Sim Bhullar is the NCAA Tournament's first "big" star (emphasis on big)

Photo courtesy of nmstatesports.com.

The breakout star of the early round of NCAA Tournament games was kind of like the pace of the first block of games: Slow and lumbering.

The nation got to know New Mexico State’s Sim Bhullar, who happens to be the tallest player in college basketball at 7-foot-5 and 340 pounds.

Bhullar, a Toronto-born freshman who played at Huntington (W.Va.) Prep, is a defensive force, as one would imagine. He scored 10.2 points per game in the WAC and blocked a school record 82 shots. In the 64-44 loss to Saint Louis, he had 11 rebounds and scored four points.

But he was the star of the Tourney for a few minutes. That is, until his brother, Tanveer Bhullar, lands on a college roster. He's a mere 7-3.

Here's what others are saying about Sim Bhullar on Twitter:

With the nation getting a look at Sim Bhullar, one last retweet of my story from yesterday on the 7-foot-5 center: yhoo.it/13diqSc

— Jeff Eisenberg (@JeffEisenberg) March 21, 2013

 

Halftime and Sim Bhullar will now climb back up the beanstalk and get some rest.

— netw3rk (@netw3rk) March 21, 2013

 

Worried Sim Bhullar's going to blow our secret, that all Canadians are in fact 7'5", 340 pounds.

— Jonah Keri (@jonahkeri) March 21, 2013

 

Sim Bhullar and his brother have the most plodding And1 Mixtape ever youtu.be/g1Y04AMkvdg

— Bunkie Perkins (@BunkiePerkins) March 21, 2013

 

New Mexico State's center Sim Bhullar is the tallest player in college basketball at 7'5" twitter.com/BleacherReport…

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 21, 2013