Nolan Smith and Andre Dawkins may be celebrating another title one year from now. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

INDIANAPOLIS — After all Duke’s photo opportunities had been exhausted, the national championship trophy was placed, oddly, on top of a garbage can in the Blue Devils’ locker room. Reporters surrounded Jon Scheyer and Brian Zoubek, two stars whose careers were officially over; and they were packed around Kyle Singler, a star who may use his Final Four Most Outstanding Player award as a springboard into the first round of the NBA draft. The one Dukie not wearing a jersey sat alone in a back corner of the locker room, smiling, but detached from the scene.

Seth Curry was wearing dress clothes, sitting out the final game of his transfer year after leaving Liberty for Duke last March. Stephen’s gunner of a younger brother (he averaged 20.2 points for the Flames as a freshman and was a key member of the U.S. Under-19 gold-medal team last summer) took his visit to Durham on the day after the Blue Devils suffered a 23-point loss to Villanova in the Sweet 16. “The mood there was pretty somber,” he said. “Their goal is to get to the Final Four every year. I wouldn’t say they were panicking, but the situation wasn’t good.”

Curry spent this season battling in practice with Scheyer and junior guard Nolan Smith — and watched them rebound from that ‘09 tourney embarrassment to win Duke’s fourth national title under Coach K, and first since 2002. Now it’ll be Curry’s turn to chase a title of his own, as he joins a backcourt so loaded — with Smith, incoming five-star point guard Kyrie Irving, and sophomore-to-be shooting guard Andre Dawkins — that it makes the Blue Devils an easy pick as SI’s way-too-early preseason No. 1 for 2010-11.

Smith, despite having a stellar NCAA tournament, gave no serious thought to testing the NBA draft. He didn’t want to miss out on what comes next in Durham. “This squad coming in could be something special,” he said. “Back-to-back championships could be in our future.”

The lineup of challengers for the ‘10-11 national title looks like this:

(For the sake of more realistic rankings, I’m assuming that Baylor’s Ekpe Udoh; Georgetown’s Greg Monroe; Georgia Tech’s Derrick Favors; Kansas’ Cole Aldrich and Xavier Henry; Kentucky’s Eric Bledsoe, DeMarcus Cousins, Daniel Orton and John Wall; North Carolina’s Ed Davis; Ohio State’s Evan Turner; Oklahoma State’s James Anderson; Syracuse’s Wes Johnson; West Virginia’s Devin Ebanks and Xavier’s Jordan Crawford all turn pro. And I’m not making any assumptions about unsigned recruits, such as Brandon Knight or Josh Selby.)

1. DUKE: The Blue Devils are here for the backcourt-related reasons stated above, and the breakout year I expect from sophomore Mason Plumlee, who missed time this season with a broken wrist.

2. MICHIGAN STATE: Point forward Draymond Green and shooting guard Durrell Summers are on the verge of becom­ing national stars.  The Spartans will bring in  five-star freshman 6-foot-10 center Adreian Payne.

3. BUTLER:  The Bulldogs lose stopper Willie Veasley, but if they can keep coach Brad Stevens (who’ll surely receive big-time job offers) and Gordon Hayward (who’s considering the NBA draft), they’ll be called a powerhouse, not a mid-major.

4. KANSAS STATE: The Beard is back: Jacob Pullen will be the marquee guard in the Big 12. He and the Wildcats’ glass-crashers — Curtis Kelly, Wally Judge and Jamar Samuels, as well as 6-11 juco transfer Freddy Asprilla — will keep the Octagon rocking.

5. PURDUE: The Boilermakers lose Keaton Grant and Chris Kramer, but a healed Robbie Hummel (torn ACL), along with 6-10 JaJuan Johnson and guards E’Twaun Moore and Lewis Jackson, could help Purdue finally break through to the Final Four.

6. VILLANOVA: Sophomore point guard Maalik Wayns is primed for breakout stardom in Scottie Reynolds’ absence, and center Mouphtaou Yarou, who missed part of his freshman year due to hepatitis B, should make huge gains in his first full season.

7. PITTSBURGH: The Panthers were Big East contenders a year ahead of schedule, tying for second in the league. Junior guard Ashton Gibbs is one of the nation’s most underrated scorers — he shot 44.4 percent on threes during Big East play in ‘09-10 — and on the verge of becoming a national name.

8. OHIO STATE: The Buckeyes are sure to lose Evan Turner, but they’re bringing in Rivals.com’s No. 2-rated recruiting class, which includes homegrown center Jared Sullinger and power forward Deshaun Thomas, to join senior wings David Lighty and Jon Diebler, as well as William Buford.

9. BRIGHAM YOUNG: If shooting guard Jimmer Fredette rejoins Michael Loyd Jr. in the backcourt after testing the NBA draft waters, BYU will be the best team west of the Rockies for the second straight season, and a sleeper pick for the Final Four.

10. TEMPLE: With Maryland’s Greivis Vasquez (Venezuela) out of the picture, Owls star Juan Fernandez is the best South American in college hoops. But will he continue to score as efficiently (12.6 ppg. 45.3 percent on threes) after moving from shooting guard to the point as a junior?

The Next 15:

11. KANSAS
12. BAYLOR
13. NORTH CAROLINA
14. OLD DOMINION
15. WISCONSIN
16. GEORGETOWN
17. FLORIDA
18. VANDERBILT
19. SYRACUSE
20. GONZAGA
21. MISSOURI
22. XAVIER
23. WASHINGTON
24. MEMPHIS
25. MURRAY STATE

SALT LAKE CITY — This is the calm before the Sweet 16, about 90 minutes before tipoff of Syracuse-Butler:

(Luke Winn/SI)

Andy Cox, the Net Efficiency Margin guru over at Crash The Dance, did a Sweet 16 preview today that looks good for Butler. His chart shows that the Bulldogs have been playing at an equal level to the Orange over the past five games. I’m still looking for some explanation of how Butler is going to stop Wes Johnson. There’s a chance he could get distracted by Matt Howard’s amazing tourney mustache, I guess.

In the press room here at Energy Solutions Arena, each team puts out stacks of postseason media guides. Xavier also put out what amounts to an Inferiority Complex Flier — and it’s kind of hilarious. The Musketeers hate getting called a mid-major so much that they felt the need to print up a card with quotes from national media members stating that Xavier is anything but a mid-major:

(Luke Winn/SI)

And on the back, they included a helpful, logo-filled chart that shows the only two teams to have advanced to the past three Sweet 16s:

(Luke Winn/SI)

I don’t think Xavier is a mid-major, either. They’re a high-major with a serious inferiority complex.

SALT LAKE CITY — After spending most of the first and second rounds in Louisiana, I was assigned to its converse for the Sweet 16: Utah. The wide, empty streets, clean air, elevation at 4,226 feet above sea level, and drinking establishments that close at 1 a.m. all make Salt Lake City the anti-French Quarter. This is my penance for Bourbon Street.

(Luke Winn/SI)

At The Arena Formerly Known As The Delta Center, it didn’t take long for someone to ask Syracuse coach Jim Boehiem the region’s burning question: Whether or not forward Arinze Onuaku had healed enough to return to action.

Q. Is there any injury update on your big guy? Any chance he’ll play?
COACH BOEHEIM: You know, he’s doing better, but he’s not practicing. Will not play.

Q. If you advance?
COACH BOEHEIM: Will not play this game. That’s it. That’s all I got.

Q. Game-by-game type deal?
COACH BOEHEIM: (Nodding head.)

Good news for Butler — but good enough to matter on Thursday? The way Wes Johnson and Andy Rautins have been playing, it’s hard to imagine the Orange not making the Elite Eight.

(During the open practice, Onuaku was on the bench, reclining, blocking out the world with a set of Bose noise-canceling headphones. Is he the only player in the country who doesn’t wear Beats?)

(Luke Winn/SI)

Kansas State took the floor after the ‘Cuse. As the Wildcats were walking out, a local who’d wandered in for the open practices tapped me on the shoulder and asked, “What city is Kansas State in?” He seemed skeptical that another Manhattan existed. I would’ve liked to see him ask Frank Martin that question.

(Luke Winn/SI)

This means absolutely nothing in relation to tomorrow’s game — which I think K-State will win — but the Wildcats failed hard in their attempt at a dunking exhibition. Here’s the FlipCam Mixtape:

No one ever accused K-State of being pretty on offense. Perhaps they just weren’t inspired by the sparse, business-casual crowd. Energy Solutions Arena, tomorrow, will be more energized.

(Luke Winn/SI)

Omar Samhan and St. Mary's moved on to face Baylor in the Sweet 16. (Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

The Tourney Blog’s starting five from the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament …

C: Omar Samhan, Sr., St. Mary’s
11-of-16 shooting for 29 points, 12 rebounds vs. Richmond; 13-of-16 shooting for 32 points, seven rebounds vs. Villanova

The man with the curious YouTube handle has been the breakout star of this tournament, both for his ability to dominate in the paint and avoid clichés in press conferences. Coming into the dance, most of us expected its primary stars to be named Sherron and John; instead, we have Omar … and Ali:

G: Ali Farokhmanesh, Sr., Northern Iowa
5-of-9 on threes, 17 points vs. UNLV; 4-of-10 on threes, 16 points vs. Kansas

There are guards in this tournament who have scored more than Farokhmanesh, but no one has displayed bigger onions. He can hit NBA-length threes to win games (against UNLV) … he can hit no-no-yes threes to win games (against Kansas) … and when he reads the line, “Where did you get that fish, he asked turtle?” to a bunch of elementary school kids, he knows to show them the picture:

G: Jacob Pullen, Jr., Kansas State
15 points, three assists, zero turnovers vs. North Texas; 7-of-12 on threes, 11-of-11 on free throws, 34 points, four steals vs. BYU

The second round was where Jimmer (BYU’s Fredette) gave way to Jacob. The beard was lights-out from long-range against the Cougars, setting up a head-to-head battle in the Sweet 16 with a guard who’s just as likely to go for 30:

G: Jordan Crawford, Soph., Xavier
28 points, six rebounds, five assists vs. Minnesota; 27 points, six rebounds vs. Pittsburgh

He wears the highest number available in college hoops (55) and can score in more ways than any go-to-guy left in the dance — including on his now-famous laid-back finger roll.

G: Louis Dale, Sr., Cornell
21 points, seven assists vs. Temple; 10-of-17 shooting, 26 points, three assists vs. Wisconsin

Dale was the point man in a Big Red offense that surgically sliced up Wisconsin and Temple’s vaunted defenses in Jacksonville. He also slipped a Friday Night Lights reference — the “babies and memories” line — into Saturday’s press conference as an inside joke.

Sixth Man: Quincy Pondexter, Washington
18 points, 11 rebounds (five offensive) vs. Marquette; 18 points, five rebounds vs. New Mexico

He bulled his way to a game-winner against he Golden Eagles in the first round — a shot that I’m still amazed that Lazar Hayward just stood in the lane and watched. Q-Pon now can claim a Sweet 16 appearance and a Nutcracker appearance in the same season:

Second Team All-Weekend:

G: Chris Kramer, Sr., Purdue
G: Evan Turner, Jr., Ohio State
F: Da’Sean Butler, Sr., West Virginia
F: Wes Johnson, Jr., Syracuse
F: Kyle Singler, Jr., Duke
Sixth Man: John Wall, Fr., Kentucky