NCAA Tournament: As Ducks ready for South Carolina, it's time to stop betting against Dana Altman

Before learning their Round 1 opponent, Dana Altman and his Ducks got to enjoy a well-earned "I told you so."

Oregon is an 11 seed. 

Think about that for a second. 

The Oregon men’s basketball team will play in the NCAA Tournament later this week as a No. 11. 

There’s no Dayton. There’s no NIT. There’s no prognosticating about job statuses. Dana Altman’s Ducks aren’t just in, they may have room to run.

But before Altman completely turned the page onto South Carolina, a team the Ducks will face for the first time in program history on Thursday in Pittsburgh, the 14th-year coach took a moment to flash some receipts. While tournament MVP N’Faly Dante was speaking live on air with the Pac-12 Network crew Saturday night, Altman put his arm around his center and reminded the broadcast crew that they picked against the Ducks. 

No we didn’t, they said. 

Yes you did. 

No we didn’t. 

Yes you did, Altman said, again, as he took his hand off his center’s back and started using it for emphasis.

“I said something to Dante about it,” Altman said, “And he said, ‘Those three clowns all picked against us?’”

It was the first time all week Dante looked uncomfortable, that is until Altman’s robotic instincts kicked back in and the coach pulled out of his momentary lapse of showing his competitive side.