Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, a daily column that can be found here every single morning getting you caught up to date on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.
Things To Sample
Johni Broome returned to practice for Auburn
The Tigers’ All-American big man had missed several days on the court after tweaking his elbow in last Sunday’s Elite Eight win over Michigan State, but his return on Thursday ensures that he’ll be ready to go for Saturday’s Final Four matchup with Florida. The 6-10 Broome averaged 23.5 points and 15.0 rebounds in a pair of games last weekend in Atlanta and is averaging 17.3 points and 13.3 rebounds in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. He was only 8-19 from the field when the Gators beat Auburn at Neville Arena on Feb. 8th.
UConn stabilized its backcourt with the addition of Georgia transfer Silas Demary Jr.
The 6-5 Demary (13.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists) was one of the top guards in the transfer portal and his decision to sign with the Huskies on Thursday was a big plus for Dan Hurley’s squad. With Demary, Solo Ball, Jaylin Stewart, Alex Karaban, and Tarris Reed, Hurley now has a nucleus in place that can go into next season as a consensus top-15 team. Expect Hurley to use Demary’s size as a lead guard similar to how he used Tristen Newton when this program won back-to-back national titles in 2023 and 2024. UConn also returns a quality role player in junior forward Jayden Ross and adds three top-30 freshmen in Braylon Mullins, Darius Adams, and Eric Reibe.
Louisville has added a bevy of shooters
The Cards only shot 33.0 percent as a team from long distance last season, but Pat Kelsey is quickly adding reinforcements. Louisville’s three perimeter transfer additions — Adrian Wooley (Kennesaw State), Isaac McKneely (Virginia), and Ryan Conwell (Xavier) — combined to make a whopping 273 three-point shots in 2024-25. That’s some major potential spacing for a program that’s clearly regained national relevancy. Expect the Cards to be again be one of the top teams in the ACC next season along with Duke.
On The Side
- Three of the four teams in the 2025 Final Four — Auburn, Florida, and Houston — returned over 52 percent of their scoring from last season.
- As of today, Kansas will not return a single player next season who averaged double figure minutes in 2024-25.
- Maryland transfer Ja’Kobi Gillespie is working on setting up visits to both Tennessee and Villanova, his father told College Hoops Today on Thursday. The 6-1 point guard averaged 14.7 points and 4.8 assists this past season with the Terps.
- Northwestern’s Chris Collins has agreed to a multi-year contract extension that will put him among the top coaches in the Big Ten in terms of salary and compensation, a source told College Hoops Today. An official announcement is expected soon.
- The annual Final Four practice show will air today from Noon-4 PM ET on CBS Sports Network.
