Best player in college basketball? Our panel says Kentucky's John Wall

Kentucky freshman guard John Wall leads the AnnArbor.com in-season poll for the college basketball player of the year. (Photo: Associated Press)

We’re here to streamline the process. We’ve asked journalists on those panels to give us an in-season snapshot of the best players. Forty-five responded, and here are the totals.

No surprise: Freshman John Wall of Kentucky is the front-runner. Wall, a 6-foot-4 guard, is averaging 17.1 points, 6.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds a game.

On Saturday, Wall hit two free throws with 8.9 seconds left as Kentucky (18-0, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) beat Auburn, 72-67. Wall finished with 13 points and four assists.

We'll poll the same group every other week until the end of the season.