Consider that Duke hasn't advanced past the Sweet Sixteen since 2004, nor has any ACC team other than North Carolina.

This year, Roy Williams' Tar Heels are on the bubble — the National Invitation Tournament bubble.

So what happened? Some point toward the ACC's raid of Virginia Tech, Miami and Boston College from the Big East.

The Big East then restocked with Louisville, Cincinnati, Marquette and recently downtrodden DePaul, teams deep in basketball tradition.

Bucky Waters, a former Duke coach and longtime TV analyst, credits former commissioner Mike Tranghese for remaking the Big East.

"He pulled the curtain back and saw the ACC stealing his inventory, so he went out and made them better," Waters said. "They went out and got basketball schools — not only basketball schools, but hardcore basketball schools."

Not everyone agrees with Waters.

"I'm not one that says the Big East is all that great," former Wake Forest coach Dave Odom said. "I don't even look at it as a conference. I look at it more as a coalition of 16 teams. They've got eight really, really solid programs, and maybe you could stretch it to 10.

"I think the ACC, by and large, can pretty well match that. The last six teams in the Big East — well, I don't know if there's strength in numbers. I don't know if they're head and shoulders above everybody this year. Once you get past the top four, it becomes just OK. I wouldn't be the one to say that's a killer league."

The field is 65, but why stop there?

John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News has watched the NCAA tournament expand from eight teams to its current 65 and says the likelihood of a boost up to 96 won't ruin the game.

He writes: "Overall, however, the most memorable moments of NCAA tournaments have come during the first two rounds, when the little fish most said didn't belong proves it did.

"People remember such No. 15 seeds as Richmond (1991), Santa Clara (1993), Coppin State (1997) and Hampton (2001) shocking No. 2 seeds in the first round.

"They think fondly back on such midmajors as Cleveland State, Chattanooga, George Mason, Valparaiso (1998) repacking their luggage for another weekend in the dance instead of going home and unpacking.

"Many of the things we love most about the NCAA tournament would not have happened if not for expansion of the field.

"There's nothing wrong with the 65-team NCAA tournament.

"I can't argue against the fact that it works just fine.

"Still, don't try to tell me expansion would somehow ruin it, when history shows it has only made it better."

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Kent was told of the dismissal on Feb. 22, after home losses to California and Stanford.

Kent is 234-172 in 13 seasons. He has taken Oregon to five NCAA tournament appearances, and the Ducks twice advanced to the Elite Eight.

Oregon improved to 15-15 on Saturday with a 74-66 victory against Washington State.