• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Butler faces South Alabama as No. 7 seed

Mar 21, 2008 - 11:16 AM No. 10 South Alabama (26-6) vs. Butler (29-3) 2:45 pm EDT BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Ticker) -- The Butler players did not openly complain about their relatively low No. 7 seed butthey also were not thrilled.The Bulldogs begin a quest for their second straight "Sweet 16"appearance Friday when they take on No. 10 seed South Alabama inan East Region first-round contest.Butler (29-3) could be facing a hostile crowd, as the game willbe played in Birmingham, which is less than a five-hour drivefrom the Jaguars' campus in Mobile."I felt we had a good season," senior forward Pete Campbellsaid. "I felt like we played a lot of good teams. We'll justhave to show that in the tournament when it comes time to play."Last season, Butler received a No. 5 seed - the highest inschool history - and defeated Old Dominion and Maryland beforelosing to eventual national champion Florida.This season, the Bulldogs were ranked in the Top 25 for most ofthe year and matched the school record for wins set last season.Still, a relatively weak non-conference schedule may have hurtthem. Their best non-conference win was an overtime victoryover Virginia Tech in the Great Alaska Shootout.South Alabama (26-6) was pleasantly surprised when it receivedan at-large bid after getting upset in the Sun Belt Conferencetournament. The Sun Belt has two teams in the NCAA Tournamentfor the first time since 1994.The Jaguars beat two tournament teams outside the Sun Belt -Mississippi State of the Southeast Conference and San Diego,which upset Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference title game.The winner face a probable second-round meeting on Sunday withNo. 2 seed Tennessee, which opens tournament play against No. 15American.