This season seems like it is being dominated by standout freshman and stars in the power conferences. The likes of Trae Young, Marvin Bagley, and DeAndre Ayton have been in the headlines with MVP performances night in and night out. But how about those stars that are tearing it up that we don’t typically hear about?

Everyone remembers Marcus Keane from last year, the Central Michigan stud who could score at will. Even NBA stars like Kawhi Leonard and Steph Curry started off by dominating their respective mid-major conferences. I am here to make sure these future stars don’t get overlooked (and to give you some mid-major players who could bust your bracket come March). Here is my list of the best and most underrated mid-major players so far this season that everyone should know about:

Nathan Knight, William and Mary

Stats: 19.8 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 3.7 BPG, 2.1 APG

William and Mary is a really good three point shooting team (first in the country in 3 pt percentage), but the big star on their team is their big man Nathan Knight. Knight has seven double doubles and was close to a triple double on more than one occasion. He currently ranks eighth in the country in player efficiency rating, one spot behind stud freshman DeAndre Ayton from Arizona.

One thing that bodes well for Knight and the Tribe for the rest of the season is that he seems to play better against better competition, with some of his best games coming against Ohio State, TCU, and UCF. His best performance came against Hofstra where he poured in 31 points and grabbed 11 boards, with 8 blocks and two assists as well. The Tribe can only hope he can keep it going against top teams in the NCAA Tournament, should they make it in.

Mike Daum, South Dakota State

Stats: 22.7 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 1.6 RPG

People who have been really into college basketball the past few years should already have heard of Mike Daum. Last season, he averaged around 25 points and 8 rebounds a game, so he has been an established big time performer already. He is a name you will want to know, as he has already drawn comparisons to Larry Bird (!!!) and shows no signs of slowing down. South Dakota State is currently 15-5 and looking like a tournament team, so if the Dauminator gets a chance to play against big time competition in the tournament, watch out.

Kendrick Nunn, Oakland

Stats: 25.7 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 4.1 APG, 1.6 SPG

Nunn is a very interesting player to watch. He was a 1,000 point scorer for three straight seasons with Illinois before getting dismissed for a misdemeanor battery charge. He transferred to Oakland and hasn’t lost a step. He also is fun to watch because he shoots three pointers at an unbelievable rate: 11.8 three point attempts per game, good for second in the NCAA since 2009-10. You know who did that? A name you haven’t thought about in a while: Marshall Henderson. He was fun to watch, and so is Kendrick Nunn. Tune in to an Oakland game if you can some time and enjoy.

Nick King, Middle Tennessee State

Stats: 22.9 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 2.0 APG

Everybody remembers Middle Tennessee State from the past two years with them being a top mid-major team and wreaking havoc in the NCAA tournament (sorry Michigan State fans). Well they are back again, this time led by a new face in Memphis and Alabama transfer Nick King. He had a monster of a game already in his young Blue Raider days, putting up 32 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists against another typical March-buster, Florida Gulf Coast. Not bad production for a guy who was never the focal point of his Tiger teams at Memphis.

Ajdin Penava, Marshall

Stats: 16.7 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 4.3 BPG, 1.8 APG, 1.4 SPG

It was too hard to leave off a player who almost got a quadruple double earlier this season. Penava went off against Eastern Kentucky leading his team to a win behind 13 points, 10 rebounds, 9 (!) blocks, 7 assists, and 2 steals. That is the epitome of bruta-oops, I mean the epitome of stat-stuffing. Perhaps even more impressive, Penava is ranked in the top five of player efficiency rating, right behind Trae Young, Bonzie Colson, and Marvin Bagley. Not bad company to be in.

Honorable mentions:

Alize Johnson, Missouri State: 15.1 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 2.4 APG

Kevin Hervey, Texas-Arlington: 21.2 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.6 SPG