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Still the 1s: during a wild first weekend, the No. 1 seeds avoided upsets--even Washington, the team no one figured deserved a top spot in the first place.

Article Excerpt
There was a moment, back when the whole idea still was fresh, that the Washington Huskies saw every reason to be delighted with their No. 1 NCAA Tournament seed. Of course they did. At last, they'd been acknowledged. They'd never been the most celebrated team in their league, or even in their state, but this recognition could not be taken from them.

Which is not to say no one could ruin it. Their experience in the days following Selection Sunday was like that of the lottery winner who suddenly finds himself facing a huge tax bill. Their seeding was criticized on CBS, ESPN and just about every all-sports talk station from Myrtle Beach, S.C., to Sausalito, Calif. By the time they got to Idaho only three days later for their first-round game, they found themselves almost apologizing for their bracket position.

"We felt throughout the whole season we were as good as the top programs," says Washington forward Bobby Jones. "Then there were all these people saying we didn't deserve a No. 1 seed.

"We definitely used that as motivation."

Judging by the results of the NCAA Tournament's first few rounds, there were a few more teams that could have benefited from a little disrespect. The Huskies did what a No. 1 seed should, advancing to the Sweet 16 and keeping alive the dream of winning a national championship. No, that's not quite right. It's not really a dream any longer. With Syracuse, Kansas, Wake Forest, Connecticut and Gonzaga commencing their off-seasons--not to mention Georgia Tech, meaning all of the tournament finalists the past two seasons have been eliminated--the Washington Huskies are among several teams free to embrace the notion that this championship could be theirs.

And the Huskies' No. 1 seed had much to do with their advancement. Perched way up high, they were safe from these Sweet 16 interlopers:

* Wisconsin-Milwaukee, which found several extra degrees of ferocity for its fullcourt pressure and chased out both Alabama and Boston College. The Panthers forced those teams into 41 turnovers combined and became the first true mid-major in the Sweet 16 since Butler in 2003.

* West Virginia, whose varied offensive attack exploited the vulnerable Wake Forest defense for 50 points in the last 16 minutes of a two-overtime game. The Mountaineers had been on a shooting tear but hadn't won in a month without scoring more than a third of their points from long range. Wake shut down that part of their game but couldn't protect the goal in close.

* Texas Tech, which delivered coach Bob Knight to his first Sweet 16 since 1994 because of sweet shooting by guard Ronald Ross and impressive composure from a starting five getting almost no help from the reserves.

* N.C. State, which used experience and a sophisticated offense to destabilize awesomely talented Connecticut and advance to the regional semifinals for the first time since 1989. Having Julius Hodge around didn't hurt, either.

As a No. 1 seed, Washington also was relatively free from the first-round upsets that ruined several erstwhile top-seed contenders. This became the 21st straight tournament without a 16th seed winning a game. But Kansas' February flop dropped the Jayhawks to a No. 3 seed and into position to be taken out in their opener by Bucknell. It was KU's first one-and-out since 1978. Syracuse's inability to deal with physical defense during the Big East season empowered Vermont, which earned its first NCAA Tournament victory.

The pressure of playing as the higher seed, trying to take advantage of the fleeting opportunity to win it all, clearly affected several of the upset victims--and even some that survived early scares. Washington did not surrender to that burden, perhaps because it still was so angry.

"Our players, they listen and read," says coach Lorenzo Romar. "You work so hard, you get a No. 1 seed, and the players figure they'll get some credibility. And then it's, 'Wow, we're still not there.' "

Washington earned its seed with victories over such tournament teams as Utah, Arizona, Oklahoma and Alabama. The Huskies are not without their flaws, but that caveat applies to every team...