Leroy Velasquez: Breakfast Buffet: BYU cashes in on Jimmer Fredette mania

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Breakfast Buffet: BYU cashes in on Jimmer Fredette mania

1. Jimmer Fredette's 43-point outburst Wednesday night against San Diego State did more than just raise his profile and solidify BYU's place in the top 10. According to CNBC, it also helped BYU sell more basketball merchandise in that one night than any of the past 15 single seasons.

2. The day after burying his mother in Washington D.C., Kansas forward Thomas Robinson published a letter on kuathletics.com thanking fans for their support of him and his nine-year-old sister. "Knowing that people care so much for me and my family is helping us get through these tough times," Robinson wrote.

3. One of the offseason's most compelling storylines will be seeing whether the potential NBA lockout deters early entry candidates from turning pro this spring. The Fayetteville Observer's Dan Wiederer examined the issue by seeking the opinion of a handful of top ACC underclassmen.

4. When Arizona hosts USC on Saturday, Pac-10 player of the year candidate Derrick Williams will meet the team he originally expected to join. Williams and fellow Arizona teammates Solomon Hill and MoMo Jones were originally slated to be Trojans before heading to Tucson instead in the wake of the O.J. Mayo scandal.

5. My former colleague Matt Norlander's move to CBSSports.com left College Hoops Journal dormant for the past couple months, but he's found a way to solve that problem. Norlander has brought aboard four new writers and a copy editor, who will keep the site afloat in his absence.

Duke forward Kyle Singler isn't the only college basketball player who can make an entertaining trick shot video. Check out UConn women's guard Caroline Doty's effort, which includes a brief cameo appearance from men's national player of the year candidate Kemba Walker.

"It looks just like a prep school. It's in the middle of nowhere. It's snowing. It's cold. I don't understand why people want to go there." -- Washington guard Isaiah Thomas on rival Washington State, whom the Huskies face on Sunday. (Seattle Times)