Hopkins earns national pub

[PonyPride]

From CBSSportsline.com:

Of the top six high school basketball players in the Dallas area last season, only one didn't bolt the state. That was SMU guard Bryan Hopkins, and he's a big reason why the Mustangs have won three in a row and aren't going away in the WAC race.

The guys who left are making huge impacts elsewhere -- Chris Bosh at Georgia Tech, Bracey Wright at Indiana, Daniel Horton at Michigan, Ike Diogu at Arizona State and Deron Williams at Illinois.

Hopkins, who could have gone to major-conference power Texas, stepped into the starting point guard role at SMU and is averaging 13.9 points per game.

In the three-game winning streak entering the week, Hopkins has scored 52 points and pulled down 16 rebounds. He played 119 out of a possible 130 minutes (two of the games went overtime).

"He's very poised for a freshman," senior Quinton Ross told the Dallas Morning News. "He takes big shots for us, and he makes big shots. He's been playing real well."