3 Big 10 players Knicks fans must watch in March Madness

2: Keegan Murray – SF/PF

Iowa forward Keegan Murray is similar to Davis in the sense that he’s having a breakout sophomore year. In his first year as a Hawkeye, he averaged 7.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 31 games (four starts).

This season, he’s averaging 23.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 1.3 steals in the 34 games that he’s played and started in. Murray’s shooting 55.5% from the field, 40.5% from beyond the arc, and 74.1% from the free-throw line.

Keegan Murray could get it done on both ends of the court for the New York Knicks.

At six-foot-eight with a six-foot-eleven wingspan, Murray can do it all on both ends of the court. His shooting percentage from the floor is high but his percentage when taking 2-point shots is a whopping 63%.

A few days ago, the 21-year-old led Iowa to a 75-66 win over Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament Final (the team’s first since 2006) with 19 points and 11 rebounds. In the four games that the Hawkeyes played in during the tournament, he averaged 25.8 points and nine rebounds while shooting an average of 55.9% from the field.

Murray broke the tournament record for points scored with 103 and was named the Most Valuable Player.

If the Knicks draft Murray (he’s currently projected to go No. 5 to Sacramento), they’ll be getting a player who can pull up from anywhere on the court, run the ball, and play defense. Wherever the forward ends up, he’ll make an immediate impact as a scorer at the NBA level.

Murray and the No. 5. Hawkeyes will go up against No. 12 Richmond at 3:10 p.m. ET on Thursday, Mar. 17. The game will be televised on truTV.