The Associated Press

Chris Duhon took a jump shot and winced as he came back down to the floor. Such is life for a guard with a rib injury, one that could keep Duke's leader out of the lineup when the Blue Devils open the NCAA Tournament.

While Duhon insisted he would play, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said the senior's availability would determined at game time. The top-seeded Blue Devils (27-5) play 16th-seeded Alabama State (16-14) tonight in the opening round of the Atlanta Regional.

"What you saw him do out there today, that's all he's done," Krzyzewski said of Duhon's minimal work during an hourlong shootaround Wednesday

Even though the Blue Devils are favored by 34 points against the Hornets, the coach said Duhon will play if he's healthy, and won't be held out because of the perceived weakness of the opponent.

"I have respect for Alabama State," Krzyzewski said. "You don't want to enter the tournament half-stepping it."

If Duke wins, it will play the winner of a game between eighth-seeded Seton Hall (20-9) and ninth-seeded Arizona (20-9). A Duke-Arizona game would be a rematch of the 2001 championship game.

Other games in Raleigh involve the East Rutherford Regional. Fourth-seeded Wake Forest (19-9) plays 13th-seeded Virginia Commonwealth (23-7) and its 29-year-old coach, Jeff Capel. No. 5 seed Florida (20-10) goes against No. 12 Manhattan (24-5) in a game many consider a possible upset.

"The perception right now is if we win, it's almost an upset," Gators forward David Lee said.

Denver

UTEP enjoyed one of the greatest turnarounds in college basketball history this season. Maryland wasn't too bad, either.

The Miners improved from 6-24 to 24-7 while Maryland came on at the end of the season, winning the ACC tournament and earning the No. 4 seed in the Phoenix Regional.

The teams meet today in the first round. In other games, No. 12 seed BYU plays defending national champion Syracuse, the No. 5 seed; No. 14 Princeton plays No. 3 Texas; and No. 11 Air Force meets No. 6 North Carolina.

UTEP's turnaround was just one victory shy of the NCAA record of 19 set by Murray State in 1980 and equaled by Ohio State in 1999. The NCAA began keeping the statistic in 1974.

"I don't think you can have a major turnaround like we had without unbelievable character," Miners coach Billy Gillispie said Wednesday. "Everyone has to be playing for the good of the team. They have been totally selfless in every single respect."

Better personnel helped, too.

The Miners' top three scorers - Omar Thomas, Jason Williams and Filiberto Rivera - are all junior college transfers in their first seasons at UTEP.

"After we signed, we were just trying to come in and have a winning season," Thomas said. "We wanted to turn UTEP around. Fortunately, it happened quicker than we expected."

UTEP tied for the Western Athletic Conference regular-season title, and is in the tournament for the first time since 1992.

Maryland (19-11), the 2002 national champion, has reached the round of 16 or better in each of the last three seasons and seven times since 1994.

Seattle

Gonzaga forward Ronny Turiaf has come a long way from Martinique, the tiny island nation just north of Venezuela where he grew up.

The Zags have come a long way, too, from their days as the tournament's upset specialist. This year, they've got a No. 2 seed, what amounts to a homecourt in Seattle in the opening rounds and legitimate hopes of reaching the Final Four.

Gonzaga (27-2) faces No. 15 seeded Valparaiso (18-12) in today's first round, shortly after No. 7 Michigan State (18-11) plays Western Athletic Conference champion Nevada (23-8), the 10th-seeded team. Both games are in the St. Louis Regional.

The other games in Seattle are from the Phoenix Regional, with No. 8 Alabama (17-12) against Missouri Valley regular season winner No. 9 Southern Illinois (25-4) and top-seeded Stanford (29-1) meeting Southland Conference champ No. 16 Texas-San Antonio (19-13).

Stanford's last visit to Seattle didn't go too well for the Cardinal, which at the time was ranked No. 1. Washington pulled a 75-62 upset on March 6, the only loss in Stanford's otherwise perfect season.

"Having gotten a No. 1 seed and coming back to Seattle, we obviously hope to have a little more success than the last trip," Stanford coach Mike Montgomery said.

Gonzaga is in the tournament for the sixth straight year, riding a 20-game winning streak with arguably the best team the Bulldogs have ever had.

They are led by senior point guard Blake Stepp, the two-time West Coast Conference player of the year. They have a talented frontcourt in 6-foot-8 center Cory Violette and Turiaf, the energetic 6-10 forward who was named MVP of the conference tournament.

Buffalo

Phil Martelli is finished stewing about the loss and answering questions from the doubters.

Saint Joseph's faces Liberty in the opening round of the NCAA tournament today, ready to erase the painful memories of their 20-point collapse against Xavier.

The top-seeded Hawks (27-1) will try to start another winning streak a week after their perfect record was ruined.

"I really think we have a lot to prove," Martelli said.

"But it has nothing to do with proving to somebody that has said something. It's now about us proving to ourselves that we can and will play good basketball."

The Buffalo subregional also features the Phoenix Regional's No. 2 seed Connecticut (27-6) playing Vermont (22-8), and seventh-seeded DePaul (21-9) playing Dayton (24-8).

Saint Joseph's is in the East Rutherford Regional, along with eighth-seeded Texas Tech (22-10) and Charlotte (21-8), teams that also play in Buffalo today.

Connecticut has won three straight games, including a 61-58 victory over Pittsburgh in the Big East championship Saturday, and eight of nine. Huskies coach Jim Calhoun is making his 18th NCAA tournament appearance. He has a 29-14 record - including 26-9 with UConn.

Then there's Texas Tech coach Bob Knight, who returns to Buffalo for the first time since a loss to Pepperdine in the 2000 tournament marked his final game as the coach of Indiana. Knight was fired later that summer.