BLOOMINGTON - Maybe somebody slipped castor oil into the ice cream the NCAA selection committee devours during its basketball tourney seedings. Something turned them into a bunch of grumpy men and women who almost certainly ruined whatever was left of Indiana hopes for a wonderful March.

Would it have been so wrong to give the Hoosiers a seeding break when so much has gone wrong for them?

Would it have been that bad to have made them, heck, a No. 6 seed and put them in Birmingham to play St. Joseph's, with a possible second-round shot at Louisville?

Yes, Louisville is a good team with Final Four aspirations, but playing the third-seeded Cardinals in Birmingham would be a joy compared to what IU faces this week.

First, the Hoosiers play a push-the-pace Arkansas team Friday in opening-round action in Raleigh, N.C. If they win that, and there's no reason why they can't, they'll go against No. 1 North Carolina, this season's most fearsome team.

In North Carolina.

Like, five miles from the Dean Dome.

OK, our mileage is a little off, but not enough for it to change the point that the Tar Heels will have a huge home-court advantage at what is supposed to be a neutral site.

It was just a few days ago when we were talking a three-seed for IU, and nobody broke into laughter. Then came the debacle at Michigan State, and little has gone right since.

Three losses in four games have a way of ripping away the momentum the selection committee seeks.

Still, something seems odd when IU goes 25-7, is 5-5 against the top 50 teams based on RPI, is 8-4 in its last 12 games and gets seeded eighth.

Washington State, meanwhile, is 24-8, went 7-5 over its last 12 games, was 4-7 against RPI top 50 teams, is one spot lower than Indiana in the RPI, yet was seeded fourth.

A cynic might think this somehow ties into the Kelvin Sampson mess. Or, perhaps, it's a sign on how the infractions committee will view the Hoosiers when they respond to the five major allegations of violations from the Sampson era.

In other words, it's a conspiracy. And then there's the disharmony thing.

The Hoosiers insist everything is good when everything seems so I'll-get-you-and-your-little-dog-too dysfunctional.

Players seem fine when talking, grumpy and disinterested when playing. Reversing that would be nice.

Interim coach Dan Dakich goes out of his way to speak positively about players such as guard Jamarcus Ellis. Dakich isn't just saying that because Ellis is good, but the junior isn't the same player he was before last week's suspension for unspecified disciplinary reasons.

Senior forward Lance Stemler talks about looking forward to this challenge and the prospects of potentially playing North Carolina.

And you know something, if the Hoosiers beat Arkansas and upset the Tar Heels, they just might play fourth-seeded Washington State in the Sweet 16 in Charlotte, N.C., and show those grumpy selection committee members what they can do with their seedings.

And then maybe this will be a wonderful March after all.

OK, we don't believe that, either.