The college basketball season all begins in the regular season, with hopes of March Madness amongst the competitors.

Each team trying to get into the NCAA Tournament has at least one key weapon.

The John R. Wooden Award is given to the Player of the Year in college basketball.

These key players are in the running for the prestigious award given at the seasons end.

Ben Simmons is playing as well as anyone in the country and he’s only a freshman. Sadly his LSU Tigers aren’t playing as well as other top competition is so his numbers aren’t as impressive as other top candidates. Although LSU dosn’t have the most impressive record, Ben Simmons is having a spectacular season, especially as a freshman. Expect him to be the #1 draft pick in next years NBA Draft.

Buddy Hield is scoring at an unbelievable rate and his team just keeps winning. The Oklahoma Sooners are feeding off of his scoring energy and input each night.

Denzel Valentine of Michigan State is making a strong case for the award. At the beginning of the season, Valentine was playing some of the best basketball in the country until a knee injury occured, sidelining him for 2-3 weeks.

Last but not least, there is North Carolina big man Brice Johnson. Johnson recently set his personal career records against FSU with 39 points and 23 rebounds. He has been playing better than any big man in the nation and if he won the Wooden Award, it would be rightfully so.

These players stats are all listed below:

Ben Simmons 19.8ppg 12.7rpg 4.9apg

Buddy Hield 25.9ppg 5.8rpg 2.5apg

Denzel Valentine 18.4ppg 7.9rpg 6.6 apg

Brice Johnson 16.8ppg 10.2rpg 1.4apg

All of these players have a great chance at winning the award, and making a splash this postseason in the NCAA Tournament. Make sure to keep an eye on these athletes throughout the rest of the season.