FUNNY THINGS HAPPENED.(SPORTS)

Byline: STEVE CAMPBELL

SYRACUSE -- It's funny how these things work. Funny-peculiar to the Duke Blue Devils, who understandably don't see the humor in having their joyride of a season end on a back road to the Final Four. Funny-ha-ha to the Florida Gators, who keep managing to navigate their way past the potholes and pitfalls and pests in their path.

One week, Butler is nearly doing it to the Gators. The next, the Gators have too much bite for the No. 1-ranked team in the land.

Yes, the Butler nearly saved the Blue Devils from the horror of ending a season as Gator bait. Butler is so off the beaten path, I had to look it up to discover the mascot is a Bulldog. If not for a beat-the-buzzer drive to the basket by forward …