SAN ANTONIO - Here's (Sweet) 16 thoughts to ponder while wondering what Davy Crockett thought of the River Walk:

1. Guess the only state out of 50 with three schools in the Sweet 16? It's not North Carolina or California. If Tennessee gets by Ohio State it could conceivably cut down the nets after beating, in order, Memphis, Vanderbilt and Florida.

2. I'll take my chances with this team of homegrown Tennessee talent still playing in the Sweet 16: Brandan Wright, Corey Brewer, Lee Humphrey, Willie Kemp, Wayne Chism, Derrick Byars, JaJuan Smith, Jeremy Hunt and Dane Bradshaw.

3. Here's why he goes by Duke: Tennessee's freshman center's real name is Willard Vincent Crews.

4. Keep an eye on Oregon's Little Big Man. Tajuan Porter, a 5-foot-6 freshman from Detroit, was overlooked by most D-I schools (including Michigan and Michigan State) but he's been a hero for the Ducks, most recently in the weekend win over Winthrop.

5. Florida and Butler have a history. Mike Miller's buzzer-beating shot in overtime allowed the Gators to avoid an upset in the opening round in 2000. That allowed Florida to advance to play Lon Kruger-coached Illinois.

If Florida beats Butler on Friday, it could advance to play Lon Kruger-coached UNLV.

6. Kevin Kruger has been UNLV's tournament hero so far. The coach's kid was 10 years old when his dad coached the Gators to the 1994 Final Four.

7. Four teams are back in the Sweet 16 from last year: Florida, UCLA, Georgetown and Memphis. Tennessee returns after a seven-year absence. Texas A&M had the longest hiatus, since 1980.

North Carolina holds the record with its 21st Sweet 16 appearance since 1975 (when the tournament required teams to win at least one game to get to a regional semifinals).

8. If the Sweet 16 coaches have to play H-O-R-S-E, pick Florida's Billy Donovan. He was 5-of-6 from 3-point range for Providence in a 1987 Sweet 16 win over Alabama.

9. UNLV is the lowest seed (No. 7) left but Southern Cal is the surprise team, eliminating bracket-darling Texas and Kevin Durant.

"I like messing up people's brackets,'' said USC forward Taj Gibson, one of three freshmen playing major roles for Tim Floyd's Trojans.

10. They don't score big like they used to. The only player added to the tournament top-20 list in single-game scoring over the past 15 years is Glenn Robinson of Purdue. The Big Dog hung 44 on Kansas back in a 1994 Sweet 16 game in Thompson-Boling Arena. And that only puts him at No. 20.

11. Tennessee is 0-4 against No. 1 seeds but it's ancient history. The Vols haven't played a No. 1 since Louisville in 1983. The others were Notre Dame and Virginia (twice).

The highest seed UT has ever beaten was No. 4 Virginia on Sunday.

12. How close are UCLA coach Ben Howland and Pittsburgh coach Jamie Dixon? Howland's daughter, a Pitt nursing student, baby-sits for the Dixons. When Dixon's sister Maggie, the coach at Army, died last year, Howland was a pallbearer.

UCLA plays Pitt on Thursday.

13. UT coach Bruce Pearl got his first scouting report on Ohio State's Greg Oden longer ago than you might think. Pearl watched his son, Steven, play against Oden's team in the seventh grade when the Pearls lived in Evansville, Ind. Oden is from Indianapolis.

14. Guy getting overtime pay this week? The Memphis trainer. The Tigers hope to get leading scorer Chris Douglas-Roberts back from a mild-to-moderate ankle sprain in time for Thursday night's match with Texas A&M. Roberts left the win over Nevada on Sunday with eight minutes to play.

15. Most points scored in a regional game: Oscar Robertson, 56 in 1958. I find this record more impressive, most field-goal attempts in a regional game: 42, by Dwight Lamar of Louisiana-Lafayette in 1972.

16. The only Sweet 16 record category in which Tennessee is listed: Most Wild Shots Taken in the Final Five Minutes of a Game Seemingly Won: 11, in 2000, against North Carolina.

Just kidding.

Other media contributed to this report. Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strange2@knews.com