College basketball predictions and winners for every major conference (not you, Pac-12)

THIS. IS. MARCH. We made it, everyone. The big five conferences* are closing in on the end of the regular season, and many of the conference and player of the year races are heating up. In order to celebrate the beginning of the best month in college sports and to get everyone caught up if you for some reason haven’t been paying attention, we compiled a primer for you.

For each conference, we looked at the favorite for the regular season title, potential players, defenders, freshmen, and coaches of the year, and took a stab at the first-team all-conference team.

North Carolina, and Virginia are currently deadlocked at 13-2 in the conference standings with three games to play. Duke is right behind them with a 12-3 record. So why the Cavaliers? Easy. Virginia is in the driver’s seat as Duke and UNC still have to face each other. Duke dropping a game to Virginia Tech broke a three-way tie in which the Blue Devils had the tiebreaker thanks to sweeping the Cavaliers this season. Since Virginia defeated UNC in their lone head-to-head meeting this season, even if the Tar Heels win out, the Hoos will finish first.

Oh, and no one knows if Duke will have Zion Williamson. He’s ... kinda good.

He’s clearly the best player in the country, and therefore he’s also the best player (and freshman) in the ACC. Zion’s ability to impact the game on both ends of the court is undeniable as he has 2.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game while boasting an effective FG% of 71 percent (good for fourth-best in the country per KenPom).

Plus he can do things like this:

If you gauge defense only on blocks and steals, you probably think I’m an idiot. If you watch Hunter play, he’s undoubtedly a defensive star on a defensively gifted Virginia team. Bennett’s defensive system doesn’t gamble on steals, and Mamadi Diakite is the blocker for the Hoos. His versatility in guarding multiple positions gives him the edge over Duke’s Tre Jones in my eyes.

Here he is on Virginia Tech’s Nickeil Alexander-Walker:

Up until Louisville’s melt-down at Duke (and subsequent blown lead against Virginia and loss at Boston College), this was Chris Mack’s award to lose. It seems as if the light first half of the Cards’ conference schedule maybe inflated expectations a bit.

On the flip side, what Williams has done down the stretch after superstar Justin Robinson went down with an injury has been remarkable. The Hokies are 5-3 without Robinson, with their latest win coming at home against Duke. Kerry Blackshear has been a force, averaging 20.5 points per game since Robinson’s injury.

Zion Williamson, Fr., Duke

RJ Barrett, Fr., Duke

De’Andre Hunter, RS So., Virginia

Cam Johnson, Sr., North Carolina

Kerry Blackshear, Jr., Virginia Tech

Dare I say it? Is the streak finally going to end? There seems like a legitimate chance that Kansas’ streak of 14 straight years with at least a share of the Big-12 title, but until it actually happens I’m not picking anyone else. Kansas is a game behind with three to play, but the Jayhawks have an easier path with Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, and Baylor remaining. K-State lost to Kansas in their last game, and have Baylor, TCU, and Oklahoma left. Texas Tech is tied with Kansas State for first with an 11-4 conference record, but have the toughest path remaining with TCU, Texas, and Iowa State.

Dang it, Kansas is gonna pull it off again, aren’t they?

Culver does a little bit of everything. Defense is outstanding, he’s shooting at a respectable 34 percent clip from outside the arc, and has a strong 55 percent from two. He draws fouls while not committing them, and has scored in double-digits in every game in 2019 except one.

Kansas’s Dedric Lawson is another good choice, but it’s hard not to love what Culver is doing this season.

The Big 12 isn’t a hugely freshman-heavy league this year with elder statesmen ruling the roost for the most part, but Horton-Tucker is a high-usage player for the Cyclones and is making the most of the season.

Really anyone from Texas Tech’s top rated defense would have been an acceptable choice here, but Mooney has been a leader all season. The Red Raiders are only allowing 58 points per game while letting opponents shoot just 36.7 percent from the field.

The Wildcats were a nine-seed in last year’s bracket, making it all the way to the Elite 8 before losing to the darling Loyola squad. Their performance this season has shown that it’s not just a fluke, and Weber has an experienced squad that’s trending towards a six-seed or better this season, not to mention poised to maybe end Kansas’s Big 12 dominance.

Dedric Lawson, Jr., Kansas

Jarrett Culver, So., Texas Tech

Marial Shayok, Sr., Iowa State

Barry Brown, Sr., Kansas State

Christian James, Sr., Oklahoma

Michigan is a long shot here after losing the first matchup with the Spartans, but they sit one game behind MSU and Purdue (both 14-3) at 13-4. Purdue’s remaining games (Ohio State, Minnesota, and Northwestern) are easier than MSU’s (Indiana, Nebraska, and Michigan), so there’s a chance that the Boilermakers slip into that No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tournament.

Winston, Winston, Winston. There are some outstanding individual players in the Big Ten (Wisconsin’s Ethan Happ, really anyone from Michigan, Purdue’s Carsen Edwards), but Winston has been incredibly consistent while everything has been in flux around him. Winston has scored at least 20 points in 11 of MSU’s 17 conference games, and has been huge with injuries to Nick Ward and Josh Langford.

Indiana hasn’t been ... great ... this season, but Langford has been fun to watch. His 2OT layup (HE WENT TO THE RIM!) gave the Hoosiers their second Big Ten conference win, both of which were over ranked foes in Michigan State and Wisconsin. Langford struggles from deep (just a 27 percent shooter), but he’s shooting 54 percent on his twos and is good getting to the line.

This came down to either Charles Matthews or his teammate Simpson, and either one is very deserving. Michigan has the No. 3 rated defense on KenPom this year, and both players will harass you all game. Simpson, a finalist for National Defensive Player of the Year, has active hands without fouling and is the key to making it all work for coach John Beilein.

Turgeon has dramatically exceeded expectations with a young Terrapin team, leading them to a 12-6 Big Ten record with two games remaining. The Terps are looking at a fifth-seed in the NCAA tournament, and he has bonafide stars in Bruno Fernando, Jalen Smith, and Eric Ayala. Although they have some head-scratching losses — including this weeks 17-point loss to Penn State — the Terps have outperformed preseason expectations thanks to incredible big man play and some timely shooting.

Ethan Happ, Sr., Wisconsin

Carsen Edwards, Jr., Purdue

Cassius Winston, Jr., Michigan State

Bruno Fernando, So., Maryland

John Teske, Fr., Michigan

This is yet another too-close-to-call race down the stretch. Marquette holds a slight half-game lead with three games left, but all three games are winnable as the Golden Eagles face Creighton, Seton Hall, and Georgetown to close the season. Of those three, only Seton Hall is on the road, and Marquette already beat all three of these teams this season (though by two points in OT, four points, and three points, respectively).

Meanwhile, the Wildcats have two games left (Butler at home and Seton Hall away). If both teams end up tied, it could end up coming down to some pretty interesting tiebreakers in which ... St. John’s could determine the Big East tournament seeding?

Howard has been nothing short of phenomenal, shooting 43 percent from three with an eFG% of 54 percent. He has eight games this season where he’s scored over 30 points, including two 45-point games and a 53-point game. No, that’s not a typo. Fifty-three points.

Providence’s David Duke and Villanova’s Jahvon Quinerly were the preseason favorites for this award, but neither has been particularly amazing. I was torn between LeBlanc and Marquette’s younger Hauser, Joey, who could certainly make a final push for this award with his strong three-point shooting.

LeBlanc is in the top 50 on KenPom in ORtg, has an eFG% of 65 percent, and is shooting 64 percent on his twos. He’s a good rim protector, and a player with a lot of promise.

Diallo has been an all-around solid player this season, and stepped it up on the defensive end of the court. He registers a steal on 2.6 percent of possessions played (per KenPom), and doesn’t foul (2.6 per 40 minutes played). The Friars have the second best defense in the Big East, and Diallo is a big part of that.

Can’t argue with what Woj has done this season, propelling the Golden Eagles to a 23-5 overall record (12-3 Big East) with three games left this season. Howard and the Hauser brothers have been outstanding, Sacar Anim’s defense has been great, and Marquette has been so consistent all season.

Markus Howard, Jr., Marquette

Phil Booth, Sr., Villanova

Shamorie Ponds, Jr., St. John’s

Jessie Govan, Sr., Georgetown

Myles Powell, Jr., Seton Hall

LSU? The favorite? The Tigers, by virtue of winning both regular season games against the Vols and Wildcats, hold tiebreakers against those two squads with three games to go. All three are currently tied atop the SEC standings at 13-2

Grant Williams last year’s SEC Player of the Year awards, but PJ Washington’s performance this season has been undeniable. Returning to Kentucky was an outstanding choice for Washington, helping him hone his skills and become a more well-rounded player. He’s shooting 45 percent from three, 55 percent from two, and has an eFG% of 58 percent. Those are all excellent. Washington is active on the boards on both ends of the court and does all of this while being a high usage player for Coach Cal.

People love Tyler Herro (Kentucky fans), and people hate Tyler Herro (everyone else). He’s shooting 38 percent from three and has an eFG% of 55 percent and is making 93 percent (!) of his free throws. Herro certainly isn’t shy about his skills, either:

Grant Williams could easily (and deservedly) win SEC POY. He’s also an outstanding defender, hence why I have him here. He doesn’t commit a bunch of fouls, he’s active on the glass, and always seems to be in the right place.

This one is tough. Rick Barnes has been masterful at Tennessee this season and Will Wade has positioned LSU for post season success. But John Calipari took a punch in the jaw to open the season against Duke and has this Kentucky team rounding into shape at the right time. Yes, it’s a team full of super-talented players, but when Kentucky got their lunch money and prom dates stolen against the Blue Devils, I thought they would have a hard time putting all those pieces together. Not only has he put them together, the Wildcats are poised to hear their names called when the No. 1 seeds are listed on Selection Sunday.

Grant Williams, Jr., Tennessee

Admiral Schofield, Jr., Tennessee

PJ Washington, So., Kentucky

Quinndary Weatherspoon, Sr., Miss. State

Tremont Waters, So., LSU