Cougars' dreams come true

Washington State students, some Pullman folk and the WSU basketball team assembled Sunday at old Bohler Gym, and they co-opted the slogan emblazoned on the baseline of the home floor of Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Okla.:

"Expect a Miracle."

Well, actually, the miracle began evolving earlier this year, when the Cougars began dream-weaving their 25-7 season. They only continued it Sunday, when in mid-afternoon, CBS revealed the Cougars' logo and identified them as a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament, headed to Sacramento, Calif., to play Oral Roberts on Thursday.

Now the Cougars have been called a lot of things over the years, especially by Washington fans, but never a No. 3 seed.

"Pretty much everybody stood up," said WSU swingman Kyle Weaver, "and we all kind of hugged each other."

Yeah, this is only part of the journey, but it was clearly a signal occasion for a program that was stuck to the bottom of the Dumpster just a few years ago.

"I can't find any words to explain it," said guard Derrick Low. "This is one of the main reasons why we all came here."

Imagine, the Cougars going to the NCAA tournament, and not in a '78 Pinto, not going as somebody's 12th seed. They've hired a limo, thank you. They're packing cuff links and not work shirts.

All this is, is unprecedented, the highest seed ever accorded WSU. Of course, there are two qualifiers. The Cougars haven't been all that often — this is just their fifth trip — and tournament teams have been seeded only since 1979.

The best seed assigned WSU was the No. 5 of George Raveling's 1980 team. Raveling's '83 club and Kelvin Sampson's 1994 squad each were No. 8. (Jack Friel's 1941 club only had to win two games in getting to the final, although Billy Packer questioned its inclusion in the field.)

All of which Thursday will mean, well, squat. It also means it becomes exceedingly hard for the Cougars to appropriate the underdog role, something embroidered into the fine print of that school logo.

Low, in fact, had to scramble for a way the Cougars can justify that posture this time.

"Even though we're among the top [seeded] teams," he said, "we're capable of being beaten on any given night if we're not on our game. All these years, we haven't been too successful. We have to remain humble and carrying this underdog mentality."

Oral Roberts (23-10) might not be quite the Lilliputian you'd think. The night of Nov. 15, it swaggered into Allen Fieldhouse and shocked Kansas, 78-71. Forward Caleb Green (6 feet 8) had 20 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, which means he may be a matchup dilemma for WSU — too big for Ivory Clark, too quick for its bigs.

Green and guard Ken Tutt each have scored more than 2,000 points.

"Both of them are really good college players," Scott Sutton, the Golden Eagles coach, said Sunday night. "And we have some players who really understand their roles.

"I realize we're going to have to play a great game, but I think they'll feel we can compete."

Of course, there's a striking parallel. Sutton is the son of Eddie Sutton, the longtime coach and a Naismith Hall of Fame finalist this year. With Bennett having learned at the foot of his dad Dick, there will be no dearth of defensive principles on display.

Sutton is also the brother of Sean Sutton, the Oklahoma State coach, and he's already leaning on him for reconnaissance on the Cougars.

"We don't have the luxury of all the satellites that the major teams have," Sutton said. "I sent a student assistant down there to Stillwater [70 miles from Tulsa] and he's on his way back with several tapes of Washington State."

That, and the fact these are two good basketball teams, might be where the similarities end. According to Wikipedia, students at non-denominational, Christian ORU must pledge to abstain from things like lying, cursing, drinking and gambling. WSU students only have to sign a form to have the keg back at the promised hour.

Underdog or favorite, it was high times in Pullman, appreciated 80 miles north as well, as Gonzaga learned it would make it a twosome in Sacramento with the Cougars.

"Tony's done a great job; we're just happy for him," said Zags assistant Leon Rice, a WSU graduate. "We just have so much respect for them, the way he coaches, how they are. We think it's neat we're in the same spot."

Sacramento, he meant. On a Sunday afternoon in Pullman, that spot was Nirvana.

Bud Withers: 206-464-8281 or bwithers@seattletimes.com