Rutzick’s Red-Hots is a weekly column dedicated to analyzing the top talent in college basketball. Every Sunday, I’ll highlight five players who had the most impactful individual performances in college basketball over the past week—players who turned heads, shifted momentum, and made a difference for their team.
As we reach the final weeks of regular season play, there are so many players jumping off the page with their play on both winning and losing teams. It’s important we focus on these players because when the lights get bright, they are often the ones that their team leans on for scoring and winning the game. Without further ado, here are this week’s top individual performers.
Mikel Brown Jr., freshman guard, No. 24 Louisville Cardinals (19-6)
Mikel Brown Jr. has been the much-needed spark for a Cardinals squad that’s struggled to find its rhythm all season, igniting an upward surge this week. On Monday, in a 118-77 stomping over NC State, he tallied an outstanding 45 points, nine rebounds and two assists, all while shooting 60% from the field. On Saturday, he rallied for 29 points, six assists and three rebounds in an 82-71 win over the Baylor Bears, shooting 57.1% from the field.
Brown is a walking green light beyond the arch—in the NC State game, he shot 10-for-16 from three, with some of his makes being from beyond 35 feet. Beyond that, he has elite speed for a 6-foot-5 guard, allowing him to get in the paint and make tough buckets when his 3-pointer isn’t falling.
Brown is a pure competitor who has unlocked a new level of scoring, delivering the Cardinals a crucial boost as the regular season winds down. Louisville has been inconsistent all year, but as the team finally trends upward, Brown’s elite shotmaking is the driving force behind it.
JT Toppin, junior forward, No. 16 Texas Tech Red Raiders (19-6)
JT Toppin has been on an absolute tear lately. Last Wednesday, in a 78-44 win against Colorado, he surged for 16 points, 13 rebounds and two assists. On Saturday in a massive 78-75 overtime win against No. 1 Arizona, he went off for 31 points, 13 rebounds and three assists.
Toppin is the definition of a difference maker. At 6-foot-9, he’s an absolute beast in the paint on offense and defense. Offensively, he’s one of the best one-on-one attackers in college hoops, as his big frame and elite footwork allow him to get to his spots efficiently—he’s averaging 60% from the field this year due to his strong driving ability.
In an offensive scheme loaded with talent in sophomore guard Christian Anderson (19.1 ppg) and senior guard Donovan Atwell (12.5 ppg), Toppin finds all the space he needs to dominate. He’s the X-factor that makes this Red Raiders squad a genuine March threat.
Robert Wright III, sophomore guard, No. 22 BYU Cougars (19-6)
Things got personal for Robert Wright this week. On Tuesday against his former school, Baylor, he exploded for 30 points, four rebounds and three assists in a 99-94 win. He followed up in Saturday’s game against Colorado with a 39-point outing, along with five rebounds and four assists in a hard-fought overtime victory, 90-86.
At 6-foot-1, Wright is a relatively undersized guard. He makes up for his size in efficiency and pace. On Tuesday, he shot 57% from the field in an incredibly high-scoring matchup. On Saturday, he was 4-of-4 from three, and shot 75% from the field. Wright is shooting 48% from the field this season due to his high basketball IQ—if he doesn’t find the smart shot, he dishes it off to one of his teammates for a better one.
Wright adds a great 3-point threat to this electric Cougar offense. His ability to get to the cup also adds a level of deception not only to his game, but to the BYU offense as a whole.
Emanuel Sharp, redshirt senior guard, No. 3 Houston Cougars (23-2)
I wrote about freshman guard Kingston Flemmings’ huge impact last week, and he followed it up with another strong showing in this weeks games, but this time the real difference maker was Emanuel Sharp. On Tuesday, he exploded for 27 points, three rebounds and one assist in a 66-52 win over Utah. Saturday, he posted 23 points, six rebounds and two assists in a 98-64 win against Kansas State.
Sharp’s last name is incredibly fitting, as he’s an absolute sniper from beyond the line—he’s shooting 38.4% from 3 on 177 attempts this season. A key factor in this Cougar offense is Sharp’s ability to understand his role as a three and d player—he doesn’t do much more than shoot, but this is for good reason as it’s his best ability. He’s especially been heating up in the past two weeks, averaging 44.7% from the field and being a steady production option for the Cougars.
Sharp complements this offense well, and the Cougars will likely lean heavily on his shooting to help them win when they go through the gauntlet of matchups they have coming up against No. 5 Iowa State, No. 1 Arizona and No. 9 Kansas.
Darius Acuff Jr., freshman guard, No. 21 Arkansas Razorbacks (19-6)
Arkansas picked up some much-needed wins this week due to the help of star freshman guard Darius Acuff. Last Tuesday, in a 91-62 victory over LSU, Acuff tallied an impressive 28 points, five assists and two rebounds. On Saturday, Arkansas got its get-back on Auburn, and Acuff led all scorers with 31 points, seven assists and two rebounds.
Acuff has been lights out all season and is one of the best guards in all of college basketball this year. He’s averaging 21.2 points on the season and is absolutely dominant at all three levels of scoring. He’s excellent at getting to the cup at will, his mid-range shot is a threat, and even his 3-point shooting is efficient at 43.2% on the season.
While this Arkansas team has been inconsistent this season, don’t count it out anytime soon. Acuff will be the deciding factor come Tournament time, and he’s shown so far this season that he’s more than capable of controlling a basketball game.
Final takeaways:
Looking ahead, we have a lot of big-time matchups coming up where the elite will be tested at the highest level of play. This week reminded us that these are all players to keep an eye on as we approach the NCAA Tournament, as they are often the heartbeat that keeps their teams alive when it matters most.