Trotter’s College Basketball Trends: Jaden Bradley emerges as Arizona’s Mr. Clutch

Are you feeling overwhelmed by all the basketball? If you are on the opposing sideline, watching Jaden Bradly click his heels, saunter to the court and wince as he enters the game in the late stages should send chills down your spine. Arizona’s senior guard played a near-perfect game in the final minutes to help the Wildcats beat No. 15 UCLA 69-65 on Friday. Bradley’s nine points scored in the last 4:32 have cemented him as one of the top clutch-time scorers so far. Clutch time is the last five minutes of a game when there are five points between the two teams. 

Bradley has become a cold-blooded killer at this point. He scored 15 on 7-of-8 shots with zero turnovers, according to CBB analytics in nine crucial minutes. This helped Arizona win two big victories over UCLA & Florida. Bradley has scored seven clutch buckets in just two games, which is more than he did all last season (six). 
After No. 3 UConn outlasted No. 7 BYU 86-84.

The game was played in typical Alex Karaban style, which overshadowed what may have been the best of Karaban’s career. UConn senior Alex Karaban scored 21 points with just 11 shots. He made all four 3-pointers, and did not turn the ball over in 39 minutes. He had a dazzling 181 offensive score, which is the fourth-highest performance of his career at Storrs. He was also excellent on defense. Covering gaps. Hands in the passing line. Contesting everything. Karaban was up for the challenge nearly every time UConn asked him to switch to both Dybantsa or jitterbug Rob Wright. BYU shot only 3-for-12 on the field with Karaban as the closest defender.Karaban’s decision to return has helped him find a position that fits him almost perfectly. Karaban won’t be the focal point of any offense. That’s fine. Karaban can be pushed into the background by a Demary-type point guard, shooters such as Solo Ball (and later Braylon Mullins), and big men like Tarris. This is where he’s absolutely lethal. It’s one of the reasons why these Huskies are looking every bit like a frontrunner for a national title. 

Saint Louis has a new recipe and looks to be the best in A-10. Saint Louis is off on a great start for Year 2 under Josh Schertz. In the second half, the Billikens were up by 27 points on Grand Canyon in Saturday’s 78 64 rout. Grand Canyon put a little lipstick on the pig with an 11-0 run during the final 3 minutes, but the damage had already been done. Schertz’s offense is well-known, but SLU managed to limit Grand Canyon’s field goals from 2 points only 12 times. Schertz had played 38 games in The Lou. This was his best score. Saturday was a test-of-concept for a team that has been almost completely renovated around Robbie Avila, the goggled big man. The Billikens have nine players. Seven of the nine players in rotation are 6’5″ or taller. Dion Brown is a 6-3 Boston College graduate who plays as if he’s 6’8″. Brown had 15 rebounds including five offensive rebounds during the Grand Canyon victory.

This interior defense could have been much better because of the buffed up positional sizes. Quinnipiac defender Paul Otieno made three blocks but SLU wingers like Brown, Amari Mccottry, Quentin Jones Ishan Sharma, Kellen Thames and Amari McCottry were physically pesky and disruptive. McCottry has made a huge impact on Saint Louis. Avila is the driving force, but McCottry’s growth is noticeable. Grand Canyon’s move to try and cross-match McCottry with its big men was a mistake. McCottry’s sudden, slick drives made Grand Canyon nervous. He ended up with 20 points and five rebounds. He also had four assists. This showed better decision making across the board. McCottry, who could’ve easily had six assists on the night, is now well on his path to being one of A-10’s most improved players.

Saint Louis will be heard from in the A-10 race. It’s clear why the Billikens were not scheduled by any high-majors this season. Stars add layers to their gameJT Toppin had only nine games last year with multiple assists. This year, the situation has flipped. In all three games, the Texas Tech All-American has collected multiple dimes. His assist rate has risen from 10.1 up to 18.9. Toppin was already a handful, but this extra playmaking has opened up new levers in a Texas Tech offensive that is amazing. Texas Tech is heading to the Bahamas Thursday night for a match against Wake Forest. The game starts at 8:30 PM. ET on CBS Sports Network (Channel finder or via CBS Sports App).Purdue star point guard Braden Smith has clearly made a concerted effort to put extra pressure on opposing defenses as a driver. Smith averaged about 2.2 drives in a game, according to Synergy. Smith has increased his drives per game to 3.8 this year. I believe that will be the case this year. Especially as Omer Mayer, a freshman point guard, gains more trust and allows Smith to operate more off the ball. Smith is already an expert, but those extra drives have real meaning. Purdue will play Memphis in the Bahamas on Thursday at 6 pm. ET on CBS Sports Network (Channel finder or via CBS Sports App).Florida’s Thomas Haugh is balling these days and looks like the best player on the team. The junior forward averages 19.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists through four games. He’s shooting more 3-pointers. Florida also trusts him more to initiate pick and rolls. Haugh has accumulated five ball screens as the screener this year. Haugh’s pick-and-roll possessions were the same as last year. He’s a professional.Darrion was a master at transition. Last year, he mainly operated off the basketball in Texas Tech.He filled the wings with his teammates and found creases from which to attack. This year, the new NC State star is looking for his own in transition way more. Williams has improved his footwork, pace and open floor. Williams is more confident when he walks into transition 3, giving NC State another way to score against unset defenses. In NC State’s win over VCU, he scored 12 transition points. He scored no more than six points for Texas Tech in a game last season. Stats to monitorBaylor has an unblemished record but they were out-rebounded twice by Washington (42-33) Tarleton State (34-21). That is … concerning. Next week’s Players Era date with St. John’s c could be a bloodbath on the glass if the Bears aren’t careful.Michigan State is generating just 6.7 open 3s per game. The Spartans only shoot 20% of their unguarded 3s, which is 17th-best in the Big Ten. Florida, on the other hand, generates 11.0 open 3-pointers per game but shoots just 23%. This is positive regression, especially for an offense that has been putting up impressive numbers without any jumpers. There’s a lot of fear when playing good mid-majors. Randy Bennett is not one of those players. The Gaels annihilated St. Thomas as well as Chattanooga and North Texas. Saint Mary’s h has jumped from No. Saint Mary’s h has jumped from No. KenPom has him at No. 24. There are more ways than one to plan a schedule. Mikey Lewis has been absolutely slaying it on the floor. Lewis and Paulius murauskas quickly became one of the most dominant duos.The West Coast Conference was 11-7 so far against the top-150 teams this season. The Big East only has a 4-11. Santa Clara embarrassed Xavier, 87-68, in a head-to-head showing.

2025-11-18 18:21:15