Five-Star Freshman Pivotal to BYU’s Tournament Hopes
The BYU Cougars are one of dozens of teams prepping to make a run at the impending NCAA Tournament. And one of just a few teams who could be battle-hardened enough to make a deep run.
Per ESPN, BYU is projected to be a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, a perfectly respectable placement given the team amassed a 23-8 record in the blinding Big 12 this season.
Enter five-star freshman Egor Demin, who could be the catalyst, or downfall, for BYU this March.
At 6-foot-9 with legitimate guard skills, Demin has very clearly been one of the better NBA Draft prospects in college basketball. But it hasn’t always translated to positive impact for the Cougars.
Across his 28 regular season games, he averaged a respectable 10.8 points, 5.6 assists and 3.9 rebounds, shooting 42% overall and 28% from beyond the arc. At face value, those numbers for a jumbo point guard could be worthy of a top pick in the draft, if a team feels development could turn him into a star.
One primary issue is that Demin has been polarizing on a night to night basis. His first stretch of six games featured 15 points on 59% shooting, followed by nine-straight games of just 30% shooting overall.
Since those stretches, he’s evened out some, seeing highs of 15 or 16 points, sometimes with great efficiency, or 7-for-20 nights like one against Arizona.
If the Cougars are to make a deep run, they’re going to need Demin on his A-game for the entirety of the tournament: scoring with efficiency, passing the ball without error and generally connecting both offense and defense. In March Madness competition, one lousy game could lead to an automatic exit.
Demin is one of several prospects looking to raise his NBA Draft stock this March, but that’s always a two-sided coin. For now, Demin and the Cougars look to the Big 12 Tournament to continue adding to their resume.
