With Selection Sunday behind us, and the NCAA tournament starting tonight, we take a look at the best games from every player on the current roster.
Jalen Brunson - 3/23/2018 vs. West Virginia (Sweet 16)
The two time national champion had his share of incredible games while at Villanova, but only a few stand out more than his masterpiece performance against West Virginia.
The eventual national player of the year winner scored 27-points, which is tied for the fifth most points during his collegiate career, while shooting 8-15 from the field, 3-6 from three, and 8-9 from the free throw line. Villanova did end up winning by 12 points, which was tied for their smallest margin of victory all tournament long, but they lead by just one at halftime, and needed Brunson’s standout game to help catapult them to the elite eight.
Karl-Anthony Towns - 3/28/15 vs. Notre Dame (Elite 8)
In his lone year at Kentucky, Towns failed to put up the kind of eye popping stats that some other prospects register, as he averaged just 9.7PPG, and 6.6RPG in the regular season. But when the NCAA tournament rolled around, Towns looked like he had started to put it together.
After scoring going the whole regular season, and conference tournament without scoring 20 or more points once, Towns scored 21 points, and 25 points in a four-game span-the latter of which is my pick for his best game as a Wildcat. His 21-point game, which also included 11 rebounds, and three blocks may look like a better overall stat line than his 25-point, five rebound, four assist, three turnover game. But the 21-point game came in the first round of the tournament, in a game where they played a 17-18 Hampton team, and won by 23-points. His 25-point game though, came in a two-point victory against a very good Notre Dame team in the elite eight.
Given the higher stakes, and the better competition, it is Towns’ most impressive game of not just his March Madness career, but his college career.
OG Anunoby - 3/17/16 vs. Chattanooga (Round of 64)
Anunoby played in just three NCAA tournament games, so it was pretty easy to pick his “best” game. His first NCAA tournament game, which came against Chattanooga in the round of 64, saw him score 14 points on an efficient 6-7 from the field and 2-2 from three.
Seeing as he scored just seven points, and two points in his lone two tournament games following that one, it’s safe to say that was by far his best game during March Madness.
Mikal Bridges - 3/17/18 vs. Alabama (Round of 32)
Bridges, like his current, and college teammate Brunson, had a nice, and long college career that saw him have multiple big games, so there were a few contenders but his best tournament game was a pretty clear one. It came against a ninth-seeded Alabama team that was lead by eventual lottery pick, Collin Sexton, who scored 17-points.
Villanova, who only saw two players score more than 15 points, won by 13 points, thanks in large part to Bridges, who the team relied heavily on. When it was all set and done, the wing scored 23 points on 7-16 shooting.
Josh Hart - 4/2/2016 vs. Oklahoma (Final Four)
After losing to a Buddy Hield-lead Oklahoma team 78-55 during the regular season, Villanova’s tournament rematch against them drew a lot of attention. And Hart, and his Villanova teammates got their sweet revenge in the final four.
In the 44-point annihilation of the Big 12 powerhouse, Hart scored a game-high 23 points, grabbed eight rebounds, dished out eight assists, and recorded two steals while shooting 10-12 from the field. In true Hart fashion, it wasn’t always pretty but he was everywhere, and just outhustled everyone, and it was an outright dominating performance from the third-year player.
Deuce McBride - 3/19/21 vs. Morehead State (Round of 64)
McBride’s best NCAA tournament game may be better than any other Knicks’. In his first tournament game, McBride lead West Virginia to an emphatic 84-67 win by scoring 30 points, grabbing six rebounds, dishing out six assists, and recording two steals.
McBride showed off his athleticism, and mid range jump shot on multiple occasions and was the best player on the floor and it wasn’t particularly close.
Landry Shamet - 3/19/17 vs. Kentucky (Round of 32)
Shamet may play limited minutes now, and isn’t thought of as someone who puts up noteworthy stats, but the veteran wing had himself a very nice three-year college career in which he averaged 12.9PPG, 3RPG, and 4.1APG. That career was highlighted by his a very strong senior year where he 20 or more points seven times.
His best tournament game came during his junior year when he scored 20 points on 7-14 shooting against a very good Kentucky team in the round of 32. Shamet his a deep three with 55 seconds left to bring Wichita State within one but they ultimately ended up falling just short.
Cameron Payne - 4/4/14 vs. Yale (Finals)*
This one comes with a bit of an asterisk as Murray State never made the big dance during his tenure there. But in his two year collegiate career, Payne had some big games in the CollegeInsider.Com Postseason Tournament. In five of his eight tournament games, Payne scored 20 or more points, with his best game coming in the championship game against Yale during his freshman year.
The starting guard tallied 24 points, seven rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks, while shooting 8-16 from the field to lead Murray State to a 65-57 win over Yale. His 24 points was tied for the fourth highest scoring game of his freshman season, and tied for the 10th highest scoring game of his college career.
Tyler Kolek - 3/24/24 vs. Colorado (Round of 32)
Kolek’s NCAA tournament career started off ominously. After transferring to Maquette his sophomore year, Kolek got his first taste of the tournament, but was eliminated in the first round after scoring just three points and dishing out 10 assists in a lopsided 32-point loss to the eventual champions, the University of North Carolina. In his third season, and second trip to the big dance, things weren’t too much better. Marquette did manage to make it out of the first round, but Kolek recorded just 15 points, and nine assists over the two games, before bowing out to Michigan State University in the round of 32.
As a senior though, Kolek turned it around, leading Marquette to the sweet 16, and averaging 18.7PPG, 8.3APG, and 7RPG while shooting 57.5% from the field. The best game of that run, and his NCAA tournament career has to be his second round performance against Colorado where he recorded 21 points, 11 assists, and five rebounds in the narrow four-point win. Throughout most of the game, Kolek looked poised and under control, and made really sound decisions as the orchestrator of the offense.
Making this performance even more impressive was his floater to put Marquette up by three with just under 55 seconds to go.
PJ Tucker - 3/19/06 vs. NC State (Round of 32)
Tucker, who is both the newestand the oldest Knick, played two seasons at Texas, where he played in four NCAA tournament games- the best of which came against NC State in the round of 32.
Tucker scored 17 points, and grabbed 11 rebounds, four of them offensive, while recording two steals and shooting 7-14 from the field. Tucker’s 17 was tied with teammate and eventual NBA starter Daniel Gibson.
Anton Watson - 3/23/24 vs. Kansas (Round of 32)
Watson played 151 games during his career at Gonzaga and he saved some of his best for his last NCAA tournament run. Despite only scoring more than 21 points three times before his final tournament appearance, Watson scored 21 points, and grabbed six rebounds in a 21-point blowout victory over Kansas in the round of 32. The big man’s 21 points, which came on a very efficient 8-11 from the field, was the highest of the game.
You’ll notice that there are a few names missing. Mitchell Robinson, Precious Achiuwa, Ariel Hukporti, and MaJon Beauchamp all didn’t play in an NCAA tournament for one reason or another. Robinson committed to Western Kentucky University but left and dedicated the 17-18 season to training on his own. Achiuwa played one year at Memphis, but he didn’t appear in any postseason tournament games. Hukporti didn’t attend university in the states. And Beauchamp played one year at Yakima Valley College, where he averaged 30.7PPG, 10.5RPG, and 4.8APG, but they aren’t a Division 1 college.