Fab five: Players you've never seen who make for must-see TV

Darington Hobson is the Player of the Year in a four-bid league and star of a team that's spent the past four weeks ranked in the top 10. He's averaging 16.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game, recorded double-doubles in four of his past five outings, and developed a reputation as a prospect who might be good enough to jump to the NBA after just one season at the Division I level.

Simply put, he's terrific.

Darington Hobson 'can't wait to get on that national stage.' (Getty Images)

And I bet you've never seen him play.

"There's a lot of people who have probably heard my name but never seen me play," Hobson said by phone late Monday, and I think he's probably right. Hobson plays at New Mexico, after all. That's a Mountain West school with a loyal fan base, iconic arena and television package that got the Lobos on CBS and ESPN a grand total of zero times this season.

That's zero.

As in it never happened.

Which is why I bet you've never seen Hobson play.

Which means you're in for some kind of treat Thursday night, because that's when New Mexico faces Montana in the first round of the NCAA tournament. It'll be Hobson's first appearance on CBS, and it could be the first of three or four over the next two weeks that make you wonder why you don't spend more time on Versus.

With this in mind, I produced a list of five difference-makers you've probably never seen, and that list is topped by Hobson, who told me he "can't wait to get on that national stage."

My response: You're on it, buddy.

You. Are. On. It.

1. Darington Hobson (New Mexico)

When he plays: Thursday vs. Montana, 9:40 p.m. ET

Why he's a difference-maker: Hobson is essentially a combo forward capable of getting 16 rebounds (like he did in December against Creighton) or sinking four 3-pointers (like he did in February against San Diego State). He's scored at least 28 in a game and got at least 20 points and 15 rebounds in the same game three times each, and he's the single biggest reason New Mexico went from being picked fifth in the Mountain West to finishing the regular season ranked eighth nationally.

2. Anthony Johnson (Montana)

When he plays: Thursday vs. New Mexico, 9:40 p.m. ET

Why he's a difference-maker: In fairness, you probably have seen Johnson a little because I assume you got word last Wednesday that he was in the process of leading Montana back from a 20-point halftime deficit in the Big Sky tournament title game, and that you switched from Cincinnati-Louisville with about 10 minutes remaining. If so, congrats, because what you witnessed was one of the great performances of any conference tournament. Johnson scored 34 of his 42 points in the second half and buried the winner in a 66-65 win over Weber State, and now he gets to play against Hobson in the first round, which provides the opportunity to see two seldom-seen players in one game.

3. Jimmer Fredette (BYU)

When he plays: Thursday vs. Florida, 12:20 p.m. ET

Why he's a difference-maker: Fredette leads the Mountain West in scoring, ranks third in assists, shoots a league-best 44.8 percent from beyond the arc, and he's probably the guy most likely to hang 40 on somebody in this tournament. He scored 49 at Arizona in December, put 45 on TCU last weekend. And it'll be deadly if Florida gets into a habit of fouling Fredette, because he shoots 89.6 percent from the free throw line, and he's made at least 10 singles six times this season, including a 23-of-24 effort in that 45-point game against TCU.

4. Randy Culpepper (UTEP)

When he plays: Thursday vs. Butler at 4:45 p.m. ET

Why he's a difference-maker: Lightly recruited out of high school, Culpepper has developed into an elite college guard by increasing his field goal percentage, 3-point percentage and assist-to-turnover ratio. He's listed at 6-feet but is probably closer to 5-9, and that's awesome because it really does look terrific when a 5-9 guard dunks on a 6-9 forward, which is something Culpepper has done many times, and might just do against Butler in San Jose. He's a C-USA Player of the Year from Memphis who doesn't play at Memphis. Raise your hand if you ever thought that would happen.

5. Aubrey Coleman (Houston)

When he plays: Friday vs. Maryland at 9:40 p.m. ET

Why he's a difference-maker: Thanks to a pair of Houston upsets in the C-USA tournament -- first over Memphis, then over UTEP -- the nation's leading scorer will participate in the NCAA tournament even though his team finished 7-9 in the nation's 11th-rated league. Yes, Coleman is basically a one-man team. But he averages 25.6 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, and he somehow got the Cougars into this field, which suggests he's a pretty good one-man team and fully capable of getting into a shootout with ACC Player of the Year Greivis Vasquez.