Mar 12, 2007 1:31 am US/Pacific
Stanford Cardinal Ecstatic Over Tourney Selection
STANFORD (AP) ―
Trent Johnson and Stanford had to wait until the very last ticket to the NCAA Tournament was punched before they could celebrate. When they did, the Cardinal's notoriously solemn head coach did something he rarely does.
He cracked a smile. Sort of.
"He did crack a smirk," forward Fred Washington said. "I don't know if you could call it a smile." "He showed some teeth," chimed in sophomore guard Anthony Goods, before he and Washington erupted in laughter.
Stanford (18-12) drew an 11th seed in the South Regional and will play No. 6 Louisville (23-9) in a first-round game Thursday, but not before being pushed to the edge by the tournament selection committee. The Cardinal, who played in 11 straight NCAA Tournaments before being left out last season, nearly missed out again.
Stanford went 3-6 over the final four weeks of the season and lost to Southern Cal in overtime in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 Tournament. That had many questioning whether the Cardinal had the credentials to be invited to the NCAA's postseason gala event.
Because of the way the pairings were announced Sunday, they waited nearly 45 minutes before finding out.
After 64 other teams were selected, including five from the Pac-10, Stanford finally heard its name called.
That's when Johnson, the third-year coach who previously took Nevada to the Sweet 16 in 2003-04, broke from his normally calm demeanor.
"He was up and cheering with us, like a little kid almost," said Stanford freshman forward Brook Lopez, who, along with Goods, carried Johnson around the Cardinal's locker room after the announcement was made. "It was like (going) from the lowest of the lows to the highest of the highs in a split second. It was crazy."
Stanford had reason to worry.
It had non-conference wins over Texas Tech and Virginia, and split Pac-10 games against UCLA, Washington State, USC and Oregon. But there were also losses to Gonzaga and Air Force, not to mention the stumble down the finish of the Pac-10 schedule.
That alone was cause for concern. Johnson remained confident but he acknowledged his faith began to waver Sunday when bubble teams like Illinois and Arkansas were selected while Stanford waited.
"I have a pretty good poker face but when Arkansas went up, I went, 'Hmmm,'"Johnson said. "Then when Illinois went up, I went, 'Hmmm."'
When Stanford's name was finally announced, however, Johnson changed his tune.
"It was pandemonium ... in a good way," Johnson said. "A couple of the players said, 'My goodness coach, we've never seen you this way.' It's a pretty exciting time right now, especially when you consider going into this year, nobody thought this group of guys would be in this position."
For their reward, the Cardinal get to travel to Lexington, Kentucky for their first-round game and playing a Louisville team coached by Rick Pitino essentially in its own backyard.
"We could play 'em in Jamaica for all I care," Johnson said. "It's a great challenge for us. I'm familiar with them, and coach Pitino is one of the top five in the business right now. (But) if we can play to the level we're capable of and take care of the ball, we're capable of playing with anybody."
Johnson was also buoyed by good news he received on the injury front. Leading scorer Lawrence Hill, who suffered an injury to his right leg late in the loss to USC on Thursday, was cleared and returned to practice Sunday.
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