Darren Kelly, a.k.a Special K, sat in his hotel room yesterday, looked out his window at downtown Kansas City, and then wiped away a tear. He started weeping, but then caught himself and stopped. He was telling me about another time he was looking out a window -- when he was six years old and he watched from his kitchen as paramedics tried to save his father's life in the front yard.

Kelly, Texas' star senior point guard, doesn't remember much of his father before that day. His family doesn't have many pictures. "The thing I remember most was that when he came home from work, he always called my name first," Kelly says. "He always wanted to see me as soon as he walked in."

Then one lazy day, all the Kellys were hanging out in the basement of their D.C. townhouse when Darren's mother, LaVerne, started screaming. A few hours earlier, her husband decided to take a nap. He never woke up.

Darren was rushed away by his older brother, Brian, to the kitchen when the ambulance came, just so he wouldn't have to witness the mayhem. But he climbed up and peeked out the window -- just in time to see the final, failed CPR try. His father was dead at 38 of a heart attack.

The years that followed were lean and dark for the Kellys. LaVerne struggled to keep the bills paid and the family afloat. When life got too heavy, she leaned on Darren for help. And when life without a father scared him, Darren leaned back. When he had to get away from everything, basketball was always there. The dark times forged a bond as tight as any mother-son you'll see.

Now, Darren, a third-team all Big 12 pick this year, is the Longhorns' unquestioned leader and lead prankster. (During TV media sessions, he goes around to each of his teammates and makes them break up in the middle of a quote.) He leads his team in prayers, where he thinks about his father watching him play.

He knows he's probably entering the final few weeks of his basketball career. He probably won't be drafted by the NBA, and while he might play overseas, he's got greater goals. "I love basketball, but if it doesn't work, I want to have options" he said, looking out the window. "Did you know no one from my family has ever graduated from college? I'll be the first. My mom will be so proud to see me get my degree."

You never know who else might be watching.