National Collegiate Athletic Association

NCAA News Archive - 2010

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Mar 10, 2010 9:01:41 AM

After months of monitoring, viewing, research and discussion, the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee has descended upon Indianapolis this week to select, seed and bracket the field for the 2010 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship.

The championship bracket will be announced on "Selection Monday" at 7 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN. First-round play begins March 20 and a national champion will be crowned April 6 in San Antonio.

For committee chair Jane Meyer (right) and her nine colleagues, this is "the reason for the season." By the time the selection meeting begins Friday, each of the 10 committee members will be armed with the knowledge that comes from having watched hundreds of games over the course of the season and having dissected important information provided through the conference-monitoring report and the regional advisory committee program.

"The women's basketball committee has to make hard decisions that impact people's lives," said Meyer, the senior associate director of athletics at Iowa. "We try to make the best decisions we can based on the information we have. We come prepared, have open minds to make those decisions, and we are up to the task at hand."

To prepare for selection weekend, the committee conducted its annual selection orientation meeting in early February in Indianapolis. That's when committee members became acquainted with the software they used to communicate information about the teams from conferences they are assigned to monitor.

Members also got a jump start discussing teams then that might be in the mix now.

Meyer, a five-year committee member, said the orientation meeting especially benefits newcomers such as Leslie Claybrook, senior associate athletics director at Rice, and Carolayne Henry, associate commissioner of the Mountain West Conference. "If they were to come in for the first time when we gather in March, it would be pretty overwhelming," Meyer said. "This way, they see firsthand how we're able to pull up all the information we're able to access."

Since then, the committee has been looking for teams that are separating themselves as one of the 33 at-large selections and teams that deserve higher seeds. Among tools to do that are regular teleconferences with coaches who serve on regional advisory committees. Each of the 31 conferences has a representative on the calls.

After each teleconference, the coaches submit online ballots that are compiled in monthly regional rankings the committee uses to prepare for the selection and seeding process.

"The regional advisory committee pre-ranking teleconferences and monthly rankings are important to our committee," Meyer said. "We appreciate the perspective and input from the coaches."

There may not be much discussion about the tournament's top seed. The Connecticut Huskies broke their own national record for consecutive victories Monday night with a 59-44 win over Notre Dame in the semifinals of the Big East tournament and extended it to 72 straight in Tuesday night's championship-game win over West Virginia.

Connecticut's remarkable run is impressive not only for its number but also the fact that the Huskies' margin of victory during the streak averages 32.5 points. The Huskies in fact have not won by fewer than 10 at any point in the streak.

Meyer believes Connecticut is elevating not only its own game but the sport in general. The streak has gained national media attention and also has captured the public eye. ESPN even staged one of its "Game Day" productions in Storrs earlier this year.

Meyer said Connecticut continues a string of program success that extends back to the early days of Immaculata and Delta State, the early rulers of the game when it was administered by the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women.

"Right now we happen to be talking about Connecticut, but a few years ago we were talking about Tennessee," Meyer said. "Years ago in the AIAW, you had Immaculata and Delta State. I don't recall anyone thinking that was a negative."

She believes programs that set a high standard enhance the game overall. And as for the streak, who wouldn't want to be the team that ends it, Meyer said.

"The Connecticut Huskies should be commended for their level of excellence over the last two seasons, and we should celebrate their achievements," Meyer said. "They have raised the bar and opened doors for women's basketball. As we have seen throughout history, when a team raises that bar, it is then up to all the other programs to achieve a similar level of excellence."

The race to that level continues March 20 when the field of 64 – a field Meyer and her nine committee colleagues select over the next five days – begins its quest for No. 1.