Barstool Breakdown: Coach Day's Mid-Season All-Squads & Contenders For March

College basketball is heading into their Christmas breaks, yes sadly the Hawaiian Diamond Classic is no more to keep us entertained Christmas Day… for us sickos another L as college sports continue to "progress". To jump-start the season, I gave a full-length preview for the readers, & while some have held on to be true through the non-conference schedules, it is now time to hand out some mid-season awards & teams to know for March.

With transfers always being a major factor in college basketball, let's take a look at who are the newcomers that found success in their new home. Of course, bringing this down to only 5 is so tough with the amount of impactful transfers across the nation.

Iowa's Bennett Stiritz has been more than even expected as he continues to give the Hawkeyes everything he has, leading the team with 16.7 ppg & 5 assists while still shooting at a 49% clip. His impact will continue to be crucial as they fight for a spot in the big dance.

Staying with the Big 10, we have Yaxel Lendeborg(15.6ppg, 7.1reb) for Michigan & Oscar Cluff(11.8pgg, 9.1reb)for Purdue. The big men have been so impactful for their title-contending teams. Now heading into conference play in the new year, expect their roles to coincide with their teams’ journey to March. Lastly, a major surprise to many has to be Arizona State G Maurice Odum(16.2pgg, 6.2ast), his play is, in my opinion, solely the reason the Sun Devils are even considered in the hunt for March.

Staying with the idea of newcomers, in a world of transfers we sometimes lose sight of the freshman impact we get to see in this sport. This year is easily one of the deepest freshman classes we have seen in college basketball in a very long time. Yes, last year we had an elite 4 or 5, but this year there’s a situation in which the whole NBA lottery could be freshmen! The top 2 may also show up elsewhere, to give you a little sneak peek.

For the freshman squad, I'm going to single out the biggest surprises on this list: Gonzaga G Mario Saint-Supery(8ppg, 4.5ast, 50%3fg) & Washington F Hannes Steinbach(17.5ppg, 11.9reb). The two European imports came onto campuses with much quieter buzz than many others. Yet Mario & Hannes have inserted themselves into starting spots & become a vital part of their teams’ success, though Washington has stumbled lately.

Continuing to hand out mid-season awards, let's take a look at the two biggest All-Squads: All Mid-Major & THE National All-Squad. Leading off with the mid-majors, this season we are seeing so many players make a name for themselves on the small-school scale. The biggest name every basketball fan knows has to be Gonzaga F Graham Ike, who has been on a tear across one of the most difficult schedules in the nation.

One other name to highlight is St. Bonaventure F Frank Mitchell, a double-double machine as he averages 16 & 11 on the season. His play has the Bonnies as one of the top mid-major programs this year.

This now brings us to the best 5 of the season, the 5 players who feel to be on track in the race for player of the year. Duke F Cameron Boozer(23.3ppg, 10reb), BYU G/F AJ Dybansta(22.3ppg, 6.9reb 3.3ast), & Purdue G Braden Smith(12.6ppg, 9.6ast) are far ahead of the rest, but Northwestern F Nick Martinelli(21.9ppg, 6.6reb) & Gonzaga F Braden Huff(19.1pgg, 5.3reb) are two of the most efficient players in the nation. Boozer is the clear favorite of the All-Squad for player of the year, as well as the leader for the #1 pick in the 2026 draft.

Make sure to keep an eye on these 5 players as they are not only crucial to their teams success but also the most exciting to watch in college basketball around the nation.

We all love the player accolades, but in the end we all want our team to get to March & make a run for the title, in what is considered by many… outside of Joel Klatt(I love Klatt, but stick to football man)… to be the best tournament in all of sports. A major piece of its allure is the Cinderella effect. Each year there is always a team that comes into March a no-name & finds a way to capture the nation’s hearts for a weekend or even more. Conference play can always turn everything on its head, but at the mid-season point here are 8 mid-majors you might want to at least box-score watch in January & February.

This list of teams has lots of names we may already recognize from Madness moments of the past, including Belmont, Yale, & of course George Mason. The new & old Cinderellas mix, as UC San Diego & George Washington feel primed to crash the party this spring. All 8 of these teams currently have a combined record of 85–12.

Though Cinderellas are fun & keep us on the edge of our seats, in the end they usually run out of steam. So who can win it all? Is it KenPom that tells us? AP Top 25? Or is it truly just who is hot at the right time? There are statistics left & right with piles to the ceiling-high showing us the winners. After digging through the muck of numbers, here are the 8 teams who can take it all in March this season.

Of course, no surprises on this one as these are all teams who were splash hits in November & December during non-conference play. If there are any shockers for the casuals, it would be the absence of Duke. You have to be screaming at me WHY WHY WHY? Now while they have the best player in the nation, the drop-off after him right now is a glaring issue that could be exploited when facing 4 to 5 elite teams straight in a tournament setting. Now with these 8 teams, conference play can change everything, maybe Duke finds some more secondary scoring, or Michigan guards fall off, or Gonzaga’s defense loses its intensity. We all know as hardcore sickos, conference play can & will flip this whole thing on its head.

As we get closer to losing football until next fall, no worries, as college basketball is shaping up to be an all-timer. With multiple teams feeling they have enough to be the last one standing, this winter into spring is going to be one that keeps us guessing as to who will be the squad to beat in March. I’ll leave you with one last mid-season projection: as the midway point of the season hits, Merry Christmas basketball fans, as the college basketball season will keep the season of giving going into the new year for us all.