College basketball's regular season has come to a close, we're just days away from Selection Sunday -- and then the three-week sprint that follows. Before we get to the 68 teams that have a chance to cut down the nets in Minneapolis, though, there's some housekeeping to do.
After all, we can't end a season without giving out individual awards and naming our All-America teams, right?
Player of the Year: Zion Williamson, Duke
It doesn't really matter to me that he missed the final six games of the regular season -- in fact, I think it showed how important he is to Duke. The Blue Devils were just 3-3 without him. With him, they were 23-2 and the national title favorite. Without Williamson, I'm not sure they're a locked-in second-weekend NCAA tournament team. Simply put, we haven't seen anyone like him in college basketball in a very long time, if not ever. He's a dominant, physical force at both ends of the floor, which is overlooked when discussing Williamson. His athleticism and power are hard to hide, but he's also one of the best defensive players in the country. Mike Krzyzewski needs him back.
Runner-up -- RJ Barrett, Duke: I'm not sure Barrett has actually closed the gap on Williamson for the No. 1 pick in June's NBA draft, but he has more than held his own -- and his all-around offensive game is second to none nationally.
Coach of the Year: Chris Beard, Texas Tech
Heading into the season, Texas Tech was picked seventh in the Big 12 poll and barely garnered any votes in the AP poll -- and didn't get a single vote in the coaches' poll. The Red Raiders had to replace All-Big 12 guard Keenan Evans, first-rounder Zhaire Smith and four seniors. And now they head into the Big 12 tournament with their eyes on a 2-seed in the NCAA tournament and a top-10 national ranking after earning a share of the Big 12 regular-season title. Beard has simply done a fantastic job this season, mixing in transfers with returnees and turning role players into stars. Beard is going to be a hot name on the coaching carousel this month, and it's well deserved. He's flat-out one of the best coaches in college basketball.
Runner-up -- Kelvin Sampson, Houston: The Cougars lost star Rob Gray after last season and their supposed replacement, Massachusetts Minutemen transfer Dejon Jarreau, missed seven of the first eight games of the season. Yet they ended up with the American Athletic Conference regular-season championship and lost just two games. Purdue's Matt Painter also deserves recognition here.
Freshman of the Year: Zion Williamson, Duke
What more do we need to say about Williamson? He was running away with Wooden Award honors before his injury, and the same goes for Freshman of the Year. It's not changing now.
Runner-up -- RJ Barrett, Duke: Any other season, Barrett's numbers (23.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists) would win this award in a landslide. But Williamson isn't around any other season, either.
Defensive Player of the Year: Matisse Thybulle, Washington
Thybulle has the physical tools: He's 6-foot-6 with a 7-foot wingspan. He has the counting numbers: He averages 2.2 blocks and 3.5 steals per game. He has the efficiency stats: He ranks No. 1 nationally in steal percentage and is also in the top 70 in block percentage. Thybulle has continued to add to his game at the defensive end of the floor since arriving in Seattle four years ago, becoming a significantly better shot-blocker and racking up more steals as his career progressed. With Washington playing mostly zone defense, it's sometimes hard for individual players to get notoriety for their play at that end of the floor. That's not an issue for Thybulle.
Runner-up -- Brandon Clarke, Gonzaga: Clarke beats out elite defensive guards such as Tre Jones and Ashton Hagans because of his versatility. Clarke can guard multiple positions and is one of the best shot-blockers in the country.
Mid-Major Coach of the Year: Craig Smith, Utah State
When Smith left South Dakota last spring to take over at Utah State, the Aggies were coming off consecutive .500-or-below seasons after going 16-15 in 2015-16. To make matters worse, sophomore star Koby McEwen decided to transfer after the season. Utah State was picked ninth out of 11 teams in the preseason Mountain West poll. Yet Smith helped guide the Aggies to a share of the Mountain West regular-season title after beating Nevada in the penultimate game of the season. Utah State is likely going to hear its name on Selection Sunday, and junior guard Sam Merrill developed into one of the best players in the country. Smith deserves plenty of credit.
Runner-up -- Mike Young, Wofford: Young could just as easily have won the award, but the Terriers were expected to be right there for the Southern Conference title and returned Fletcher Magee, one of the elite shooters in college basketball history. Rolling through a very good SoCon with an unbeaten record deserves some attention, though.
Biggest breakout star: Jarrett Culver, Texas Tech
After an injury hampered the latter part of his high school career, Culver ended up as a three-star prospect who decided to stay home and play for Texas Tech. The Lubbock native's talents were evident as a freshman, but he was a secondary option on the offensive end. After losing six rotation players, though, Beard needed someone to become the go-to-guy -- and Culver answered the bell. He went from averaging 11.2 points and 4.8 rebounds to 18.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists -- enough to earn Big 12 Player of the Year honors. He has played himself into the lottery of June's NBA draft, and I think a case can be made that he falls at No. 3 in the Wooden Award rankings. He has been that good this season.
Runner-up -- Cameron Johnson, North Carolina: We'll get to Cassius Winston and PJ Washington in a little bit, so let's give Johnson some love. He deserves All-America consideration and could find a role at the next level because of his size and ability to shoot. He went from 12.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 34.1 percent 3-point shooting to 16.8 points, 5.9 rebounds and 46.9 percent 3-point shooting.
Most surprising team: Texas Tech
Texas Tech is really stealing this awards show. We hit on the Red Raiders in the Beard and Culver sections, but to go from being picked seventh in the Big 12 preseason poll to a national No. 7 ranking entering the Big 12 tournament is eye-opening. The Red Raiders are a legitimate Final Four threat.
Runner-up -- Houston: Prior to the Cougars' loss to UCF on March 2, there was an outside shot they could have ended up with a 1-seed in the NCAA tournament. That ship has sailed, but going 29-2 in the regular season with victories over LSU, Utah State, UCF and a sweep of Cincinnati was not expected from Sampson and Houston.
Most disappointing team: Oregon
Maybe this is just me, but I had the Ducks as a top-12 team in the preseason and picked them in my Final Four back in early November. I was incorrect. Like most of the Pac-12, Oregon underachieved this season -- even once you factor in the injury to Bol Bol back in December. The Ducks weren't very good even when Bol was healthy, losing at home to Texas Southern and going just 6-3 in his nine games on the floor. There's too much talent on this roster to be fourth in the Pac-12 and not even close to the NCAA tournament. That said, Oregon did win four in a row to end the regular season, so the Ducks could turn things around and make me wrong about them twice in five months.
Runner-up -- UCLA: This team was a disaster before the New Year, dropping to 7-6 after a 15-point home loss to Liberty on Dec. 29. Two days later, head coach Steve Alford was fired. The Bruins were actually respectable for stretches during Pac-12 play, but they still finished just 17-15 overall and 9-9 in conference play. There are multiple NBA players on this roster, regardless of the coach, so that's underachieving.
All-America teams
First team
Zion Williamson, Duke: The momentum of his freshman season was cut short against North Carolina a few weeks ago, but he's still the best player in college basketball. In talking to opposing coaches about preparing for the Blue Devils, it's a common theme that there's very little you can do against Williamson beside hope he gets called for charges. He's that dominant.
RJ Barrett, Duke: Because of the hype surrounding Williamson, Barrett's record-breaking freshman season has somehow flown under the radar. He set records for most points by a freshman in ACC history and hit the 20-point mark in 23 games (another ACC freshman record). When he wants to be a scorer, he's dominant. And when he wants to facilitate, he racks up assists. Not everyone can do that.
Jarrett Culver, Texas Tech: Whenever Tech needed a big win, Culver stepped up. Twenty-six points against Kansas, 31 points in the regular-season finale at Iowa State with the Big 12 title on the line, 25 in a December loss to Duke. He took on a much bigger offensive load this season and his efficiency barely took a hit. There's a reason he's being projected as a top-10 pick.
Grant Williams, Tennessee: Williams won SEC Player of the Year for the second year in a row, and he earned it. He had one of the more impressive individual efforts we've seen all season, when he dropped 43 points on 15 shots against Vanderbilt, going 23-for-23 from the foul line. He had seven double-doubles and scored in single digits just twice all season.
Cassius Winston, Michigan State: Without Joshua Langford and Nick Ward, a Big Ten title appeared unlikely for the Spartans. But Winston had other ideas. He put Michigan State on his back and carried it to a split of the title. He's one of the best distributors in the country, but developed into someone who can take over a game by scoring. Winston just knows how to win.
Second team
Ja Morant, Murray State: Arguably the best show in college basketball outside of Durham, North Carolina, Morant captivated the country with his breathtaking athleticism and eye-popping stat lines. He led the nation in assists and was eighth in scoring. Morant (24.6 points, 10.0 assists per game) also tallied two triple-doubles. After dropping 36 points in the Ohio Valley Conference title game, he's ready for the big stage.
Brandon Clarke, Gonzaga: One of the more surprising players this season, Clarke kept essentially the same numbers he put up at San Jose State -- just this time he did it for perhaps the best team in the country. An elite defender and offensive rebounder, Clarke was also an extremely efficient offensive player, shooting 69.3 percent from the field.
De'Andre Hunter, Virginia: Hunter could have been on the list for breakout player or defensive player -- but either way, Hunter is an All-American and future lottery pick. He's one of the more versatile defensive players in college basketball and also brings an element to Virginia's offense the Cavaliers have been missing. One of the best two-way players in the sport.
Ethan Happ, Wisconsin: Free throw shooting issues aside, Happ will end his career in Madison as one of the best players in Wisconsin history. Happ put up all-around numbers (17.8 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 4.7 APG) that were unmatched by pretty much anyone in the country. His "kPOY" rating at KenPom.com is No. 1 in the country and the best rating since 2015.
Rui Hachimura, Gonzaga: We were all waiting for the big breakout campaign from Hachimura, and it finally happened. He opened the season with 33 points against Idaho State and never slowed down the rest of the way. Against Duke, Tennessee and North Carolina, Hachimura's numbers didn't suffer much, either: 19.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists.
Third team
Markus Howard, Marquette: We thought about doing a Mr. Big Shot category for player you trust most with the game on the line, and Howard likely would have battled Virginia's Ty Jerome for that honor. Howard is simply an explosive scorer, and there's no one in the country more capable of putting up 40 or even 50 points on a given night.
Carsen Edwards, Purdue: After the Boilermakers lost four senior starters from last season, I think everyone assumed Edwards would see his numbers rise -- but he was unguardable at times. Some late-season shooting efforts (7-for-31, 4-for-24, 3-for-17, 8-for-27) knocked him down a few pegs, but Edwards is still one of the most dangerous scorers in college basketball.
Dedric Lawson, Kansas: One of the few bright spots in a season filled with injuries and personnel issues for the Jayhawks, Lawson was a lock for 20 and 10 every night. Unfortunately, he often didn't get enough help -- but he was a dominant force in the post. Lawson tallied 20 double-doubles and carried the Jayhawks on the offensive end for long stretches.
PJ Washington, Kentucky: He was inconsistent during the nonconference portion of the season, but his play in January and February was as good as anyone in the country. Washington is part of the reason Kentucky is in position to earn a 1-seed on Selection Sunday, with his ability to shoot from the perimeter and be a go-to-guy on the offensive end.
Mike Daum, South Dakota State: Daum edges out the Tar Heels duo of Johnson and Coby White for the final All-America slot -- and if you want to say it's a career achievement award, go ahead. For three seasons running, Daum has put up around 25 points and 10 rebounds per game, while shooting in the vicinity of 40 percent from 3-point range. He'll be missed.