When North Carolina forward/center Jessica Breland was a no-show for the World University Games tryouts in Colorado Springs last month, I never got an explanation for her absence.

Well, I think I can figure it out after reading that she is being treated for Hodgkins' Lymphoma

The good news, as the report mentions, it's a curable form of cancer. North Carolina will play UConn in the upcoming regular season either at Gampel Pavilion or the XL Center. Breland led the Tar Heels in rebounding and block shots and was second in scoring as a junior. Breland's playing status for her senior season is not known at the current time. Of course playing college basketball pales in comparison to fighting cancer. I would love to be able to write a piece on Breland's valiant fight against cancer when the Huskies and Tar Heels play, that would mean she is winning the most important battle in the biggest game of all - the game of life.