Which players from Dallas-area high schools will play in the men’s NCAA Tournament?

This year’s NCAA Tournament could have had a lot of local star power if the NBA hadn’t gotten in the way.

Cade Cunningham, who started his high school career at Arlington Bowie before finishing at Florida’s Montverde Academy, and Tyrese Maxey from South Garland both left college after one season and became first-round NBA draft picks in 2021 and 2020, respectively. Former state champion Jahmi’us Ramsey from Duncanville also could have been a part of this year’s March Madness, but he too left for the NBA draft after a one-and-done college career.

Without them, there are only 19 local products in the NCAA Tournament, down from 38 a year ago. Only 12 teams in the tournament have a player from a Dallas-area high school on their roster — down from 25 a year ago — and TCU and Colorado State are tied for the most locals, with three each.

Those numbers shrunk because teams such as SMU, Texas A&M, North Texas and Abilene Christian didn’t make the NCAA Tournament. SMU and Texas A&M were among the first four out, and Abilene Christian lost in the championship game of the WAC tournament.

But there are still some former Dallas-area stars to keep an eye on, such as Gonzaga’s Drew Timme, TCU’s Mike Miles Jr. and Texas’ Andrew Jones. Can one of them step up and become a star of the tournament like Jesuit’s Max Abmas was during Oral Roberts’ run to the Sweet 16 last season? Can one of them make a run to the Final Four like Timme did a season ago?

The Top Five:

Drew Timme, Gonzaga: The 6-10 junior forward from Richardson Pearce became an NCAA Tournament idol last year because of his revered handlebar mustache — the “Drew Manchu” or “Fu Man Drew” as it was called — and his patented celebrations in which he brushed his mustache with his index fingers and pointed to the sky. That, and the fact that he was a second-team All-American who led Gonzaga to a national runner-up finish by averaging 19 points for a 31-1 team. Timme, a five-star recruit coming out of high school, has been just as good this season, averaging a team-high 17.5 points to go with 6.3 rebounds for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Timme is shooting 58.8 percent from the field, which ranks 18th in the nation. He has 11 games with 20 or more points, including a career-high 37 against Texas. Timme has been named a second-team All-American for the second straight year, he is the West Coast Conference Player of the Year, and he is a candidate for the Wooden Award that is given to the most outstanding college basketball player in the country .

Mike Miles Jr., TCU: The 6-2 sophomore guard from Lancaster was the only player in the Big 12 to rank in the top six in the conference in points and assists in the regular season. Miles, a second-team all-Big 12 selection, averages a team-high 15 points to go with 3.9 assists. He spearheaded TCU’s late-season push to get to the NCAA Tournament by averaging 19.3 points in wins over nationally ranked Texas Tech, Kansas and Baylor. He scored 26 points against Baylor and Texas Tech — both ranked in the top 10 in the nation at the time (Baylor was No. 1) — and he tied his career high by scoring 28 against Utah.

Miles won a gold medal with Team USA in the FIBA ​​U19 World Cup in Latvia last summer. He was named The Dallas Morning News‘ All-Area Player of the Year in 2020 after averaging 21.4 points as a senior for a 36-1 Lancaster team that was ranked No. 1 in the state in 5A and reached the state tournament before it was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Andrew Jones, Texas: The 2016 McDonald’s All-American from Irving MacArthur has had an outstanding college career after being diagnosed with leukemia in 2018 and completing his final treatment in 2019. He was an honorable mention all-Big 12 selection this season, the third time in his career that he has earned all-conference honors. The 6-4 senior guard ranks third on the team in scoring at 10.7 points per game, and he is second on the team in steals (35) and is shooting 81.3% from the free throw line. Jones was selected as this year’s co-winner of the United States Basketball Writers Association’s Perry Wallace Most Courageous Award.

Isaiah Stevens, Colorado State: The former state champion from Allen was a second-team all-Mountain West selection for the second straight year. He leads the Mountain West Conference in free throw shooting (90.2%) and ranks 12th in scoring (14.9 points), fourth in assists (4.8) and eighth in steals (1.2). Stevens has scored in double figures in all but three games, and he has scored a career-high 35 points against UNLV. Stevens was a junior on Allen’s 2018 Class 6A state championship team and had 11 points and five assists in a 49-47 overtime win over Katy Tompkins in the Class 6A state championship game that gave Allen its first state title in boys basketball.

Kyler Edwards, Houston: The former four-star recruit, who played at Arlington Bowie before transferring to Nevada’s Findlay Prep for his senior year of high school, averages 13.8 points and 5.8 rebounds for American Athletic Conference champion Houston. The 6-4 senior guard is Houston’s leading scorer with Marcus Sasser (17.7 points) from Red Oak out for the season. Edwards ranks in the top 15 in the AAC in scoring and rebounding, and he was a second-team all-conference selection. Edwards, who played his first three years of college at Texas Tech before transferring to Houston, scored a career-high 29 points against Tulsa this season. Houston will be trying to reach its second straight Final Four.

First Four

Trevian Tennyson, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi: The 6-4 junior guard from Mansfield Legacy has started only 13 of 34 games for the Southland Conference tournament champion, but he ranks second on the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game, and his 71 made 3-pointers lead the team. A&M-Corpus Christi will make its second NCAA Tournament appearance and first since the 2006-07 season. Tennyson has had nine games with 18 or more points, including a season-high 23 against Nicholls State. This is his first season at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi after previously playing at Central Connecticut State and Ranger College. Tennyson was a reserve on Mansfield Timberview’s 2017 state championship team before finishing high school at Mansfield Legacy, where he averaged 24.0 points.

Jordan Roberts, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi: The 6-4 freshman guard from South Grand Prairie has played in 16 games, averaging 3.8 points and 0.8 rebounds.

Jaden Jones, Rutgers: The 6-8 freshman guard/forward has played in 17 games, averaging 3.6 points and 1.2 rebounds. Rutgers has qualified for the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons for the second time in program history, previously doing so in 1974-75 and 1975-76. Jones was homeschooled in high school and played for Dallas Christian Home Educators (DasCHE). He also spent time at Prolific Prep in California.

Midwest Region

Jalen Wilson, Kansas: The all-state forward from Denton Guyer entered the 2021 NBA draft but ultimately withdrew his name so he could return to Kansas for his redshirt sophomore season. He has averaged 10.9 points and 7.0 rebounds for Big 12 Conference champion Kansas, the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region. It is KU’s 50th all-time NCAA Tournament and NCAA record 32nd consecutive appearance. Wilson had season highs of 23 points against West Virginia and 15 rebounds against Oklahoma State, and he scored 22 against Oklahoma. He finished last season averaging 7.9 rebounds, which was the second-best average by a KU freshman, trailing only five-time NBA All-Star Joel Embiid (8.1 in 2014). Wilson will get to experience a homecoming of sorts, as Kansas will open the NCAA Tournament by playing in Fort Worth.

Michael Jankovich, Kansas: The 6-5 junior guard has played in 10 games, averaging 0.6 points and 0.2 rebounds. He is the son of SMU head coach Tim Jankovich.

South Region

Micah Peavy, TCU: In his first season at TCU after transferring from Texas Tech, Peavy is averaging 6.3 points and 4.1 rebounds. The 6-7 sophomore guard scored a season-high 16 points against nationally ranked Baylor. Peavy, who was a Jordan Brand All-American in high school, led Duncanville to the Class 6A state title in 2019 and to the state semifinals in 2020. He was the TABC 6A state player of the year as a senior.

JaKobe Coles, TCU: The former Denton Guyer standout is averaging 2.8 points and 1.9 rebounds while playing 8.8 minutes per game after transferring to TCU from Butler.

Jalen Lake, Colorado State: The 6-4 guard from Waxahachie has averaged 3.6 points and 1.1 rebounds as a freshman.

Baylor Hebb, Colorado State: The 6-2 guard from Colleyville Heritage is a transfer from Loyola-Chicago. He has appeared in 11 games, averaging 0.5 points.

Zac Watson, Longwood: The 6-7 senior forward from Frisco Liberty has started all 32 games and averages 7.8 points and 3.8 rebounds for the Big South tournament champion. After playing his first two years at UC Riverside, Watson has shot 57.4% from the field this season for Longwood.

West Region

Julius Marble II, Michigan State: The 6-9 junior forward from Jesuit shoots a team-best 61.4% from the field and is second on the team in blocks (18). Marble averages 6.5 points and 3.4 rebounds for a Michigan State team that will be playing in its 24th consecutive NCAA Tournament.

Vincent Lee, Cal State Fullerton: The 6-8 junior forward from Midlothian averages 7.9 points and 6.1 rebounds for a team that is making its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament, and the first since 2018. Lee shoots 53.6% from the field for the Big West Conference champion and leads the team in blocks (12). Lee, who was the first-team all-state at Midlothian, originally enrolled at Nevada but never played a game there and transferred to Cal State Fullerton after the fall semester of 2018.

Laku Side, Cal State Fullerton: The 6-10 sophomore forward from Lake Highlands, a transfer from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, has played in 18 games and averages 1.8 points and 0.8 rebounds.

Eastern Region

Cameron Brown, Marquette: The 6-1 freshman guard from Plano John Paul II has played in three games, averaging 0.3 rebounds.

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