college basketball with Indiana in the 2019-20 season. In his first match, he faced Western Illinois and earned eight points and six rebounds in a 98–65 win game.
• Against North Alabama, Jackson-Davis made 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots. It included him on the Big Ten co-freshman report.
• After that Jackson-Davis was named conference freshman after a victory game against Louisiana Tech scoring 21 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.
• He finished his freshman year with an average of 13.5 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game.
• Jackson-Davis improved in the next season and made averaged 19.1 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.
• On November 27, 2021, Jackson-Davis set a career-high 43 points in a 90–79 win over Marshall. In the last 27 years, no one crossed 40 points scoreboard for Indiana.

Achievement

Third-team Third-team All-American – USBWA, NABC, SN 2021

First-team All-Big Ten 2021

Second-team All-Big Ten 2022

Big Ten All-Freshman Team 2020

6. Kofi Cockburn

Position: Center

Team: Niigata Albirex

Selecting Kofi Cockburn as the best player in the NCAA tournament could bring up some discussion. Not everyone will agree with us but bypassing the 7′ mountain block is not an easy case. For the team, He is truly a gem in the center.

Name	Kofi Cockburn
Date of Birth	1 September 1999
Birth Place	Kingston, Jamaica
Current Age	23
Occupation	Center
Career	College-2019-2022
Net Worth	Approximately $5 Million
Height	7 ft 0 in
Weight	133 kg
Ethnicity	Jamaican
Eye Color	Brown
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	17.2
Rebounds Per Game	9.6
Assists Per Game	.5

Career:

• Cockburn played his Amateur Athletic Union with New York Runs. In 2017 he was selected to play Basketball Without Borders Americans camp. After finishing his junior season, he played in the World Team for the 2018 Nike Hoop Summit.
• Cockburn was transferred to Oak Hill Academy for his senior season.
• After the senior high school season, Cockburn got offers from 26 colleges. He has a previous relationship with Illinois assistant coach Orlando Antigua and decided to play for them. He was a four-star recruit and consider in the top 50 players of the 2019 class.
• Cockburn debuted against Nicholls, earned 10 points and 11 rebounds, and defeated the Nicholls by 78–70 in overtime.
• Cockburn was Illinois’ second-leading scorer and top rebounder in freshman year. He finished the season averaging 13.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game while leading the Illini with 1.4 blocks per game.
• The next year pretty well for Cockburn, he averaged 17.7 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game while shooting 65.4 percent from the field.

Achievement

• 2022 Consensus First-team All-American
• 2021 Consensus Second-team All-American 2021
• Two-time First-team All-Big Ten 2021, 2022
• He won the 2020 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Award

Fun Facts and Controversy

• Because of selling apparel and memorabilia, Cockburn was suspended for three games.
• Cockburn received and drew attention to the matter of racist and xenophobic comments towards him.

7. Ochai Agbaji

Position: Shooting Guard

Team: Utah Jazz

Right now Ochai Agbaji is the boss of the NCAA and future NBA tournament. There are no guards are on the league like Agbaji, he is truly the best guard of this era.

Name	Ochai Young Agbaji
Date of Birth	April 20, 2000
Birth Place	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Current Age	22
Occupation	Shooting Guard
Career	College-2018-2022
Net Worth	Approximately $5 Million
Height	6 ft 5 in
Weight	98 kg
Ethnicity	Nigeria Descent
Eye Color	Black
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	12.8
Rebounds Per Game	4.4
Assists Per Game	1.6

Career

Agbaji used to play soccer at first then moved to basketball. He didn’t play for any Power Five college program until his senior season. In his senior season, he scored averaged 27.6 points and 8.6 rebounds. Agbaji was named Kansas City Star All-Metro player of the year.

He got three stars from 247Sports and Rivals and committed to play for Kansas over offers from Texas A&M and Wisconsin.

Agbaji debuted on January 29, 2019, against Texas. They lost the game but Agbaji gave an outstanding performance of 24 points, bringing in seven rebounds and stealing the ball twice.

As a freshman, he started 16 games and played a total of 22 matches scoring averaging 8.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.

Agbaji’s sophomore started on November 5, 2019, against ranked four Duke, and scored 15 points in that match.

He finished the season with an average of 10 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

Achievement

• NCAA champion 2022
• Agbaji got selected for the 2022 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player
• Consensus first-team All-American 2022
• He was the Big 12 Player of the Year in 2022

Fun Facts and Controversy

Agbaji faced quite a legal issue problem when he forget his taxes.

Outside of the field, Agbaji drew the most attention when a girl on TikTok talked about him and how Agbaji ignored her while being in a relationship in 2020.

8. Hunter Dickinson

Position: Center

Team: Michigan Wolverines

League: Big Ten Conference

Hunter Dickinson is probably the best underrated NCAA tournament player of this era. In the last two seasons, Dickinson has been an unstoppable bullet. He got an astonishing future in future in the big leagues.

Name	Hunter Dickinson
Date of Birth	November 25, 2000
Birth Place	Alexandria, Virginia
Current Age	22
Occupation	Center
Career	College-2020-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $1 Million
Height	7 ft 1 in
Weight	118 kg
Ethnicity	American
Eye Color	Not Available
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	18.6
Rebounds Per Game	8.6
Assists Per Game	2.3

Career

• Dickson played his high school game with DeMatha Catholic High School. In his sophomore season, he brought the school Washington Catholic Athletic Conference for the first time since 2011. His junior season ended with averaging 17.6 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game.
• One of his best senior season performances took place on February 11, 2020, against St. John’s College High School. He recorded 40 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks, winning the match by 71-63 points. Dickson ended the season with 18.1 points average, 10.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 2.1 blocks per game.
• He got an invitation to play at the Jordan Brand Classic tournament.
• Dickson was a four-star recruit and second-best from Maryland in the 2020 class. He selected Michigan to pursue his college basketball career over Duke, Florida State, and Notre Dam.
• He debuted for Michigan on November 25, 2020, against Bowling Green, scored 11 points and had eight rebounds, and won the match by 96-82 points.
• Dickson set his career-high record on December 31, scoring 26 points and 11 rebounds, for his third career double-double against Maryland.

Achievement

• Consensus Second-Team All-American 2021
• Big Ten Freshman of the Year 2021
• First-Team All-Big Ten 2021
• Big Ten All-Freshman Team 2021

Fun Facts and Controversy

Dickson outraged his fans by commenting about a Big Ten rival during an appearance on the Roundball Podcast.

9. Jaime Jaquez Jr.

Position: Small Forward / Shooting Guard

Team: UCLA Bruins

League: Pac-12 Conference

Jaime Jaquez Jr. is now the leading superstar of the Bruins, he is the team’s biggest hope. He did an amazing score last season and started the 2022-23 season in their place.

Name	Jaime Jaquez Jr.
Date of Birth	February 18, 2001
Birth Place	Irvine, California
Current Age	21
Occupation	Small forward / Shooting Guard
Career	College-2019-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $1 Million
Height	6 ft 7 in
Weight	102 kg
Ethnicity	Mexican / American
Eye Color	Not Available
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	11.18
Rebounds Per Game	5.5
Assists Per Game	1.8

Career

• As a high school freshman, Jaquez scored averaged 15.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.6 steals per game. He led his team’s 25–7 record and the CIF semifinals.
• In his senior year, Jaquez won the Coastal Canyon League title for his team. His score averaged 31.7 points, 11.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.1 steals per game.
• He finished his high school career with a record of 2,653 points. Jaquez also broke the high school’s highest single record against Royal High School by pointing 54.
• Jaquez went to UCLA Bruins for his college basketball career starting in November 2019. He set the seasons-highest score against San Jose State, 18 points on December 1.
• Jaquez’s freshman year ended with an average of 8.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
• In 2021-22 Jaquez suffered from an ankle injury, he missed a few games for that.
• Jaquez set his career highest point on February 28 against Washington. He earned 30 points and won the match by 77–66.

Achievement

• First-team All-Pac-12 2022
• Second-team All-Pac-12 2021
• Two-Time Pac-12 All-Defensive Team 2021, 2022

10. Zach Edey

Position: Center 

Team: Purdue Boilermakers

League: Big Ten Conference

Trevion Williams is gone, Jaden Ivey is in the NBA, and now Zach Edey had to be the best player in the NCAA tournament for Purdue Boilermakers. Now the frontcourt and the offensive line belong the Edey. If he could use that place then Edey is gonna be the most dangerous player of the NCAA.

Name	Zachary Edey
Date of Birth	May 14, 2002
Birth Place	Toronto, Ontario
Current Age	20
Occupation	Center
Career	College-2020-Present
Net Worth	Approximately $1 Million
Height	7 ft 4 in
Weight	134 kg
Ethnicity	Asian
Eye Color	Brown
Gender	Male

NCAA Career:

Points Per Game	13.3
Rebounds Per Game	7.3
Assists Per Game	0.8

Career

• Edey started his basketball career with a Northern Kings Amateur Athletic Union program. He received scholarship offers from  Baylor, Santa Clara, and many other colleges and chose to go with Purdue.
• Edey made a season-highest record point on March 2, 2021, against Wisconsin by scoring 21 points and seven rebounds.
• He finished his freshmen year with an average of 8.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game.
• In his sophomore year, Edey scored his then-career-highest record of 24 points and 10 rebounds just in 20 minutes against Wisconsin, however, they lost the game by 74-69 points.
• A month later on February 26, 2022, Edey broke his career-highest record and made 25 points in 22 minutes.
• Edey finished his sophomore career averaging 14.4 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.2 blocks, playing only 19 minutes per game.

Achievement

• Second-team All-Big Ten 2022
• Big Ten All-Freshman Team 2021

Fun Facts and Controversy

Edey is 7 feet 4 inches, one of the tallest men in NCAA Division I.

Conclusion

Making the list of best players in the NCAA tournament is very hard. We selected the best of the best NCAA players, honorable mention- Kendric Davis, Caleb Love, Keynote George, Mike Miles, Nick Smith, Dereck Lively, etc. Keep an eye on these players and you will see what they are capable of.

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