Shaun Green and the Utah Utes knew they had played well and achieved something significant, winning the Mountain West Conference tournament. They knew they had challenged themselves with one of the toughest schedules in the country, and proven they could compete with some of the best teams in college basketball.
Yet they were still surprised -- and oh, so pleasantly -- to see just how nicely they were rewarded.
The Utes had barely settled into their seats at the Huntsman Center on Sunday afternoon when they learned they had earned a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and will play No. 12 Arizona on Friday in sunny Miami. No team in Mountain West history has enjoyed a better seed -- even the Utah team that reached the Sweet 16 four years ago started out one spot lower.
"I don't think anyone was expecting a five seed," Green said, "because we shared our conference regular-season [title]. But the tournament, I think, is what got us a five seed. We're playing really well right now ... and now we're excited to go to Miami."
Coach Jim Boylen said it was an "awesome accomplishment" to be seeded so well, and said the 24-9 Utes earned it by playing their tough schedule and then beating TCU, Wyoming and San Diego State to win the Mountain West tournament. "It's a long ride, but it's a great place to play," he said. "We say we'll play anyone, anytime, anywhere, and we'll be ready to play down there."
While the Utes have been widely considered a lock for the tournament for weeks based on a Ratings Percentage Index ranking in top 10 nationally, many analysts had expected the 19-12 Wildcats to miss the tournament for the first time in 25 years. Once they were selected, though, several broadcasters on ESPN -- including Dick Vitale and Digger Phelps -- picked them to upset the Utes.
"I told you we'd get in," Arizona's David Bagga told reporters after the selection announcement.
The Wildcats have proven an enigma under interim coach Russ Pennell, who was appointed to replace the legendary Lute Olson when he retired in late October.
Junior forwards Jordan Hill and Chase Budinger were named first-team All-Pac-10, and the Wildcats beat four conference champions - Kansas, Gonzaga, Washington and Weber State - as well as UCLA. But they also won just two of 11 road games, and lost five of their last six, including a 68-56 decision to rival Arizona State in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 Conference tournament.
For the moment, though, the Utes were happy to revel in the accomplishment of reaching the tournament -- "we couldn't ask for anything better," center Luke Nevill said -- and promised to get back to work preparing for the Wildcats today at practice.
"It's going to be a great ride," Boylen said.
Key matchup » Utah's Luke Nevill has dominated a lot of opponents this year, and he'll have to handle Arizona's Jordan Hill, a 6-foot-10 forward who leads the Wildcats by averaging 18.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. Otherwise, the Wildcats are pretty undersized.
Interesting factoid » Legendary Arizona coach Lute Olson retired due to health concerns in October after winning 589 games and a national title in 24 seasons. Assistant Russ Pennell was named his interim replacement.
Outlook » The Utes are defensively tough with a dominating center and good shooters, while the Wildcats have three terrific players and so little else that nobody expected them to reach the tournament. Utah should be able to reach the second round, if not the Sweet 16.
