They had to see it. How could they not? When the teams popped into the NCAA Tournament bracket on Sunday afternoon, the No. 1 seed in the South Regional went up just seconds before the two teams that will play for the right to slay that Goliath did.
No. 1 North Carolina vs. (gulp) No. 16 Texas Southern
and then ...
No. 8 Arkansas vs. No. 9 Seton Hall.
The Pirates were in, and the small gathering at head coach Kevin Willard's house enjoyed that accomplishment for a second straight year.