By Luke Winn

1. Ohio State (19-0) LW: 1

Senior forward Dallas Lauderdale has become a "token" starter for the Buckeyes, averaging just 14.2 minutes per game in Big Ten play while freshman Aaron Craft plays 31.2 minutes off the bench. They need Craft on the floor because he's their lone true point guard. He plays excellent D -- his steal percentage of 3.4 is actually higher than David Lighty's -- but more importantly, he changes the complexion of their offense.

Lauderdale's role in the offense is limited to screening, rebounding and occasionally dunking a dump-off pass, as he shoots on just 11.7 percent of possessions. (The only starter I could find on a Big Ten team who shoots less frequently is Wisconsin's Tim Jarmusz, at 10.7 percent.) In the opening stretch of Saturday's game against Penn State, the Nittany Lions opted for a 2-3 zone while Lauderdale was on the floor, and he made minor contributions by screening the back line to free up open threes (see frame 1) and staying out of the way once Jared Sullinger received the ball on the opposite side (frame 2):

When Craft enters the game -- as he did on Saturday after the first media timeout -- Ohio State generally switches to a "four-out, one-in" or "spread" offense. Iowa coach Fran McCaffery was quoted in the Columbus Dispatch on Jan. 9 as being in favor of this look. "They're much better small," he said. "They're harder to guard. That's no disrespect to Lauderdale -- I love Lauderdale -- but when you go four around one with [Sullinger] and you've got four scorers and four drivers and four playmakers, it spreads you out in a way that makes it very difficult to defend that team because of the way they pass and the way they share the ball."

Penn State countered immediately with a man-to-man, assigning Craft's defender to double Sullinger in the post. The first time this happened, Sullinger simply kicked to ball back to Craft, a 43.6 percent long-range shooter, for an open three (which he made):

Against this spread, the Nittany Lions soon began using Craft's defender to attempt to deny entry passes to Sullinger (frame 1). When the ball was rotated to Craft at the top of the key, he had a wide-open lane between him and the rim (frame 2). His defender was slow to recover off of Sullinger to cut off the drive, and the other strongside defenders couldn't leave Buford or Diebler open for threes:

Craft missed the layup, but that's beside the point. Ohio State's offense is more dangerous with him on the floor.

Next Three: 1/22 at Illinois, 1/25 vs. Purdue, 1/29 at Northwestern

2. Kansas (18-0) LW: 2

After watching tape of Monday's road rout of Baylor, we can conclude with certainty that both Morris twins are killing it on offense. Marcus' line: 10-of-14 shooting, 25 points. Markieff's: 9-of-10 shooting, 19 points. It's difficult, at times, to discern which brother is better. Markieff has been more statistically productive according to the kPOY formula, but Marcus is still preferred by NBA scouts. In a few conversations on the topic, scouts are insistent that Marcus is a far superior offensive player, and I'm starting to understand why.

The stat that most differentiates the Morrii is their respective abilities to score in post-up situations. Per-possession scouting data shows that they've had nearly equal opportunities to post up, getting about 3.5 chances there per game. Markieff is just a mediocre player in this department, scoring 0.836 points per possession. Marcus, on the other hand, is brilliant, scoring 1.333 points per possession, an entire half-point ahead his brother. Marcus is not only the best player on Kansas' roster in this area, he's the best player in the country. Of players with 50 or more post-up scoring chances this season, these are the top five in points per possession (PPP):

Rk. Player, Team P-Up Poss. PPP

1 Marcus Morris, Kansas 63 1.333

2 Jared Mintz, Lafayette 96 1.292

3 Chris Otule, Marquette 57 1.175

4 Festus Ezeli, Vanderbilt 102 1.167

5 Harper Kamp, Cal 64 1.156

Next Three: 1/22 vs. Texas, 1/25 at Colorado, 1/29 vs. Kansas State

3. Duke (17-1) LW: 3

More news on the Kyrie Irving Toe front this week, with Mr. Goodman reporting (via Irving's father) that the cast is coming off on Feb. 4, surgery is unlikely, and Kyrie won't return to the Blue Devils unless he's 100 percent healthy. So there's a chance (albeit slim) that he'll return by March and force the NCAA tournament selection committee to make a judgment call on Duke's actual strength versus its resume.