Theyre the ones piling up the assists and steals but getting overshadowed by high-flying teammates. Theyre the ones who dont make a lot of shots but make big shots. Theyre the ones whose contributions dont always show up in the box score but who are quietly appreciated by coaches and teammates.
Welcome to the inaugural City 6 All-Underrated Team.
An all-city team? Temples Ramone Moore, Penns Zack Rosen and Villanovas Maalik Wayns are locks, and Id probably fill out my ballot with St. Joe's' Langston Galloway and La Salles Tyreek Duren.
An all-underrated team? Thats a lot more difficult because youre trying to measure the intangibles as much as the stats and numbers. But we took a crack at it.
Rob Belcore, Penn
The 6-6 Belcore is one of the best defenders in the Ivy League. Hes got a pretty good beard going, and it fits, because hes that kind of old-school playertough, gritty, smart. A throwback.
Belcore, twice named Penns Defensive Player of the Year, gets overshadowed by senior classmates Zack Rosen and Tyler Bernardini, but hes been a huge part of the Quakers turnaround under Jerome Allen.
Belcore has improved steadily each of his four years at Penn and over the last two months or so hes really blossomed, averaging 8.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.6 steals and shooting 41 percent from three-point range in the Quakers last 13 games while constantly guarding the opposing teams best player. In a win last weekend at Brown, Belcore had a career game, with 17 points, 10 rebounds and three steals.
Aaron Brown, Temple
You think Temple, you think Ramone Moore, Khalif Wyatt, Micheal Eric, Juan Fernandez and Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson. And theres a reason why. Theyre all terrific players.
Aaron Brown? The 6-5 sophomore guard isnt flashy, and he isnt going to send the crowd into a frenzy with a crazy dunk, and hes so quietly consistent, its easy to miss his steady contributions to Temple, which is 18-5, has won seven straight and is bubbling just under the national rankings.
Brown plays 17 minutes per game off the bench for the Owls and contributes 7.6 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. And on a team loaded with capable three-point shooters, he might be the best. Brown is shooting 41 percent behind the stripe, 10th-best in the A-10.
Brown has also been very good in Temples biggest wins11 points in 18 minutes over Duke, 12 points and eight rebounds against Maryland, 16 points at Charlotte, 15 points on 3-for-4 shooting from three at Rhode Island.
Frantz Massenat, Drexel
Massenat is a tremendous shooterhes shooting 47.1 percent from three-point range, which would be 12th in the country if he had a few more attemptsbut the most important thing he brings to Drexel is terrific decision making at the point.
No matter how crazy things get on the court, Massenat is always under control, always calm, always looking to get the ball in the hands of the open man. If it happens to be himself, bombs away. The sophomore from Trenton Catholic Academy in Central Jersey is actually leading Drexel in scoring at 13.1, even though he rarely looks to shoot until all other avenues have been exhausted.
Massenat averages nearly 36 minutes on the court per game, 46th-most in Division 1, which tells you what Bruiser Flint thinks of him. He wants him on the floor as much as possible.
Massenat is also averaging 4.3 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game, and thanks to the great StatSheet.com website, we also know that his plus-minus average of 13.1 points per game is 28th-best in Division 1.
D.J. Peterson, La Salle
Peterson is the ultimate underrated player. Hes averaging only 3.6 points per game for the Explorers, but whenever La Salle coach Dr. John Giannini sends him out onto the court, good things happen.
Although only the most hard-core college hoops fans may have noticed Peterson, Giannini certainly understands what he brings to this young Explorers team. Peterson is playing 19 minutes a night for the Explorers, who are enjoying their best season in years.
Although he doesnt score a lot of points, Peterson ranks 22nd in the entire NCAA Division 1 in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.8 assists for every turnover). Incredibly, in his last 13 games, Peterson has played 263 minutes and committed two turnovers. Thats the equivalent of one about every 3 12 entire games.
Peterson, a 6-6 freshman, rarely shoots, but when he does, hes money. Peterson is 21 for 45 from three-point range this year (47 percent), which would rank among the top 15 nationally if he had more attempts. After beginning his college career by missing his first six threes, hes 21 for 39 in La Salles last 19 games54 percent.
In A-10 play, Peterson is hitting 75 percent of his threes, by far the best in the conference.
Ronald Roberts Jr., St. Joes
Roberts, a 6-7 sophomore forward, is averaging only 24 minutes per game for the Hawks, but hes jamming some pretty impressive numbers into those minutes.
Despite playing only a little more than half of each game, Roberts is averaging 11.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per game for St. Joes. He ranks third in the A-10 and 31st in the nation in shooting percentage (61 percent), 13th in the A-10 in rebounding and eighth in the conference in offensive rebounding (2.8).
St. Joes sophomore class is loaded, with Langston Galloway, C.J. Aiken, Halil Kanacevic and Daryus Quarles, but Roberts has been a big part of St. Joes 15-10 start, even though he hasnt started a game.
Roberts has been at his best in recent weeks, averaging 14.0 points in St. Joes last eight games.
The All-Underrated Second Team
Villanova freshman Markus Kennedy is averaging 4.7 rebounds per game despite ranking seventh on the Wildcats at 15 per game) ... Drexel freshman Damion Lee is averaging 12.1 points and 4.5 rebounds in 29 minutes per game for the Dragons and ranks seventh in the CAA in three-point shooting and 12th in the CAA in foul shooting ... Temple freshman Anthony Lee leads the Owls in rebounding despite playing just 21 minutes per game. Lee is averaging 5.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Hes also sixth in the A-10 with 1.6 blocks per game ... Drexel junior Daryl McCoy is seventh in the CAA in rebounding (7.1) ... La Salle freshman Jerrell Wright is averaging 8.8 points and 6.0 rebounds in just under 19 minutes per game. Wright is seventh in the A-10 at 56 percent from the field.
E-mail Reuben Frank at rfrank@comcastsportsnet.com