The rumors began in the middle of the year when North Carolina sophomore forward Alex Stepheson returned home to California and missed a couple games.

The athletic 6-foot-8 1/2 Stephenson has been granted his release by the school and will likely land somewhere near his home.

Sources indicated that Stepheson wanted to be closer to his father, who has battled health issues, and also saw the writing on the wall with the return of Tyler Hansbrough. The Tar Heels also have Deon Thompson up front and will add a pair of talented freshman big men in Ed Davis and Tyler Zeller.

Look for Stepheson to land a place such as USC, Pepperdine or maybe Loyola Marymount.

The loss shouldn't hurt Roy Williams' club much, but Stepheson did provide a physical and athletic presence on the defensive end of the floor. Both Davis and Zeller are hardly intimidating physically.

PLAISTED MAKES BAFFLING CHOICE

Maybe it was because I saw one of his worst games last season, but I just don't see BYU junior big man Trent Plaisted as a first-round pick.

Evidently, the 6-foot-11 big man disagrees since he has already signed with agent Mark Bartelstein and Priority Sports.

Personally, I believe his teammate, Lee Cummard, is a better pro prospect.

RANDOM NOTES: Santa Clara coach Kerry Keating has lost a pair of assistants: Lamont Smith will replace Mark Phelps at Arizona State while Sam Scuilli has gone into the business world. Keating has promoted Dustin Kerns from director of basketball operations and moved Jason Ludwig into the DBO spot.