The Front Row with MARK NELKE March 18, 2010

It was only three years ago that the NCAA men's basketball tournament last visited Spokane.

So, in theory, some of those key players should still be around in college, as they would have been freshmen then.

(Of course, if they were any good as freshmen, these days, they would have been long gone for the NBA before their senior year. Remember, Kevin Durant was a freshman at Texas when he wowed the Spokane Arena crowds in 2007. One year later, he was rookie of the year in the NBA.

Imagine Durant as a senior at Texas this year ...)

Anyway, I got to thinking about the eight teams that played in Spokane in 2007, what kind of program they were then, what people thought would happen to them, and what eventually did happen.

Winthrop: As the No. 11 seed, the Eagles upended No. 6 Notre Dame in the first game of the day, then lost to Oregon in the second round. Winthrop made it back to the dance the following year, losing to Washington State.

Coach Gregg Marshall moved on to Wichita State after that season, and former assistant Randy Peele is in his third year as head coach. Winthrop's best players were seniors and juniors in '07, so are long gone now. This year they made it back to the NCAAs, but wound up losing the play-in game Tuesday night.

Notre Dame: A promising freshman named Luke Harangody scored four points in 17 minutes in a starting role in that '07 game. This year, he was considered one of the top players in the country until being slowed by an injury.

Back then, point guard Tory Jackson was a freshman thrust into a starting role because the starting point guard had been suspended. Notre Dame lost in the second round to WSU in 2008, and are a No. 6 seed in the NCAAs this year, playing No. 11 Old Dominion today in New Orleans.

Oregon: Boy, how far have the Ducks fallen since '07, when as a No. 3 seed they made it all the way to the regional finals before losing to eventual national champion Florida?

They lost in the first round of the NCAAs in 2008 to Mississippi State, and haven't been back to the dance since. They went 6-22 in 2009 and 16-16 this year, and coach Ernie Kent was given his walking papers Tuesday. The only player left who played much on that '07 team is Tajuan Porter, Oregon's shoot-first 5-7 guard who was a standout as a freshman.

Miami (Ohio): None of those who played in that game were on this year's team. The RedHawks were making their first NCAA appearance since 1999, and haven't been back since.

Texas: Everyone knew Durant was one-and-done in college. Four other freshmen - Damion James, D.J. Augustin, Matt Hill and Justin Mason - also played in that first-round win over New Mexico State. Durant scored 27 points, Augustin 19.

James is still with Texas, which was No. 1 in the country for a while this year before falling out of the Top 25. Dexter Pittman was a freshman - albeit heavier - on that team. Texas is a No. 8 seed in the NCAAs this year, playing No. 9 Wake Forest today in New Orleans. The winner likely gets Kentucky in the second round.

New Mexico State: The Aggies had no less than six transfers on that '07 squad, including Fred Peete (Kansas State), who played one year at Pullman High, and Justin Hawkins (Utah).

New Mexico State lost to Boise State in triple overtime in the Western Athletic Conference tournament championship game in 2008, and also missed the NCAAs last year.

Reggie Theus, a media darling in 2007 in Spokane with his stories of his TV show "Hang Time," left after that season to coach the Sacramento Kings. He lasted a little more than one year before getting fired, and is now an assistant with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jonathan Gibson, who came off the bench on that '07 team, helped the Aggies win the WAC tournament this year, earning another trip to the NCAAs - in Spokane again. They play Michigan State on Friday.

USC: See Oregon. Things were looking bright for the Trojans in '07. After beating Arkansas and Texas in Spokane, they had a big lead vs. North Carolina in the regional semifinals before losing.

They made it back to the NCAAs in 2008 and '09. Then coach Tim Floyd resigned amidst allegations of recruiting violations, and USC declared itself ineligible for the Pac-10 tournament this year.

Nick Young, Taj Gibson and Gabe Pruitt were the stars of that team, and Daniel Hackett was one of the players coming off the bench. Since then, one-and-dones O.J. Mayo and DeMar DeRozan have come and gone, and Hackett declared for the NBA draft after his junior year, but went undrafted.

Arkansas: By 2007, Razorback Nation was restless. Arkansas made the NCAAs for the second straight year, but the fans wanted more. Coach Stan Heath was in his fifth season, with a record barely over .500. It would stand at 82-71 after the loss to USC. Heath was fired shortly thereafter and landed at South Florida, where he has coached the past three seasons.

Arkansas made it to the second round of the NCAAs in 2008, but has missed the dance the past two seasons.

Two freshmen - Patrick Beverly and Michael Washington - started for the Hogs in that '07 NCAA game, and a third, Stefan Welsh, came off the bench. Beverley scored a team-high 15 points. Washington and Welsh were on the team this year as seniors (Washington was the fourth-leading scorer at 12.2 per game), but Beverley left Arkansas after his sophomore season due to academic issues, and was drafted in the second round by the Los Angeles Lakers, who dealt him to the Miami Heat. He is in his second season playing overseas.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via e-mail at mnelke@cdapress.com.