2022 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

Last updated

2022 NCAA Division I
women's basketball tournament
2022 NCAA Women's Final Four logo.png
Season 202122
Teams68
Finals site Target Center,
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Champions South Carolina Gamecocks (2nd title, 2nd title game,
4th Final Four)
Runner-up UConn Huskies (12th title game,
22nd Final Four)
Semifinalists
Winning coach Dawn Staley (2nd title)
MOP Aliyah Boston (South Carolina)
NCAA Division I women's tournaments
« 2021 2023 »

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, and handing UConn its first loss in the championship game. This tournament marked the introduction of the "First Four" round and an expansion of the field of participants from 64 teams to 68, mirroring the men's tournament since 2011.

Contents

Big South champion Longwood, Horizon champion IUPUI and Southland champion Incarnate Word made their tournament debuts. Tennessee continued its record streak of making every edition of the tournament, while UConn extended its record streak of 14 consecutive Final Four appearances.

Tournament procedure

For the first time, the women's tournament was expanded from 64 to 68 teams, adopting the format that has been used by the men's tournament since 2011; these teams consisted of the 32 conference champions, and 36 "at-large" bids that were extended by the NCAA Selection Committee. The last four at-large teams and the teams seeded 65 through 68 overall competed in First Four games, whose winners advanced to the 64-team first round. [1]

The top four teams outside of the ranking (commonly known as the "first four out") were designated as standbys in the event a school was forced to withdraw before the start of the tournament due to COVID-19 protocols. Once the tournament began, teams that withdrew would not be replaced, and the affected team's opponent would automatically advance to the next round by walkover.

First four out [2]
NETSchoolConferenceRecord
48 Boston College ACC 19–11
50 Missouri SEC 18–12
36 South Dakota State Summit 22–9
41 UCLA Pac-12 14–12

2022 NCAA tournament schedule and venues

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Columbia
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Tucson
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Ames
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Iowa City
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Louisville
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Waco
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Ann Arbor
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Knoxville
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Stanford
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College Park
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Baton Rouge
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Austin
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Raleigh
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Storrs
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Bloomington
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Norman
2022 Subregionals – Fri/Sun (pink) and Sat/Mon (green)
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Bridgeport
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Greensboro
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Wichita
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Spokane
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Minneapolis
2022 NCAA Regionals (blue) and Final Four (red)

After the 2020 tournament was cancelled and the 2021 tournament was held in a single location due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was reverted to the standard format for the first time since 2019.

The first two rounds, also referred to as the subregionals, were played at the sites of the top 16 seeds, as was done from 2016 to 2019.

First Four

Subregionals (first and second rounds)

Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)

National semifinals and Championship (Final Four and Championship)

In the wake of criticism raised in 2021 over inequities between the men's and women's NCAA basketball tournaments, the NCAA announced that the 2022 women's tournament will be promoted with the "March Madness" branding for the first time. [9]

Qualification and selection teams

Automatic qualifiers

The following teams automatically qualified for the 2022 NCAA field by virtue of winning their conference's tournament.

ConferenceTeamRecordAppearanceLast bid
America East Albany 23–97th 2017
American UCF 25–37th 2021
ASUN Florida Gulf Coast 29–28th 2021
Atlantic 10 UMass 26–63rd 1998
ACC NC State 29–327th 2021
Big 12 Texas 26–634th 2021
Big East Connecticut 25–533rd 2021
Big Sky Montana State 22–123rd 2017
Big South Longwood 21–111stNever
Big Ten Iowa 23–728th 2021
Big West Hawaiʻi 20–97th 2016
Colonial Delaware 24–75th 2013
C-USA Charlotte 22–93rd 2009
Horizon IUPUI 24–41stNever
Ivy League Princeton 24–49th 2019
MAAC Fairfield 25–65th 2001
MAC Buffalo 25–84th 2019
MEAC Howard 20–96th 2001
Missouri Valley Illinois State 19–136th 2008
Mountain West UNLV 26–69th 2002
Northeast Mount St. Mary's 16–124th 2021
Ohio Valley Belmont 22–77th 2021
Pac-12 Stanford 28–335th 2021
Patriot American 23–83rd 2018
SEC Kentucky 19–1117th 2021
Southern Mercer 23–64th 2021
Southland Incarnate Word 13–161stNever
SWAC Jackson State 23–66th 2021
Summit South Dakota 27–54th 2021
Sun Belt UT Arlington 20–73rd 2007
West Coast Gonzaga 26–613th 2021
WAC Stephen F. Austin 28–420th 2021

Bids by state

BidsState(s)Schools
1ArizonaArizona
1ArkansasArkansas
1CaliforniaStanford
1ColoradoColorado
2ConnecticutConnecticut, Fairfield
1DelawareDelaware
6FloridaFlorida, Florida Gulf Coast, Florida State, Miami, UCF, USF
3GeorgiaGeorgia, Georgia Tech, Mercer
1HawaiiHawaiʻi
2IllinoisDePaul, Illinois State
3IndianaIndiana, IUPUI, Notre Dame
2IowaIowa, Iowa State
2KansasKansas, Kansas State
2KentuckyKentucky, Louisville
1LouisianaLSU
1MassachusettsUMass
2MarylandMaryland, Mount St. Mary's
1MichiganMichigan
2MississippiJackson State, Ole Miss
1MissouriMissouri State
1MontanaMontana State
2NebraskaCreighton, Nebraska
1NevadaUNLV
1New JerseyPrinceton
2New YorkAlbany, Buffalo
3North CarolinaCharlotte, North Carolina, NC State
2OhioDayton, Ohio State
1OklahomaOklahoma
1OregonOregon
1PennsylvaniaVillanova
1South CarolinaSouth Carolina
1South DakotaSouth Dakota
2TennesseeBelmont, Tennessee
5TexasBaylor, Incarnate Word, Stephen F. Austin, Texas, UT Arlington
2UtahBYU, Utah
2VirginiaLongwood, Virginia Tech
2WashingtonGonzaga, Washington State
2Washington, D.C.American, Howard

Tournament seeds (list by region)

Greensboro regional – Greensboro Coliseum,
Greensboro, North Carolina
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1 South Carolina SEC 29–2At-Large
2 Iowa Big Ten 23–7Automatic
3 Iowa State Big 12 26–6At-Large
4 Arizona Pac–12 20–7At-Large
5 North Carolina ACC 23–6At-Large
6 Georgia SEC 20–9At-Large
7 Colorado Pac–12 22–8At-Large
8 Miami (FL) ACC 20–12At-Large
9 South Florida American 24–8At-Large
10 Creighton Big East 20–9At-Large
11* Dayton A10 25–5At-Large
DePaul Big East 22–10At-Large
12 Stephen F. Austin WAC 28–4Automatic
13 UNLV MWC 26–6Automatic
14 UT Arlington Sun Belt 20–7Automatic
15 Illinois State MVC 19–13Automatic
16* Howard MEAC 20–9Automatic
Incarnate Word Southland 13–16Automatic
Wichita regional – Intrust Bank Arena,
Wichita, Kansas
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1 Louisville ACC 25–4At-Large
2 Baylor Big 12 27–6At-Large
3 Michigan Big Ten 22–6At-Large
4 Tennessee SEC 23–8At-Large
5 Oregon Pac–12 20–11At-Large
6 BYU West Coast 26–3At-Large
7 Ole Miss SEC 23–8At-Large
8 Nebraska Big Ten 24–8At-Large
9 Gonzaga West Coast 26–6Automatic
10 South Dakota Summit 27–5Automatic
11 Villanova Big East 23–8At-Large
12 Belmont Ohio Valley 22–7Automatic
13 Buffalo MAC 25–8Automatic
14 American Patriot 23–8Automatic
15 Hawaiʻi Big West 20–9Automatic
16 Albany America East 23–9Automatic
Spokane regional – Spokane Arena,
Spokane, Washington
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1 Stanford Pac–12 28–3Automatic
2 Texas Big 12 26–6Automatic
3 LSU SEC 25–5At-Large
4 Maryland Big Ten 21–8At-Large
5 Virginia Tech ACC 23–9At-Large
6 Ohio State Big Ten 23–6At-Large
7 Utah Pac–12 20–11At-Large
8 Kansas Big 12 20–9At-Large
9 Georgia Tech ACC 21–10At-Large
10 Arkansas SEC 18–13At-Large
11* Missouri State MVC 24–7At-Large
Florida State ACC 17–13At-Large
12 Florida Gulf Coast ASUN 29–2Automatic
13 Delaware CAA 24–7Automatic
14 Jackson State SWAC 23–6Automatic
15 Fairfield MAAC 25–6Automatic
16 Montana State Big Sky 22–12Automatic
Bridgeport regional – Total Mortgage Arena,
Bridgeport, Connecticut
SeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type
1 NC State ACC 29–3Automatic
2 UConn Big East 25–5Automatic
3 Indiana Big Ten 22–8At-Large
4 Oklahoma Big 12 24–8At-Large
5 Notre Dame ACC 22–8At-Large
6 Kentucky SEC 19–11Automatic
7 UCF American 25–3Automatic
8 Washington State Pac–12 19–10At-Large
9 Kansas State Big 12 19–12At-Large
10 Florida SEC 21–10At-Large
11 Princeton Ivy 24–4Automatic
12 UMass Atlantic 10 26–6Automatic
13 IUPUI Horizon 24–4Automatic
14 Charlotte C-USA 22–9Automatic
15 Mercer Southern 23–6Automatic
16* Mount St. Mary's Northeast 16–12Automatic
Longwood Big South 21–11Automatic

*See First Four

Tournament records

Tournament bracket

All times are listed as Eastern Daylight Time (UTC−4)
* – Denotes overtime period

First Four

March 16 – Greensboro Region
Columbia, South Carolina
   
16 Howard 55
16 Incarnate Word 51
March 16 – Greensboro Region
Ames, Iowa
   
11 Dayton 88
11 DePaul 57
March 17 – Bridgeport Region
Raleigh, North Carolina
   
16 Mount St. Mary's 70
16 Longwood 74
March 17 – Spokane Region
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
   
11 Florida State 50
11 Missouri State 61

Greensboro regional – Greensboro, North Carolina

First round
Round of 64
March 18–19
Second round
Round of 32
March 20–21
Regional semifinals
Sweet 16
March 25
Regional final
Elite 8
March 27
            
1 South Carolina 79
16 Howard 21
1South Carolina49
Columbia, South Carolina – Fri/Sun
8 Miami (FL) 33
8 Miami (FL) 78
9 South Florida 66
1South Carolina69
5 North Carolina 61
5 North Carolina 79
12 Stephen F. Austin 66
5North Carolina63
Tucson, Arizona – Sat/Mon
4 Arizona 45
4 Arizona 72
13 UNLV 67
1South Carolina80
10 Creighton 50
6 Georgia 70
11 Dayton 54
6 Georgia 44
Ames, Iowa – Fri/Sun
3Iowa State67
3 Iowa State 78
14 UT Arlington 71
3 Iowa State 68
10 Creighton76
7 Colorado 74
10 Creighton 84
10Creighton64
Iowa City, Iowa – Fri/Sun
2 Iowa 62
2 Iowa 98
15 Illinois State 58

Greensboro regional final

ESPN
March 27
7:00 p.m.
#10 Creighton Bluejays 50, #1 South Carolina Gamecocks80
Scoring by quarter: 16-23, 9-23, 15-18, 10-16
Pts: Lauren Jenson (12)
Rebs: Rachael Saunders (4)
Asts: Tatum Rembao (6)
Pts: Aliyah Boston (19)
Rebs: Victaria Saxton (11)
Asts: Destanni Henderson (3)
Greensboro Coliseum Complex
Attendance: 6,579
Referees: Julie Krommenhoek, Angelica Suffren, Joseph Vaszily

Greensboro regional All Tournament team

Wichita regional – Wichita, Kansas

First round
Round of 64
March 18–19
Second round
Round of 32
March 20–21
Regional semifinals
Sweet 16
March 26
Regional final
Elite 8
March 28
            
1 Louisville 83
16 Albany 51
1Louisville68
Louisville, Kentucky – Fri/Sun
9 Gonzaga 59
8 Nebraska 55
9 Gonzaga 68
1Louisville76
4 Tennessee 64
5 Oregon 70
12 Belmont 73**
12 Belmont 67
Knoxville, Tennessee – Sat/Mon
4Tennessee70
4 Tennessee 80
13 Buffalo 67
1Louisville62
3 Michigan 50
6 BYU 57
11 Villanova 61
11 Villanova 49
Ann Arbor, Michigan – Sat/Mon
3Michigan64
3 Michigan 74
14 American 39
3Michigan52
10 South Dakota 49
7 Ole Miss 61
10 South Dakota 75
10South Dakota61
Waco, Texas – Fri/Sun
2 Baylor 47
2 Baylor 89
15 Hawaiʻi 49

Wichita regional final

ESPN
March 28
9:00 p.m.
#3 Michigan Wolverines 50, #1 Louisville Cardinals62
Scoring by quarter: 13–17, 14–13, 16–15, 7–17
Pts: Naz Hillmon (18)
Rebs: Naz Hillmon (11)
Asts: Emily Kiser
Leigha Brown (3)
Pts: Hailey Van Lith (22)
Rebs: Emily Engstler (16)
Asts: Emily Engstler (4)
Intrust Bank Arena
Attendance: 4695

Wichita regional All Tournament team

Spokane regional – Spokane, Washington

First round
Round of 64
March 18–19
Second round
Round of 32
March 20–21
Regional semifinals
Sweet 16
March 25
Regional final
Elite 8
March 27
            
1 Stanford 78
16 Montana State 37
1Stanford91
Stanford, California – Fri/Sun
8 Kansas 65
8 Kansas 77
9 Georgia Tech 58
1Stanford72
4 Maryland 66
5 Virginia Tech 81
12 Florida Gulf Coast 84
12 Florida Gulf Coast 65
College Park, Maryland – Fri/Sun
4Maryland89
4 Maryland 102
13 Delaware 71
1Stanford59
2 Texas 50
6 Ohio State 63
11 Missouri State 56
6 Ohio State79
Baton Rouge, Louisiana – Sat/Mon
3 LSU 64
3 LSU 83
14 Jackson State 77
6 Ohio State 63
2Texas66
7 Utah 92
10 Arkansas 69
7 Utah 56
Austin, Texas – Fri/Sun
2Texas78
2 Texas 70
15 Fairfield 52

Spokane regional final

ESPN
March 27
9:00 p.m.
#2 Texas Longhorns 50, #1 Stanford Cardinal59
Scoring by quarter: 14–14, 13–16, 13–15, 10–14
Pts: Joanne Allen-Taylor (15)
Rebs: Rori Harmon (7)
Asts: Rori Harmon (6)
Pts: Lexie Hull (20)
Rebs: Haley Jones (12)
Asts: Lacie Hull
Haley Jones (4)
Spokane Arena
Attendance: 7,739
Referees: Dee Kantner, Michol Murray, Kenneth Nash

Spokane regional All Tournament team

Bridgeport regional – Bridgeport, Connecticut

First round
Round of 64
March 19
Second round
Round of 32
March 20–21
Regional semifinals
Sweet 16
March 26
Regional final
Elite 8
March 28
            
1 NC State 96
16 Longwood 68
1NC State89
Raleigh, North Carolina – Sat/Mon
9 Kansas State 57
8 Washington State 40
9 Kansas State 50
1NC State66
5 Notre Dame 63
5 Notre Dame 89
12 UMass 78
5Notre Dame108
Norman, Oklahoma – Sat/Mon
4 Oklahoma 64
4 Oklahoma 78
13 IUPUI 72
1 NC State 87
2Connecticut91**
6 Kentucky 62
11 Princeton 69
11 Princeton 55
Bloomington, Indiana – Sat/Mon
3Indiana56
3 Indiana 85
14 Charlotte 51
3 Indiana 58
2Connecticut75
7 UCF 69
10 Florida 52
7 UCF 47
Storrs, Connecticut – Sat/Mon
2Connecticut52
2 Connecticut 83
15 Mercer 38

Bridgeport regional final

ESPN
March 28
7:00 p.m.
#2 Connecticut Huskies91, #1 NC State Wolfpack 87 (2OT)
Scoring by quarter:16-14, 18-14, 10-15, 17-18,  Overtime: 16-16, 14-10
Pts: Paige Bueckers (27)
Rebs: Olivia Nelson-Ododa (7)
Asts: Olivia Nelson-Ododa (4)
Pts: Jakia Brown-Turner (20)
Rebs: Elissa Cunane
Kayla Jones (9)
Asts: Raina Perez (10)
Total Mortgage Arena
Attendance: 10,119
Referees: Tiara Cruse, Benny Luna, Pualani Spurlock

Bridgeport regional All Tournament team

Final Four – Minneapolis, Minnesota

National semifinals
Final Four
April 1
National championship game
April 3
      
G1South Carolina72
W1 Louisville 59
G1South Carolina64
B2 Connecticut 49
S1 Stanford 58
B2Connecticut63

National semifinals

ESPN
Friday, April 1
6:00 pm CDT
G1 South Carolina Gamecocks72, W1 Louisville Cardinals 59
Scoring by quarter:17–10, 17–18, 23–20, 15–11
Pts: Aliyah Boston (23)
Rebs: Aliyah Boston (18)
Asts: Aliyah Boston
Destanni Henderson
Saniya Rivers (4)
Pts: Emily Engstler (18)
Rebs: Emily Engstler
Hailey Van Lith (9)
Asts: Hailey Van Lith (3)
Target Center
Minneapolis, MN
Referees: Dee Kantner, Kevin Pethtel, Pualani Spurlock-Welsh
ESPN
Friday, April 1
8:30 pm CDT
S1 Stanford Cardinal 58, B2 Connecticut Huskies63
Scoring by quarter: 9–12, 17–15, 11–12, 21–24
Pts: Haley Jones (20)
Rebs: Haley Jones (11)
Asts: Haley Jones (3)
Pts: Paige Bueckers (14)
Rebs: Olivia Nelson-Ododa (10)
Asts: Paige Bueckers (5)
Target Center
Minneapolis, MN
Attendance: 18,268
Referees: Melissa Barlow, Joseph Vaszily, Gina Cross

National championship

April 3, 2022
7:00 p.m. CDT
No. 2 UConn Huskies 49, No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks64
Scoring by quarter: 8–22, 19–13, 10–11, 12–18
Pts: P. Bueckers – 14
Rebs: P. Bueckers – 6
Asts: C. Williams, N. Mühl – 3
Pts: D. Henderson – 26
Rebs: A. Boston – 16
Asts: D. Henderson – 4
Target CenterMinneapolis, Minnesota
Attendance: 18,304
Referees: Maj Forsberg, Michol Murray, Michael McConnell

Final Four all-tournament team

Record by conference

ConferenceBidsRecordWin %FFR64R32S16E8F4CGNC
SEC 810–7.5888421111
Big East 49–4.6921332211
ACC 812–8 [a] .600175421
Pac-12 66–6.50063111
Big Ten 610–6.6256541
Big 12 69–6.6006621
Summit 12–1.667111
American 21–2.33321
WCC 21–2.33321
Atlantic Sun 11–1.50011
Ivy League 11–1.50011
Ohio Valley 11–1.50011
Atlantic 10 21–2.33312
Missouri Valley 21–2.33312
Big South 11–1.50011
MEAC 11–1.50011
America East 10–1.0001
Big Sky 10–1.0001
Big West 10–1.0001
C-USA 10–1.0001
Colonial 10–1.0001
Horizon 10–1.0001
MAAC 10–1.0001
MAC 10–1.0001
Mountain West 10–1.0001
Patriot 10–1.0001
SWAC 10–1.0001
Southern 10–1.0001
Sun Belt 10–1.0001
WAC 10–1.0001
Northeast 10–1.0001
Southland 10–1.0001
  1. The ACC record includes one game played between members of the conference (NC State–Notre Dame). Excluding this game, the conference has a record of 11–6 and a winning percentage of .647.

Game summaries and tournament notes

Upsets

Greensboro

Wichita

Spokane

Bridgeport

Media coverage

Television

ESPN served as the exclusive broadcaster of the tournament, with all games airing on either ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, or ABC. [11] ESPN offered Megacast coverage for the Women's Final Four and championship game, including The Bird & Taurasi Show on ESPN2 (hosted by Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, with similarities to ESPN's Monday Night Football with Payton and Eli ), along with a feed featuring enhanced statistics and augmented reality graphics using player and ball tracking, and "Beyond the Rim" and "On the Rail" camera options on ESPN+. [12] [13]

Studio host and analysts

  • Elle Duncan (Host) (First Four, First, Second rounds, Regionals, Final Four, and National championship game)
  • Kelsey Riggs (Host) (First Four, First, and Second rounds)
  • Rebecca Lobo (Analyst) (First Four, First, Second rounds, Final Four, and National championship game)
  • Andraya Carter (Analyst) (First Four, First, and Second rounds)
  • Nikki Fargas (Analyst) (First Four, First, Second rounds, Regionals, Final Four, and National championship game)
  • Monica McNutt (Analyst) (First Four, First, Second rounds, and Regionals)
  • Carolyn Peck (Analyst) (Final Four and National championship game)

Broadcast assignments

Radio

Westwood One had exclusive radio rights to the entire tournament.

Regionals

Final Four and Championship

See also

References

  1. "Expansion of 2022 DI women's basketball tournament to 68 teams approved". ncaa.com. November 17, 2018. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  2. Alexa Philippou (March 13, 2022). "Louisville joins South Carolina, Stanford and NC State in securing No. 1 seeds in NCAA women's basketball tournament". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  3. "Women's Final Four: Future dates & sites". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  4. Bonjour, Doug (July 19, 2018). "Women's basketball regionals returning to Bridgeport in 2022". Connecticut Post. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  5. "Greensboro Picked For 2022 Women's Basketball Regional". WFMY. July 18, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  6. Viviani, KWCH; Nick (July 18, 2018). "Wichita selected to host 2022 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Regionals". www.wibw.com. Retrieved March 10, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. "Spokane chosen as regional site for 2021, 2022 Women's NCAA Tournament | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  8. "Women's regional sites announced for '21–22". ESPN.com. July 18, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  9. "NCAA women's basketball tournament will also use "March Madness" branding in 2022". Awful Announcing. September 29, 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
  10. Nixon, Rick. "2023 Women's Final Four Championship Record Book" (PDF). NCAA. p. 86. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  11. "Meet Us in Minneapolis – The NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship Begins Wednesday, March 16". ESPN Press Room U.S. March 14, 2022. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
  12. Winslow, George (March 16, 2022). "ESPN Taps Genius Sports for Immersive Coverage at NCAA Women's Basketball Tourney". TVTechnology. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  13. Costa, Brandon (March 31, 2022). "Live From Women's Final Four: The Bird & Taurasi Show Highlights ESPN's MegaCast Menu". Sports Video Group. Retrieved April 5, 2022.