Utah Jazz notebook: Gordon Hayward enjoying Butler's tourney run

SALT LAKE CITY — In a strange coincidence, Gordon Hayward was in EnergySolutions Arena for the second straight year while celebrating his Butler Bulldogs' stunning advancement to the Final Four.

Last year, Hayward was in the building as a college sophomore with his fellow Bulldogs when they beat Kansas State to advance.

On Saturday, Hayward was in the building as an NBA rookie watching his former Bulldogs on a TV in the locker room when they beat Florida to move on.

The Butler-Florida overtime thriller took place during Hayward's warm-up session, but he worked it out to be able to catch the end.

"I'm really excited for those guys," Hayward said of his former teammates. "I'm going to maybe call them or text them afterwards."

Making Butler's victory all the sweeter for Hayward?

"Raja (Bell) owes me a hundred dollars, so that's nice," he said, smiling. "I'm really excited for those guys."

Almost on cue, Bell walked by Hayward en route to the court and briefly interrupted the interview to voice his displeasure with the way the game and an apparent side wager turned out.

But Hayward didn't stop smiling.

The recently turned 21-year-old also added that he doesn't regret turning pro after his sensational sophomore season and giving up the chance at another deep NCAA Tournament run as a would-be junior.

He did admit, however, that a part of him wonders about that.

"But I'm really happy with where I'm at right now," said Hayward, who has averaged 4.0 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists in his first year of pro action. "You've always got to miss where you came from. I still miss high school games, but I'm just real excited for those guys."

Hayward isn't nearly as surprised as many observers that the Indianapolis school is returning to the Final Four — this time in Houston.

"At the beginning of the season, I knew they had potential. They went through those struggles, and I think everyone thought, 'Hey, what's going on? You guys need to get together,'" Hayward said. "I talked to some of those guys and they've come together. They've got the players and anything can happen."

The No. 8-seeded Butler's 13-game winning streak and tourney wins over top-seeded Pittsburgh and No. 2 seed Florida have proven that.