For once, Connecticut did not quite measure up with the best in
women's basketball.
Tennessee earned the top overall seed in the NCAA women's
tournament Sunday and will play in the Midwest Regional. Duke
(Mideast), Penn State (East) and Texas (West) received the other
No. 1 seeds.
And what of Connecticut, winner of the last two NCAA
championships and three of the last four? No. 2 in the East.
"We didn't win enough games, I guess," coach Geno Auriemma
said.
Tennessee and Duke, the top-ranked team, had been considered locks to be seeded No. 1. Penn State and Texas edged Purdue and Connecticut for the two other spots.
"It was exciting this year because we had more teams to
consider for No. 1s," said Cheryl Marra, who chairs the selection
committee. "For the first time we had a larger pool, which is
exciting for the game, but made it very difficult for the
committee."
In the end, Marra said Connecticut could not match the
credentials of the four who were seeded No. 1.
The Huskies (25-4) had been in line for a No. 1 until losing to
Villanova in their next-to-last regular season game and then
getting upset by Boston College in the semifinals of the Big East
tournament.
Duke was ranked second among the No. 1 seeds, followed by Penn State and Texas. Purdue was the top No. 2, with Connecticut next.
This is the first time that UConn has not been a No. 1 seed
since 1998, when as a No. 2 it was upset by North Carolina State in
the East Regional final.
"Taking a look at (Connecticut's) full body of work, when you
put it up to the other schools being considered, the other four we
believe had a better overall performance this year," said Marra,
senior associate athletic director at Wisconsin.
Tennessee (26-3) received its 15th No. 1 seed in 17 years after
winning the Southeastern Conference regular-season championship at
14-0 and playing the nation's toughest schedule. The Lady Vols have
18 victories over teams that made the NCAA tournament, including a
72-69 win at top-ranked Duke.
Duke (27-3) won the ACC regular-season and tournament
championships, while Texas (28-4) shared the Big 12 title with
Kansas State and finished second in the conference tournament. The
Longhorns also went 2-1 against the other No. 1 seeds, beating Duke
and Tennessee and losing to Penn State.
Penn State (25-5) lost to Purdue in the championship game of the Big Ten tournament, but beat the Boilermakers twice during the
season and played a challenging schedule that included a 20-point
win over Texas.
Now the Lady Lions face a challenging road to get to the Final
Four in New Orleans. They could play eighth-seeded Virginia Tech on
Tech's home floor in the second round and have a potential meeting
with Connecticut at the Hartford Civic Center in the regional
final.
Though Marra said Hartford "is not their home," the Huskies
play several games a year there and are 37-2 at the Civic Center
since the 1996-97 season.
"That's how the games are set up at this time," Penn State
coach Rene Portland said. "I've got to believe for the last few
years people thought that way when they had to come to State
College.
"There's going to be challenges every place we go. That's what
this tournament is for."
It was a banner year for the Big East, which got a record-tying
eight teams in the NCAA tournament. UConn will be joined by Boston
College, Miami, Notre Dame, Rutgers, Villanova, Virginia Tech and
West Virginia.
Every Big East team except West Virginia had an RPI in the top
30, Marra said, and West Virginia had four victories against teams
among the top 50 in the RPI.
The Southeastern Conference had eight teams in 1999 and 2002. Seven SEC teams made it this time: Tennessee, Auburn, Florida,
Georgia, LSU, Mississippi and Vanderbilt.
The Big 12 also had seven and the Big Ten six.
First-round games will be played next Saturday or Sunday at 16
sites. Those winners play March 22 or 23.
Two of the regionals are March 27 and 29: the East in Hartford
and the West in Seattle. The Mideast in Norfolk, Va., and the
Midwest in Norman, Okla., are March 28 and 30.
At the national semifinals April 4, it will be East vs. Mideast
and Midwest against West. That creates the possibility of a
Tennessee-Connecticut championship game for the second straight
year and fourth time since 1995. UConn won the three previous
meetings, including a 73-68 victory in Atlanta last year.
Texas is a No. 1 seed for the first time since 1988 and Penn
State for the first time since 1994. Duke earned its fourth
straight No. 1 seed but is still looking for its first national
title.
Tennessee, which has overcome the midseason loss of starting
point guard Loree Moore to a knee injury, will open the tournament
on the road for the first time ever. The Lady Vols play Colgate in
Tallahassee, Fla., on Saturday.
That's of no concern to coach Pat Summitt.
"We've been everywhere," she said. "I don't know (if) we've
ever had a team better prepared at this time of the season to hit
the road."
Purdue is the No. 2 seed in the West. The other No. 2s are
Kansas State in the Mideast and Vanderbilt in the Midwest, setting
up the possibility of a Vandy-Tennessee meeting in the regional
final.
Texas opens at home against Southern on Sunday, Duke hosts
Northwestern State on Sunday and Penn State plays Hampton in
Blacksburg, Va. on Sunday.
UConn (25-4) begins defense of its national title against Ivy
League champion Penn at Bridgeport, Conn., on Sunday.
Missouri was the only at-large team that made it with a losing
conference record. The Tigers (17-12) tied for seventh in the Big
12 at 7-9.