The season is winding down, as most conferences have just two weeks remaining in the regular season. In some leagues, there are only one or two games left for teams to make a statement to the rest of the conference - or to the Selection Committee in an attempt to get better seeding or an at-large bid. In the Big East and ACC, there is plenty of jockeying for positioning in the conference tournament going on right now. Nearly every night, there is a match-up between two teams needing a win for one reason or another. While that brings excitement to any college basketball fan, it also is key for fantasy owners. In must-win games, the cream of the crop is likely to step up and carry its team to victory. That is one thing to keep an eye on down the stretch. Other things to look at include the following storylines heading into the final couple of games.
ACC
Which Dwayne Collins will show up for Miami?
Collins has been a mystery for the Hurricanes this season. He came into the season with plenty of hype from last season, and while his scoring, rebounding and block numbers have all gone up, he has been inconsistent. Collins has racked up seven double-doubles - and eight outings of five or fewer rebounds. He has posted scored at least 15 points on nine different occasions - and put up 12 single-digit scoring outings. Collins could be coming on down the stretch, though. In his last two games, Collins is averaging 19.5 points and 7.5 rebounds, as well as 3.5 assists per contest. Prior to that, though, Collins had scored in double-figures just twice in his prior six games, averaging about eight points and six rebounds in that span.
How will John Henson finish?
A highly-touted prospect coming out of high school, Henson was expected to make an immediate impact as a freshman. He is a lanky 6-foot-10 frontcourt player who has the athleticism and natural ability to play small forward. A match-up nightmare waiting to happen, right? Eh, not so much. Henson scored in double-digits just twice in his first 24 games, averaging fewer than 13 minutes per game. That has changed recent: in his last four games - playing at least 20 minutes in each contest - Henson is averaging 9.3 points and 8.0 rebounds. Not outstanding numbers, but much closer to what was projected of him this season.
Can you actually use Brian Zoubek?
I never thought I would ask this. Zoubek has essentially been an injury-prone stuff since entering college, good for nothing much besides a few rebounds and five fouls per game. It might be time to think about picking up Zoubek for the stretch run, though. Over his last three games, Zoubek is averaging 9.7 points and 12.3 rebounds per contest, throwing in five assists and six steals for good measure. One could not have seen this coming, as Zoubek had scored in double-figures just four times all season, and grabbed double-figure rebounds on four occasions as well. Sure, Zoubek notched a 16-point, 17-rebound performance against post-deficient Maryland, but Miami's Dwayne Collins and Virginia Tech's Jeff Allen are no slouches.
Big East
Really, what has happened to Lance Stephenson?
I'm absolutely befuddled by Stephenson's season. A dominant scorer in high school - and one of the more hyped New York City ballers since Stephon Marbury - Stephenson has made a fraction of the impact that was expected of him. He started off well, scoring at least 15 points on six different occasions in November and December. However, since January 9, Stephenson has been a disaster, averaging 8.7 points and 1.6 assists. For a powerful playmaker like Stephenson, that's fairly awful. He hit rock-bottom this past summer, playing just 11 minutes and scoring two points on four shots in an overtime loss to Marquette. Luckily for us, he announced on Tuesday that he would be staying another season at Cincinnati - what, 6-5 guards shooting 19.6 percent from three-point range aren't in demand?
Thanks for waking up, Kemba Walker
Connecticut has completely turned around its season in the past week and a half, knocking off Villanova, Rutgers and West Virginia to get right back in the hunt for an NCAA Tournament bid; the Huskies are also suddenly a team that no one wants to face in the postseason. The primary reason for this resurgence has been the play of Walker. Over the past three games, Walker is averaging 22.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists, while also contributing 2.3 steals and just 2.3 turnovers. Moreover, he has hit nine of his last 18 three-pointers - a huge asset to a fairly one-dimensional Connecticut attack. He will need to continue his stellar play.
What will happen with Tim Abromaitis with 'Gody Back?
Abromaitis has had a fantastic season for Notre Dame this year, providing a legitimate second option next to Luke Harangody for the Fighting Irish. He is averaging 17.3 points and 4.8 rebounds on the season, hitting 49 percent of his three-point attempts. However, since Harangody was injured against Seton Hall on February 11, Abromaitis has stepped up his game even further. In the last three games, Abromaitis is averaging 23.7 points and 6.3 rebounds, going 8-for-15 from three. He seems completely comfortable being the go-to-guy for Mike Brey - but what will happen now that Harangody is returning?