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High and mighty Duke is not coming. Nor is any other No. 1 or 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
But perhaps the best college basketball player in the country will be in Salt Lake City for first- and (possible) second-round games this week, along with one of the most storied programs in the country and its lame-duck coach.
Also, familiar Mountain West, Big West, Western Athletic and Big Sky conference opponents will pay another visit, as well as one of the top players from the Atlantic Coast Conference that you have probably never heard about.
"Salt Lake City is going to have some great games
and some great players," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said Sunday night.
Gonzaga, a No. 3 seed, will be the highest seed to play at the Huntsman Center on Thursday when the Bulldogs take on Xavier, a 14th seed. The Bulldogs feature the highest-scoring player in Division I basketball, Adam Morrison, and have quite a history in Salt Lake City.
Few said Gonzaga is "really pleased" to be among the eight teams in Utah, even if it didn't look like it when CBS showed the Bulldogs during its selection show on Sunday afternoon. Few said Gonzaga players didn't look excited because there was an eight-second delay on the broadcast at his home.
"Salt Lake is the closest [site] for our fans to get to," he said. "We have some real big fans there because of the job [Gonzaga alumnus] John Stockton did there. And we've had some pleasant memories of playing down there."
And, of course, one not-so-pleasant ending. The last time Gonzaga played in the Huntsman Center, a 2003 second-round game, it lost in double overtime to Arizona in one of the all-time classic NCAA Tournament games.
Few's recollection?
"We should have made that last shot," he said. "We played at a high level, and Arizona played at a high level . . . only one of us could win, and that was Arizona."
There was some thought that Gonzaga would get a No. 2 seed, but Few downplayed the notion that the Bulldogs were again disrespected by the NCAA.
"We were prepared for anything between two and four," he said. "We weren't into seeding. We knew we would play someone good regardless of seeding."
Added forward-center J.P. Batista: "We're in great place, Salt Lake. It doesn't matter what kind of seed we get. We're up against a tough, tough team."
If it survives 21-10 Xavier, the Atlantic 10 tournament champion, 27-3 Gonzaga will meet the San Diego State-Indiana winner on Saturday.
Indiana features coach Mike Davis, who is resigning, but also includes former Ute assistant Kerry Rupp, who will at least know all about the Aztecs, having gone 3-0 against them as Utah's interim coach after he took over for Rick Majerus midway through the 2004-05 season.
ACC tournament runner-up Boston College (26-7), a No. 4 seed, will make the longest trip to Salt Lake City of the eight. The Eagles will face Big West champ Pacific. Boston College, which defeated Utah 58-51 in the 2004 NCAA tourney first round, has 17-point scorer Craig Smith.
Pacific has a fine player of its own in Christian Maraker, who leads the team in scoring (17.2) and rebounding (8.9).
Fresh off its overtime win over Utah State in the WAC Tournament championship game, Nevada (27-5) will meet Big Sky champ Montana, which got a better-than-expected No. 12 seed.
drew@sltrib.com
BACK IN TOWN
Gonzaga, a No. 3 seed, makes a return visit to Salt Lake City after losing a memorable second-round game in double overtime to Arizona three years ago.
Player of the Year candidate Adam Morrison of Gonzaga will make a Huntsman Center
appearance.
Indiana will also play in Salt Lake City, bringing former Utes interim coach Kerry Rupp and IU assistant back for a game or two.
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