Roburt Sallie sounded grateful for the moment, the one that beckons with the promise of a run at the Final Four and, perhaps, a national championship.

The former Valley High School standout appears well poised to savor the fruits of March Madness. The 6-foot-5 sophomore guard is a boost off the bench for Memphis, the No. 2 seed in the West Regional and one of a handful of teams that could win the NCAA Tournament.

For a long time, this moment seemed unreachable.

Sallie wanted to attend Washington, but his SAT scores weren't good enough. He enrolled in two North Carolina prep schools, then planned to play for Nebraska. But the NCAA questioned his grades and prep school courses, ruling him ineligible.

After a standout season at City College of San Francisco, Sallie found his way to Memphis. Look for him on the court today in a first-round matchup against Cal State Northridge in Kansas City, Mo.

Was it worth the wait?

"It feels good," said Sallie, a 41.9 percent three-point shooter who averages 4.5 points in 14.1 minutes. "It's been a long journey for me. I finally got here.

"Everything happens for a reason. I'm just glad I'm here. I think we have the most talented group of all the teams."

Sallie might provide the most compelling story, but he'll have plenty of company from the Sacramento area in the NCAAs. Three other men and eight women play on teams in the NCAA fields, all dreaming of creating some March magic.

In the NCAA men's field are Louisville's Terrence Jennings, who played briefly at Capital Christian; Washington's Elston Turner, a former Roseville standout; and Northridge's Michael Lizarraga, a Dixon product who attended California School for the Deaf.

The eight women with local ties are Tennessee's Vicki Baugh, who is out with a knee injury; Gonzaga's Amanda Brown; San Diego State's Coco Davis, Quenese Davis and Jennifer Layton-Bailes; and UC Santa Barbara's Sha'Rae Gibbons, Emilie Johnson and Meagan Williams.

All live the March dream: Anything can happen.

"We're not just settling to make the tournament," said Washington's Turner, a freshman guard who averages 3.5 points and 13 minutes for the fourth-seeded Huskies, who take on No. 13 seed Mississippi State today in a West Regional game in Portland, Ore. "We're hoping to make a run at it."

So is Louisville, the tournament's overall top seed, with Jennings, a 6-10 freshman forward contributing 4.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game.

On the women's side, San Diego State and UC Santa Barbara each hope to ride a trio of Sacramento-area players deep into the tournament.

"It's a dream come true for me, and it's my last year," said San Diego State's Layton-Bailes, a former Kennedy standout who averages 9.3 points and 5.1 rebounds for the 10th-seeded Aztecs, who face No. 7 seed DePaul in a first-round game at SDSU's Cox Arena on Saturday. "I just want to come out with as much energy as I can and enjoy the moment."

Santa Barbara's 15th-seeded Gauchos, who draw No. 2 seed Stanford on Saturday at Cox Arena, hope to do likewise.

"We're excited," said UCSB's Gibbons, a Valley High School product who contributes 8.1 points a game. "The intensity and the fight and the physicality and all those things just go up 100 percent. You have to be ready for that.

"We're going to try and get it done."

Call The Bee's John Schumacher, (916) 326-5523.