Top 5 players to watch during March Madness 2024

Team: Kentucky Wildcats

The 6'2 freshman is unquestionably one of the most exciting players in college basketball this year and has proven to be the most creative member of a super-talented Wildcats roster.

Dillingham's game is largely based on his electric ball-handling ability and silky smooth use of cross-overs and hesitations to create space between himself and defenders. He has also shown the ability to pick out open teammates to complement those creation skills and has averaged 3.8 assists to go along with his 15 points per game.

Dillingham is also expected by most draft experts to be one of the first American born players selected in this year's lottery.

Team: Kentucky Wildcats

That's right, we have Dillingham's teammate and another Wildcat on our list. Also standing at 6-foot-2, Sheppard entered the season as perhaps the least heralded member of Kentucky's recruiting class but quickly became one of the most valuable members of the team.

Sheppard's defensive ability and 3-point shooting ability off the bench have reached historic levels of proficiency for the Wildcats and put him amongst the nation's leaders in terms of steals and shooting percentage.

He has knocked down a staggering 51.7 percent of 3-point shots this year and has been forcing turnovers at a historic rate for a guard with a 4.9 percent steal rate and 2.8 percent block rate. Sheppard has also been averaging 12.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game.

Team: UConn Huskies

During last year's championship run, Clingan proved to be the Huskies' secret weapon off the bench before stepping into a bigger role as a starter for his sophomore campaign.

The 7'2 big man has blossomed into one of the nation's most prolific rim protectors and ranks top 10 in the country with an 11.14 percent block rate to go along with an average of 2.3 blocks per game. On the offensive end of the floor, Clingan has punished opponents on the glass and is a threat to finish with a dunk any time he gets the ball on the interior.

Clingan has averaged 12.4 points and 6.9 rebounds per game despite only averaging 21.6 minutes per contest. If he can avoid the injuries and foul trouble that have impacted him throughout the year, Clingan can once again make all the difference for the Huskies, who have looked like the best team in the nation at multiple points throughout the year.

Team: Tennessee Volunteers

Although he has only spent one season playing for the Volunteers, the high-scoring Knecht probably has the most experience of any player on this list.

The 6-6 wing spent two seasons playing in junior college and another two with Northern Colorado before transferring to Tennessee, where he has emerged as a Klay Thompson-like scorer on the wing. Knecht's scoring has taken the SEC by storm this season, thanks to his 21.4 points per game.

His ability to knock down shots from anywhere on the court will certainly find Knecht a home in the NBA next season, although it remains to be seen if his lateral movement on defense or the fact he is already 23 years old will cause teams to knock him down their draft boards.

Team: Purdue Boilermakers

Edey has become one of the most dominant college basketball players in recent memory and has a very strong chance to become the first back-to-back national Player of the Year winner since Ralph Sampson in 1982-1983.

The 7'4 senior has averaged a double-double this year with 24.2 points and 11.8 rebounds to go along with 2.2 blocks per game. He has also scored at an incredibly efficient rate of 66.5 true shooting percentage.

If there is one thing Edey is missing to solidify his legacy as one of the most impressive players in the college game, it is a deep tournament run, and there would be no better time to lead his team to one than in his final college season.

Edey and the Boilermakers will also be looking to avenge the massive upset they suffered as a No. 1 seed last year when they were defeated by No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson.