2008 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

Last updated
2008 NCAA Division I
women's basketball tournament
2008 NCAA Women's Final Four Tampa Bay.svg
2008 Women's Final Four logo
Teams64
Finals site St. Pete Times Forum
Tampa, Florida
Champions Tennessee Volunteers (8th title)
Runner-up Stanford Cardinal (3rd title game)
Semifinalists
Winning coach Pat Summitt (8th title)
MOP Candace Parker
Top scorer Candice Wiggins Stanford
(151 points)
NCAA Division I women's tournaments
« 2007 2009 »

The 2008 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament involved 64 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the 2007–08 national champion of women's NCAA Division I college basketball. It commenced on March 22, 2008, and concluded when the University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers defeated the Stanford University Cardinal 64–48 on April 8, 2008 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida. [1]

Contents

Notable events

The preliminary rounds largely followed the seeding, with every number one and number two seed advancing to the regional finals. In the Greensboro and Oklahoma City Regionals, the top seeds Connecticut and Tennessee won respectively to head to the Final Four. Connecticut had to beat Big East rival Rutgers to make the advance. Tennessee' Candace Parker was injured in the game against Texas A&M and had to leave twice, and be fitted with a sleeve to stabilize her shoulder. She still scored 26 points in a game which was won by only eight. [2]

In the other two regionals, the two seeds prevailed. In the New Orleans Regional, LSU beat North Carolina to reach the Final Four for the fifth consecutive time, tying a record set by Connecticut between 2000 and 2004. In the Spokane Regional, Stanford beat the top seed Maryland to go to their first Final Four since 1997, but one that would be the first of a five-year string of consecutive Final Four appearances.

Connecticut and Stanford met in one semifinal. They had played each other earlier in the season at the Paradise Jam held in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands in November. The Huskies had won that game 66–54, but the team had been at full strength. Subsequent to that game Mel Thomas and Kalana Greene both starters, had season ending injuries. Connecticut cut a Stanford lead to a single point, 47–46 when Candice Wiggins hit two three-pointers to start a 10–0 run. Wiggins would go on to score 25 points in the game and would be named the Women's Basketball Coaches Association national player of the year. The Cardinal went on to win the game, and advance to the national championship. [3]

The game between SEC foes Tennessee and LSU didn't win style points, and was described by the New York Times as "one of the ugliest games played this or any season". Tennessee led early opening up a ten-point lead at 37–27, but LSU responded with a 10–0 run to tie the game. With seconds left in the game LSU hit two free throws to take a one-point lead. Tennessee inbounded the ball to Candace Parker who passed it inside to Nicky Anosike, but her shot was deflected to Alexis Hornbuckle, who had missed seven of her field goal attempts. With under one second remaining, Hornhuckle caught the deflection and hit the winning basket. The Lady Vols won 47–46, as the two teams combined scores set an NCAA record for the fewest points scored in a semifinal game. [4]

LSU fell to 0-5 in the Women's Final Four. Combined with the 0-6 mark of the men's team, LSU's 0-11 all-time combined Final Four mark is the worst for schools which have made multiple appearances in both the men's and women's Final Fours.

After the drama of a one-point game in the semifinal, the final game was anti-climactic. The Lady Vols pulled out to a 30–19 lead, and the Stanford Cardinal were unable to close the gap. The win gave Tennessee their second consecutive national championship and a career total of 982 wins, the most of any coach in basketball, men's or women's, along with eight national championships for coach Pat Summitt. [5]

Subregionals

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Albuquerque
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Baton Rouge
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Bridgeport
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College Park
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Des Moines
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Norfolk
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Stanford
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West Lafayette
2008 NCAA subregionals

Once again, the system was the same as the Division I men's basketball tournament, with the exception that only 64 teams received bids, and there was no play-in game. Automatic bids were secured by 31 conference champions and 33 at-large bids.

The subregionals, which once again used the "pod system", keeping most teams at or close to the home cities, were held from March 22 to March 25 at these locations: [1]

The University of Connecticut Huskies play the University of Texas Longhorns in the second round at Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Connecticut. UConnCornell-2008NCAAWomensFirstRound.jpg
The University of Connecticut Huskies play the University of Texas Longhorns in the second round at Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

This was the fourth and final year that eight sites hosted subregional games. The committee, in September 2007, voted to return to the 16-site format for the early rounds starting with the 2009 tournament.

Regionals

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Greensboro
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New Orleans
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Oklahoma City
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Spokane
Red pog.svg
Tampa
2008 NCAA Regionals and Final Four

The regions (once again named after the host cities, a practice begun in 2005) were held from March 29 to April 1 in the following regions: [1]

The regional winners advanced to the Final Four, held April 6 and 8, 2008 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum, in Tampa, Florida, hosted by the University of South Florida. [1] USF and the Tampa Bay Times Forum also hosted a first and second round Men's Tournament subregional on March 21 and 23. Also, akin to the men's tournament, at the regional sites, the NCAA installed floors that were custom made for the first time.

Tournament records

Qualifying teams – automatic

Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the 2008 NCAA Tournament. Thirty-one conferences were eligible for an automatic bid to the 2008 NCAA tournament. [6] Of these thirty-one automatic bids, a total of 30 teams receive automatic bids for winning their conference tournament championship. The Ivy League does not hold a tournament, so its regular season champion receives the automatic bid. Because Cornell, Dartmouth, and Harvard finished in a tie for first place, Ivy League rules called for a two-game stepladder playoff. Dartmouth defeated Harvard in the first game and went on to face Cornell for the automatic bid, which Cornell won 64-47.

Automatic Bids
  Record 
Qualifying SchoolConferenceRegular
Season
ConferenceSeed
Bucknell University Patriot League [7] 16–158–616
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Southern Conference [8] 29–318–012
Cleveland State University Horizon League 19–1310–815
University of Connecticut Big East [9] 32–115–11
Coppin State University MEAC 22–1113–316
Cornell University Ivy League 20–811–316
East Tennessee State University Atlantic Sun Conference [10] 21–1114–214
California State University, Fresno WAC 22–1014–214
University of Hartford America East 27–514–210
Illinois State University Missouri Valley Conference 26–613–513
Jackson State University SWAC 18–1313–515
Liberty University Big South Conference 28–311–112
Marist College MAAC [11] 31–218–07
Miami University MAC 23–1012–413
University of Montana Big Sky Conference 25–613–313
Murray State University Ohio Valley Conference [12] 24–715–514
University of New Mexico Mountain West 20–129–712
University of North Carolina ACC [13] 30–214–01
Old Dominion University Colonial 29–417–15
Oral Roberts University Summit League [14] 19–1310–816
Purdue University Big Ten [15] 18–1411–79
Robert Morris University Northeast Conference 23–916–215
University of San Diego West Coast Conference [16] 19–127–714
Southern Methodist University Conference USA [17] 24–811–512
Stanford University Pac-10 [18] 30–316–22
University of Tennessee SEC [19] 30–213–11
Texas A&M University Big XII Conference 26–711–52
University of California, Santa Barbara Big West Conference 23–715–113
University of Texas at San Antonio Southland 23–912–415
Western Kentucky University Sun Belt Conference [20] 26–716–210
Xavier University Atlantic 10 [21] 24–811–39

Qualifying teams – at-large

Thirty-three additional teams were selected to complete the sixty-four invitations. [6]

At-large Bids
  Record 
Qualifying SchoolConferenceRegular
Season
ConferenceSeed
Arizona State University Pacific-1021–1014–46
Auburn University Southeastern20–117–711
Baylor University Big 1224–612–43
University of California, Berkeley Pacific-1026–615–33
DePaul University Big East20–118–810
Duke University Atlantic Coast23–910–43
Florida State University Atlantic Coast18–137–711
The George Washington University Atlantic 1025–612–26
University of Georgia Southeastern22–98–68
Georgia Institute of Technology Atlantic Coast22–97–710
University of Iowa Big Ten21–1013–59
Iowa State University Big 1220–127–97
Kansas State University Big 1221–913–35
University of Louisville Big East24–910–64
Louisiana State University Southeastern27–514–02
University of Maryland, College Park Atlantic Coast30–313–11
University of Minnesota Big Ten20–1111–79
University of Nebraska–Lincoln Big 1220–119–78
University of Notre Dame Big East23–811–55
Ohio State University Big Ten22–813–56
University of Oklahoma Big 1221–811–54
Oklahoma State University–Stillwater Big 1225–711–53
University of Pittsburgh Big East22–1010–66
Rutgers University Big East24–614–22
Syracuse University Big East22–810–67
Temple University Atlantic 1021–1212–211
University of Texas at Austin Big 1221–127–98
University of Utah Mountain West27–416–08
University of Texas at El Paso Conference USA27–316–07
Vanderbilt University Southeastern23–811–34
University of Virginia Atlantic Coast23–910–44
West Virginia University Big East24–712–45
University of Wyoming Mountain West24–612–411

Tournament seeds

Greensboro Regional Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1ConnecticutBig East32-1Automatic
2RutgersBig East24-6At-large
3CaliforniaPac-1026-6At-large
4VirginiaACC23-9At-large
5Old DominionCAA29-4Automatic
6George WashingtonAtlantic 1025-6At-large
7Iowa StateBig 1220-12At-large
8TexasBig 1221-12At-large
9MinnesotaBig 1020-11At-large
10Georgia TechACC22-9At-large
11AuburnSEC20-11At-large
12LibertyBig South28-3Automatic
13UC Santa BarbaraBig West23-7Automatic
14San DiegoWest Coast19-12Automatic
15Robert MorrisNortheast23-9Automatic
16CornellIvy20-8Automatic
New Orleans Regional New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1MarylandACC30-3At-large
2StanfordPac-1030-3Automatic
3BaylorBig 1224-6At-large
4VanderbiltSEC23-8At-large
5West VirginiaBig East24-7At-large
6PittsburghBig East22-10At-large
7UTEPConference USA27-3At-large
8NebraskaBig 1220-11At-large
9XavierAtlantic 1024-8Automatic
10Western KentuckySun Belt26-7Automatic
11WyomingMountain West24-6At-large
12New MexicoMountain West20-12Automatic
13MontanaBig Sky25-6Automatic
14Fresno StateWAC22-10Automatic
15Cleveland StateHorizon19-13Automatic
16Coppin StateMEAC22-11Automatic
Oklahoma City Regional Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1North CarolinaACC30-2Automatic
2LSUSEC27-5At-large
3Oklahoma StateBig 1225-7At-large
4LouisvilleBig East24-9At-large
5Kansas StateBig 1221-9At-large
6Ohio StateBig Ten22-8At-large
7MaristMAAC31-2Automatic
8GeorgiaSEC22-9At-large
9IowaBig Ten21-10At-large
10DePaulBig East20-11At-large
11Florida StateACC18-13At-large
12ChattanoogaSouthern29-3Automatic
13Miami (OH)MAC23-10Automatic
14East Tennessee StateAtlantic Sun21-11Automatic
15Jackson StateSWAC18-13Automatic
16BucknellPatriot16-15Automatic
Spokane Regional Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Spokane, Washington
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1TennesseeSEC30-2Automatic
2Texas A&MBig 1226-7Automatic
3DukeACC23-9At-large
4OklahomaBig 1221-8At-large
5Notre DameBig East23-8At-large
6Arizona StatePac-1021-10At-large
7SyracuseBig East22-8At-large
8UtahMountain West27-4At-large
9PurdueBig Ten18-14Automatic
10HartfordAmerica East27-5Automatic
11TempleAtlantic 1021-12At-large
12SMUConference USA24-8Automatic
13Illinois StateMissouri Valley26-6Automatic
14Murray StateOhio Valley24-7Automatic
15UTSASouthland23-9Automatic
16Oral RobertsSummit19-13Automatic

Bids by conference

Thirty-one conferences earned an automatic bid. In twenty-two cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference. Thirty-three additional at-large teams were selected from nine of the conferences. [6]

BidsConferenceTeams
8 Big 12 Texas A&M, Baylor, Iowa St., Kansas St., Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oklahoma St., Texas
8 Big East Connecticut, DePaul, Louisville, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Syracuse, West Virginia
6 Atlantic Coast North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Georgia Tech, Maryland., Virginia
5 Southeastern Tennessee, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Vanderbilt
4 Big Ten Purdue, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio St.
3 Atlantic 10 Xavier, George Washington, Temple
3 Mountain West New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming
3 Pacific-10 Stanford, Arizona St., California
2 Conference USA SMU, UTEP
1 America East Hartford
1 Atlantic Sun East Tenn. St.
1 Big Sky Montana
1 Big South Liberty
1 Big West UC Santa Barb.
1 Colonial Old Dominion
1 Horizon Cleveland St.
1 Ivy Cornell
1 Metro Atlantic Marist
1 Mid-American Miami Ohio
1 Mid-Eastern Coppin St.
1 Missouri Valley Illinois St.
1 Northeast Robert Morris
1 Ohio Valley Murray St.
1 Patriot Bucknell
1 Southern Chattanooga
1 Southland UTSA
1 Southwestern Jackson St.
1 Summit Oral Roberts
1 Sun Belt Western Kỳ.
1 West Coast San Diego
1 Western Athletic Fresno St.

Bids by state

The sixty-four teams came from thirty states, plus Washington, D.C. Texas had the most teams with six bids. Twenty states did not have any teams receiving bids. [6]

NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 2008 NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 2008.svg
NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 2008
BidsStateTeams
6 Texas SMU, Texas A&M, UTSA, Baylor, Texas, UTEP
5 California Fresno St., San Diego, Stanford, UC Santa Barb., California
4 Ohio Cleveland St., Miami Ohio, Xavier, Ohio St.
4 Pennsylvania Bucknell, Robert Morris, Pittsburgh, Temple
4 Tennessee Chattanooga, East Tenn. St., Tennessee, Vanderbilt
3 Kentucky Murray St., Western Kỳ., Louisville
3 New York Cornell, Marist, Syracuse
3 Oklahoma Oral Roberts, Oklahoma, Oklahoma St.
3 Virginia Liberty, Old Dominion, Virginia
2 Connecticut Connecticut, Hartford
2 Georgia Georgia, Georgia Tech
2 Illinois Illinois St., DePaul
2 Indiana Purdue, Notre Dame
2 Iowa Iowa, Iowa St.
2 Maryland Coppin St., Maryland.
2 North Carolina North Carolina, Duke
1 Utah Utah
1 Alabama Auburn
1 Arizona Arizona St.
1 District of Columbia George Washington
1 Florida Florida St.
1 Kansas Kansas St.
1 Louisiana LSU
1 Minnesota Minnesota
1 Mississippi Jackson St.
1 Montana Montana
1 Nebraska Nebraska
1 New Jersey Rutgers
1 New Mexico New Mexico
1 West Virginia West Virginia
1 Wyoming Wyoming

Bracket

Data source [22]
NOTE: All initials used are the same in the official NCAA Bracket in External Links listed below.

Greensboro Regional

First round
March 22–23
Second round
March 24–25
Regional semifinals
March 30
Regional finals
April 1
            
1 Connecticut 89
16 Cornell 47
1 Connecticut89
Bridgeport, Connecticut
8 Texas 55
8 Texas 72
9 Minnesota 55
1 Connecticut78
5 Old Dominion 63
5 Old Dominion 82
12 Liberty 62
5 Old Dominion88*
Norfolk, Virginia
4 Virginia 85
4 Virginia 86
13 UC Santa Barbara 52
1 Connecticut66
2 Rutgers 56
6 George Washington 66
11 Auburn 56
6 George Washington55
Stanford, California
3 California 53
3 California 77
14 San Diego 60
6 George Washington 42
2 Rutgers53
7 Iowa St. 58
10 Georgia Tech 55
7 Iowa St. 58
Des Moines, Iowa
2 Rutgers69
2 Rutgers 85
15 Robert Morris 42

Spokane Regional

First round
March 22–23
Second round
March 24–25
Regional semifinals
March 29
Regional finals
March 31
            
1 Maryland 80
16 Coppin St. 66
1 Maryland76
College Park, Maryland
8 Nebraska 64
8 Nebraska 61
9 Xavier 58
1 Maryland80
4 Vanderbilt 66
5 West Virginia 61
12 New Mexico 60
5 West Virginia 46
Albuquerque, New Mexico
4 Vanderbilt64
4 Vanderbilt 75
13 Montana 62
1 Maryland 87
2 Stanford98
6 Pittsburgh 63
11 Wyoming 58
6 Pittsburgh67
Albuquerque, New Mexico
3 Baylor 59
3 Baylor 88
14 Fresno St. 67
6 Pittsburgh 53
2 Stanford72
7 UTEP 92
10 Western KY 60
7 UTEP 54
Stanford, California
2 Stanford88
2 Stanford 85
15 Cleveland St. 47

New Orleans Regional

First round
March 22–23
Second round
March 24–25
Regional semifinals
March 29
Regional finals
March 31
            
1 North Carolina 85
16 Bucknell 50
1 North Carolina80
Norfolk, Virginia
8 Georgia 66
8 Georgia 67
9 Iowa 61
1 North Carolina78
4 Louisville 74
5 Kansas St. 69
12 Chattanooga 59
5 Kansas St. 63
Bridgeport, Connecticut
4 Louisville80
4 Louisville 81
13 Miami (Ohio) 67
1 North Carolina 50
2 LSU56
6 Ohio St. 49
11 Florida St. 60
11 Florida St. 72
Des Moines, Iowa
3 Oklahoma St.73*
3 Oklahoma St. 85
14 East Tenn. St. 73
3 Oklahoma St. 52
2 LSU67
7 Marist 76
10 DePaul 57
7 Marist 49
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
2 LSU68
2 LSU 66
15 Jackson St. 32

Oklahoma City Regional

First round
March 22–23
Second round
March 24–25
Regional semifinals
March 30
Regional finals
April 1
            
1 Tennessee 94
16 Oral Roberts 55
1 Tennessee78
West Lafayette, Indiana
9 Purdue 52
8 Utah 59
9 Purdue 66
1 Tennessee74
5 Notre Dame 64
5 Notre Dame 75
12 Southern Methodist 62
5 Notre Dame79*
West Lafayette, Indiana
4 Oklahoma 75
4 Oklahoma 69
13 Illinois State 61
1 Tennessee53
2 Texas A&M 45
6 Arizona State 61
11 Temple 54
6 Arizona St. 59
College Park, Maryland
3 Duke67
3 Duke 78
14 Murray State 57
3 Duke 63
2 Texas A&M77
7 Syracuse 55
10 Hartford 59
10 Hartford 39
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
2 Texas A&M63
2 Texas A&M 91
15 Texas-San Antonio 52

Final Four – St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa, Florida

Tournament Most Outstanding Player Tennessee forward Candace Parker shoots over LSU center Sylvia Fowles in the national semifinals. 2008NCAAWomensChampionship-Parker.jpg
Tournament Most Outstanding Player Tennessee forward Candace Parker shoots over LSU center Sylvia Fowles in the national semifinals.
National Semifinals
April 6
National Championship
April 8
      
GRE1Connecticut 73
SPO2Stanford82
SPO2Stanford 48
OKC1Tennessee64
NOR2LSU 46
OKC1Tennessee47

Initials: GRE-Greensboro; SPO-Spokane; NOR-New Orleans; OKC-Oklahoma City.

* – Denotes overtime period

Record by conference

The University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers, winners of the national championship and one of two Southeastern Conference teams to reach the Final Four, are honored at the White House by President of the United States George W. Bush. 20080624-4 p062408cg-0012-513htenn.jpg
The University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers, winners of the national championship and one of two Southeastern Conference teams to reach the Final Four, are honored at the White House by President of the United States George W. Bush.
Conference# of
Bids
RecordWin %Sweet
Sixteen
Elite
Eight
Final
Four
Championship
Game
Colonial 12-10.6671---
Big East 814-80.636521-
SEC 513-40.7653221
ACC 610-60.62532--
Pac-10 37-30.7001111
Big 12 811-80.57921--
Atlantic 10 32-30.4001---
MAAC 11-10.500----
America East 11-10.500----
Big Ten 41-40.200----
Mountain West 30-30.000----
Conference USA 21-20.500----

Nineteen conferences — Atlantic Sun Conference, Big Sky Conference, Big South Conference, Big West Conference, Horizon League, Ivy League, MAC, MEAC, Missouri Valley Conference, Northeast Conference, Ohio Valley Conference, Patriot League, Southern Conference, Southland, SWAC, Sun Belt Conference, Summit League, WAC and West Coast Conference — went 0-1.

All-Tournament Team

Game Officials

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 "NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Information". Archived from the original on 16 August 2006. Retrieved 2006-07-28.
  2. "Injured Parker carries Tennessee past Texas A&M". ESPN. April 1, 2008. Retrieved 3 Jun 2013.
  3. Longman, JERÉ (April 7, 2008). "Stanford Finds Openings, Closing UConn's Season". New York Times. Retrieved 3 Jun 2013.
  4. LONGMAN, JERÉ (April 7, 2008). "Last-Second Score Lifts Tennessee to Title Game". New York Times. Retrieved 3 Jun 2013.
  5. LONGMAN, JERÉ (April 9, 2008). "Summitt and Tennessee Roll to Another Title". New York Times. Retrieved 3 Jun 2013.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nixon, Rick. "Official 2022 NCAA Women's Final Four Records Book" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  7. "Bucknell earns second NCAA automatic bid". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-12. Archived from the original on 15 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  8. "Lady Mocs win third straight league championship". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-10. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  9. "Huskies win 14th Big East tournament title". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-11. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  10. "ETSU dumps Jacksonville for Atlantic Sun tournament crown". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-08. Retrieved 2008-03-08.
  11. "Fitz carries Marist to MAAC title, NCAA tourney bid". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-09. Archived from the original on 13 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
  12. "MVP Guffey leads Murray State to OVC tournament title". ESPN.com . Associated Press. 2008-03-08. Retrieved 2008-03-08.
  13. "Tar Heels drop Blue Devils for another ACC tournament title". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-09. Archived from the original on 11 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
  14. "Oral Roberts beats IUPUI to reach second straight NCAA tourney". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-11. Archived from the original on 19 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  15. "Freeman's buzzer-beater lifts Purdue over Illinois". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-09. Archived from the original on 15 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
  16. "Henderson's 20 lead San Diego's upset of top-seeded Gonzaga". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-09. Archived from the original on 14 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
  17. "Gilliam, Shepherd spark SMU to Conference USA tournament title". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-09. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
  18. "Wiggins' 30 power Stanford past Cal for Pac-10 tourney crown". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-10. Archived from the original on 15 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  19. "Lady Vols avenge Valentine's Day loss, take home another championship". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-09. Archived from the original on 11 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  20. "Western Kentucky earns first NCAA tournament bid since '03". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-11. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  21. "Taylor helps Xavier win league title, earn NCAA berth". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 2008-03-10. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  22. "Official 2011 NCAA Women's Final Four Records Book". NCAA. February 2009. p. 188. Retrieved 2012-02-17.

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The 2011 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 19, 2011 and concluded on April 5, 2011. The Texas A&M Aggies won the championship, defeating the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 76–70 in the final held at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1997 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 1997 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 14, 1997, and concluded on March 30, 1997, when Tennessee won the national title. The Final Four was held at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati on March 28–30, 1997. Tennessee, Old Dominion, Stanford, and Notre Dame qualified to the Final Four. Tennessee and Old Dominion won their semi-final Final Four matchups and continued on to the championship. Tennessee defeated Old Dominion 68-59 for their fifth national title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1989 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 1989 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 15 and ended on April 2. The tournament expanded from 40 to 48 teams. The Final Four consisted of Auburn, Louisiana Tech, Tennessee, and Maryland, with Tennessee winning its second title with a 76-60 victory over Auburn. Tennessee's Bridgette Gordon was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1991 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 1991 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 13 and ended on March 31. The tournament featured 48 teams. The Final Four event was hosted by the University of New Orleans, and held at the Lakefront Arena in New Orleans. The Final Four teams consisted of Tennessee, Stanford, Connecticut, and Virginia, with Tennessee defeating Virginia 70-67 (OT) to win its third NCAA title. Virginia's Dawn Staley was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1996 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 1996 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament took place March 15–31, 1996. The Final Four consisted of Connecticut, Georgia, Stanford, and Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Georgia 83–65 in the championship game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament</span> United States top collegiate-level basketball tournament for 2012

The 2012 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament involving 68 schools playing to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 74th edition of the tournament began on March 13, 2012, and concluded with the championship game on April 2 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 2013 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament was played from March 23 through April 9, 2013. Tennessee continued its streak of making every NCAA women's basketball tournament at 32 consecutive appearances. Kansas made the regional semifinals for the second year in a row as a double-digit seed, UConn made it into the Final Four for the sixth consecutive year, the longest such streak, and Louisville became the first team seeded lower than fourth in a region to advance to the championship game. For the first time in tournament history, the same four teams were #1 seeds as in the previous year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 2014 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament was played in March and April 2014, with the Final Four played April 6–8. The Ohio Valley Conference served as the host institution. The Final Four was played at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 2018 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 16, 2018, and concluded with the national championship game on Sunday, April 1. The Final Four was played at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. This is the third time that the women's Final Four was played in Ohio after previously being held in Cincinnati in 1997 and Cleveland in 2007 and the first time that the women's Final Four was played in Columbus. For only the fourth time in the tournament’s 37-year history, all four of the number one seeds made it to the Final Four.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span> Basketball tournament

The 2019 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 64 teams to determine the national champion for the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The 38th annual edition of the tournament began on March 22, and concluded with the championship game on April 7 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, with the University of South Florida serving as host. The tournament field was announced on March 18.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span> American womens collegiate basketball tournament

The 2022 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 68 teams to determine the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college basketball national champion for the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The 40th edition of the tournament began on March 16, 2022, and concluded with the championship game on April 3 at Target Center in Minneapolis, where the South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the UConn Huskies 64–49 to win their second NCAA title.