Indiana's Mackenzie Mgbako is making an intensifying argument for Big Ten freshman of the year.

For a while, Iowa’s Owen Freeman looked like a shoo-in for the award. Minnesota’s Cam Christie came on strong in February with a series of high-scoring performances. But Mgbako might be surging in to the lead pack, if not slightly ahead of it, just at the season’s finish line.

∎ Freeman: 10.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 64.4% eFG

∎ Christie: 11.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.2 apg, 41% 3PT

∎ Mgbako: 12.1 pgg, 3.9 rpg, 34.3% 3PT (38.2% in Big Ten play)

Freeman has been the clubhouse favorite thanks to strong early season performances. But his impact has waned — he has just three double-figure scoring games in Iowa’s past 10.

Christie won freshman of the week after a pair of explosive performances against Illinois and Penn State. He’s also been pretty roundly outplayed the two times he’s faced Mgbako, the latter scoring 34 points to Christie’s 15 across a pair of Indiana wins over Minnesota this winter.

IU could have packed it in. It hasn't. And Mike Woodson, Hoosiers deserve credit for that.

Insider: Mike Woodson has critics, and some complaints have merit. But this was always the outcome.

Mgbako, the preseason favorite for this award, was nowhere near the running for much of the season. Woodson struggled to trust him defensively, Mgbako himself had issues with foul trouble and, like many teammates, his offense wasn’t coming consistently enough to mitigate deficiencies elsewhere.

That’s changed in Big Ten play. Mgbako has visibly improved defensively. His turnover and foul numbers are down. He’s probably Indiana’s steadiest free-throw shooter. Across his past seven games he’s averaging 16.3 points per, and that number ticks up to 17.7 during the Hoosiers’ three-game win streak.

Mgbako has become, essentially, the dangerous shooter-scorer we thought he could be for this team, and it’s been a significant factor in Indiana’s turnaround.

If we’re handicapping the freshman-of-the-year race in odds terms, Freeman probably remains the betting favorite. He’s been in that frame the longest, and familiarity tends to be helpful in these situations. But Mgbako has inserted himself firmly back into that conversation. He might even have the best case right now.

Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on Twitter: @ZachOsterman.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IU's Mackenzie Mgbako makes late push for Big Ten freshman of year