2016 POSTSEASON WNIT Notes and Records

2016 POSTSEASON WNIT Notes and Records www.womensnit.com

2016 Postseason WNIT The 64-team tournament is a single-elimination event with all games played at sites of host schools. The WNIT is committed to offering deserved opportunities to women’s basketball programs, and the 2016 Postseason WNIT features a full 64-team bracket.

The WNIT offers teams an opportunity for more practice time, to experience playoff-atmosphere games, to play in front of passionate fans, and to use their WNIT success as a springboard to the next season.

First-round action tips off Wednesday, March 16 and concludes Friday, March 18. Second-round games will run March 19-22, Round three goes March 23-25, quarterfinals are March 26-28, and semifinals will be played March 30-31.The championship game will be played Saturday, April 2 and will be televised live and in HD on CBS Sports Network at 3 p.m. ET. All games are hosted by participating schools.

Tournament Notes -Four teams in the 2016 WNIT are previous champions of the event: Oregon (2002), Creighton (2004), Drexel (2013) and Rutgers (2014).

-One of the potential benefits of playing in the WNIT is giving teams a springboard into the following year, and that was cer- tainly the case after the 2015 event. UCLA, a team with a very young roster, beat West Virginia in the 2015 WNIT final, 62-60. This season, the Bruins rolled to a 24-8 record and secured a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. West Virginia had a terrific season as well, going 24-6 overall and claiming a No. 6 seed in the tournament.

-A record 36 teams in this year’s field recorded 20 or more regular-season wins.

-This year’s tournament features six teams from the Big Ten, five from the Mid-American Conference and four each from the ACC, C-USA and West Coast Conference. Four conferences each placed three teams – American, A-10, Big East and Colo- nial. Other conferences represented include Big West (2), Horizon (2), Missouri Valley (2), Pac-12 (2), Summit (2), Sun Belt (2), America East (1), Atlantic Sun (1), Big 12 (1), Big Sky (1), Big South (1), Ivy (1), MAAC (1), MEAC (1), Mountain West (1), Northeast (1), OVC (1), Patriot (1), SEC (1), Southern (1), Southland (1), SWAC (1) and WAC (1).

-A record 18 teams in the WNIT either won or tied their regular-season conference title: Abilene Christian (Southland); Ar- kansas State (Sun Belt); Bethune-Cookman (MEAC); Bucknell (Patriot); FGCU (Atlantic Sun); Maine (America East); Mercer (Southern); Montana State (Big Sky); Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley); Ohio (Mid-American); Quinnipiac (MAAC); Sacred Heart (Northeast); Saint Louis (Atlantic 10); South Dakota (Summit); Southern (SWAC); UC Riverside (Big West); UT Martin (Ohio Valley) and UTEP (C-USA).

-The last time Rutgers and UTEP were in the tournament (2014), the championship game was played in front of a sold-out arena at the 12,222-seat Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas. Rutgers scored a layup with 2 seconds left on the clock to edge UTEP 56-54 for the national championship. The Don Haskins Center sold out in a venue-record two hours following UTEP’s 66-63 semifinal win over South Dakota State. “The Don” also sold out for UTEP’s semifinal game against South Dakota State.

-There will be 23 first-round games on Thursday, March 17, making it the third-busiest first-round night in event history. The 2013 WNIT had 29 games on one night and there were 26 games on one night in 2012.

-The Postseason WNIT is the longest current running postseason event for women’s college basketball, outside of the NCAA Tournament. In existence since 1998, the WNIT has afforded hundreds of opportunities for schools in every conference to play in the postseason. 2016 marks the 19th year of the Postseason WNIT.

-For the 8th consecutive year the Postseason WNIT championship game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network. Thad Anderson (play-by-play) and Chiney Ogwumike (analyst) will call the action. Ogwumike plays for the Connecticut Sun and was the 2014 WNBA Rookie of the Year. She also had a stellar career at Stanford where she led the Cardinal to three NCAA Final Four appearances. Ogwumike still holds the Stanford and Pac-12 record for most rebounds. Page 1 Page 1 Media Contact: Andy Hansen | (970) 672-0517 | [email protected] www.womensnit.com 3930 Automation Way - Fort Collins, CO 80525 2016 POSTSEASON WNIT Notes and Records www.womensnit.com

Format The Postseason WNIT features 32 first-round games, followed by 16 second-round games, eight third-round games, four quarterfinal games, two semifinal games, and the championship. The championship game is televised live nationally. The event offers 32 automatic berths, one to each established conference, and 32 at-large berths. The WNIT field and bracket is announced late on the evening of the NCAA Tournament selections.

Tournament officials award an Automatic Qualifying berth to each of the nation’s 32 conferences. The spot goes to the team that finishes the highest in the regular-season conference standings that does not advance to the NCAA Tournament. If there is a tie, the WNIT abides by the conference tiebreaker. A team earns the AQ berth regardless of its overall record. A total of 32 teams are then given an At-Large berth; a team must have an overall record of .500 or better to be considered.

Looking Back Freshman Jordin Canada scored a career-high 31 points to lead the UCLA women’s basketball team past West Virginia, 62-60, to win the 2015 Women’s NIT Championship played at the Charleston Civic Center. Canada connected on 9 of 19 shots from the field and made 13 of 15 free throws, helping UCLA (19-18) win its sixth consecutive game. She was the Bruins’ only player to score in double figures, shattering her previous career high of 19 points, in addition to tallying four steals and two assists.

Triple Crown Sports The Postseason WNIT is owned and produced by Triple Crown Sports, based in Fort Collins, Colo. TCS also organizes men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments in Cancun, and the Preseason WNIT. TCS is the leader in youth and collegiate sports and manages more than 100 amateur sporting events across the country in volleyball, fastpitch softball, baseball and basketball. With 33 years of experience in the event business, TCS is nationally-recognized as a premier tournament organization.

The Bracketing Process The Postseason WNIT continues to draw interest from all corners of the college basketball scene – 64 teams getting the chance to continue their season creates a lot of excitement within rosters, coaching staffs and groups of fans. Here are some details to help explain how the event is bracketed:

Q: Why aren’t teams seeded?

A: The WNIT field is selected after the NCAA tournament first confirms the 64 teams playing in that event. The WNIT uses a broad range of rankings systems and also considers factors like how a team is currently playing and injury concerns. In the end, 32 spots go to automatic qualifiers (teams with the highest regular-season finish in their conference that are not playing in the NCAA Tournament), with the other berths going, as determined by the WNIT selection committee, to the strongest remaining teams.

The 64 teams in the WNIT are then placed in tiers, and those tiers are used to construct the brackets. In general, first-round games will have middle-tier teams facing each other, while top- tier teams face bottom-tier teams. Adjustments are commonly made, however, to make sure there are no rematches from the regular season, and that teams from the same conference do not play each other in Round 1, and ideally, Round 2. The big-picture goal is to evenly distribute team strength throughout the bracket.

Other factors affecting the brackets are school days being missed, facility access, locations of teams, travel and lodging constraints, availability to host, and other issues. With all the variables teams must navigate, the WNIT has found no real point in generating a seeding for each team, because it often does not hold true with all of the factors that can affect the bracket.

Q: Why is my team not playing a home game in Round 1? We have a better record!

A: The WNIT is almost 100 percent of the time a “breaking news” development for college programs, which means access to the school’s arena may be limited. There could be other events already booked; the men’s NCAA Tournament may also complicate access. WNIT officials also have to consider the fan base of each potential host school, and the ability for visiting teams to get to the site in timely fashion. Keep in mind that some schools simply can’t or won’t devote resources needed to properly host a postseason contest. One of the WNIT’s goals is to help teams build their programs with their community, and WNIT games can be a great vehicle for getting a new fan base engaged in women’s college basketball.

Media Contact: Andy Hansen | (970) 672-0517 | [email protected] Page 2 www.womensnit.com 3930 Automation Way - Fort Collins, CO 80525 2016 POSTSEASON WNIT Notes and Records www.womensnit.com an g iac an p ia Tech g g ers inia Tech g g Round 1 March 16-18 labama kron Wake Forest Beth.-Cookman 7 pm ET Wed 3/16 at Michi 7:05 pm ET Fri 3/18 at FGCU Elon 7 pm ET Fri 3/18 at Quinni Maine 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Vir Virginia 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Villanova 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Geor Temple Liberty Mercer 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at VCU 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Charlotte 7 pm ET Fri 3/18 at Drexel Harvard 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Ohio 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Hofstra 7 pm CT Wed 3/16 at Tulane Marshall A 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Rut Virginia Tech Georgetown A Bucknell 7 pm CT Thur 3/17 at Northwestern San Diego 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Akron Drexel IUPUI Central Michigan 7 pm ET Thur 3/17 at Central Michi FGCU Wright St. Georgia Tech VCU Hofstra Ohio Michigan Quinnipiac Northwestern Charlotte Tulane Rutgers Villanova Round 2 Produced by by Produced March 19-22 Round 3 March 23-25 March 26-28 Quarterfinals Semifinals March 30-31 2016 At School TBD CHAMPIONS CBS Sports Network 3 p.m. ET Sat. April 2 WNIT CHAMPIONSHIP Championship Game Televised on Championship Game Televised All game times are according to host school’s time zone. school’s host to according are All game times Semifinals POSTSEASON WNIT BRACKET POSTSEASON POSTSEASON WNIT BRACKET POSTSEASON March 30-31 March 26-28 Quarterfinals Invitation Tournament Invitation Round 3 Women’s National Women’s March 23-25 Round 2 March 19-22 7 8 7 8 P s U s 7 7 7 s 7 7 7 a y 7 6 7 7 7 ' 6 on g y hi g p Utah TCU Iowa UTEP Drake at TC at Utah at Iowa Dayton Ball St. Oregon at UTE UTRGV at Drake Gonzaga Memphis at Ore Nebraska Southern St. Mary's Creighton UT Martin Fresno St. at Gonza at Mem Little Rock Saint Louis at Nebraska Minnesota Milwaukee at St. Mar Santa Clara at Minnesota Montana St. at Saint Loui Arkansas St. UC Riverside at Fresno State Sacred Heart South Dakota Round 1 Northern Iowa 7 pm PT Fri 3/1 at South Dakota 7 pm MT Fri 3/1 Long Beach St. at Arkansas State 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 March 16-18 6 pm PT Thur 3/1 7 pm PT Thur 3/1 6 pm PT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Wed 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Thur 3/1 7 pm CT Wed 3/1 Abilene Christian Eastern Michigan Western Kentucky at Western Kentuck 7:05 pm MT Thur 3/1

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Tournament Field AQ Teams At-Large Teams Abilene Christian (26-3), Southland Akron (19-13), Mid-American Arkansas State (26-5), Sun Belt Alabama (15-15), SEC Bethune-Cookman (18-12), MEAC Ball State (21-9), Mid-American Bucknell (24-7), Patriot Central Michigan (22-10), Mid-American Drexel (19-13), Colonial Charlotte (19-11), C-USA Florida Gulf Coast (28-5), Atlantic Sun Creighton (17-17), Big East Fresno State (21-11), MWC Dayton (14-14), Atlantic 10 Harvard (14-13), Ivy Drake (22-9), Missouri Valley Liberty (20-12), Big South Eastern Michigan (21-11), Mid-American Maine (26-8, America East Elon (18-12), Colonial Mercer (24-8), Southern Georgetown (16-13), Big East Milwaukee (19-12), Horizon Georgia Tech (19-12), ACC Minnesota (19-11), Big Ten Gonzaga (18-13), West Coast Montana State (21-9), Big Sky Hofstra (22-8), Colonial Northern Iowa (22-10), Missouri Valley Iowa (19-13), Big Ten Ohio (24-6), Mid-American IUPUI (20-10), Summit Oregon (20-10), Pac-12 Little Rock (20-12), Sun Belt Quinnipiac (24-8), MAAC Long Beach State (24-8), Big West Sacred Heart (20-12), Northeast Marshall (21-11), C-USA Saint Louis (24-7), Atlantic 10 Memphis (18-12), American Saint Mary’s (24-7), WCC Michigan (17-13), Big Ten South Dakota (26-6), Summit Nebraska (18-12), Big Ten Southern (19-11), SWAC Northwestern (18-16), Big Ten TCU (16-14), Big 12 Rutgers (18-14), Big Ten Temple (20-11), American San Diego (23-7), West Coast UC Riverside (23-8), Big West Santa Clara (23-8), West Coast UT Martin (21-9), Ohio Valley Tulane (21-11), American UTEP (26-4), C-USA Utah (16-14), Pac-12 UT Rio Grande Valley (19-13), WAC VCU (23-9), Atlantic 10 Villanova (19-11), Big East Virginia (16-15), ACC Virginia Tech (17-13), ACC Wake Forest (16-15), ACC Western Kentucky (24-6), C-USA Wright State (24-10), Horizon

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UCLA CAPTURES POSTSEASON WNIT CHAMPIONSHIP

SCORE BY PERIODS 1ST 2ND F Records UCLA 30 32 62 19-18 West Virginia 28 32 60 23-15 Site: Charleston Civic Ctr., Charleston, W. Va.

CHARLESTON -- Freshman Jordin Canada scored a career-high 31 points to lead the UCLA women’s basketball team past West Virginia, 62-60, to win the 2015 Women’s NIT Championship on Saturday at the Charleston Civic Center.Canada connected on 9 of 19 shots from the field and made 13 of 15 free throws, helping UCLA (19-18) win its sixth consecutive game. She was the Bruins’ only player to score in double figures, shattering her previous career high of 19 points, in addition to tallying four steals and two assists.

West Virginia’s Averee Fields led the Mountaineers with 17 points. WVU also re- ceived 14 points from Bria Holmes and 10 points from Linda Stepney.

The Bruins scored the first four points of the game and led 12-9 on a pair of free throws by Kelli Hayes at the 12:32 mark. But West Virginia would go on a 15-6 run to build their largest lead of six points (24-18) with 5:51 left in the first half. Jordin Canada would tie the game on a layup at 26-26 (1:18). Canada would get her third steal of the first half and race down the floor, beating the buzzer to give UCLA a 30- 28 lead at the break. Her 14 points in the first half led all scorers.

UCLA took the lead for good with fewer than four minutes to play in the game. West Virginia’s Crystal Leary made one of two free throws with 4:31 to play, pushing the Mountaineers ahead, 53-50. All-Tournament Team Kari Korver, who finished with five points and six rebounds, nailed a 3-pointer at the Nicole Elmblad (Michigan) 4:19 mark to tie the contest 53-53. Tyonna Williams (Temple) Averee Fields (West Virginia) After a missed jump shot by West Virginia, Canada made a layup with 3:45 remain- Nirra Fields (UCLA) ing to put UCLA ahead by a 55-53 margin. An ensuing steal and layup by Kelli Bria Holmes (West Virginia) Hayes gave UCLA a 57-53 advantage with 3:19 remaining. MVP-Jordin Canada (UCLA)

West Virginia trimmed its deficit to two points (57-55) with less than three minutes to play. UCLA added to its lead with 49 seconds to play, as Monique Billings made one of two free throws, putting the Bruins ahead, 58-55. STATS COMPARISON UCLA WVU Points 62 60 A layup by Stepney cut UCLA’s lead to 58-57 with 44 seconds to play, before Can- FG Made-Attempted 20-52 19-58 ada answered with a layup at the 25-second mark. Canada helped UCLA ice the FG Percentage 38.5% 32.8% victory with a steal and two ensuing free throws with 19 seconds remaining to put 3PT Made-Attempted 1-6 5-16 UCLA ahead, 61-57. The Bruins held on in the final moments for the 62-60 win. 3PT Percentage 16.7% 31.3% FT Made-Attempted 21-28 17-20 Prior to Saturday’s victory over West Virginia, UCLA had not won a postseason FT Percentage 75.0% 85.0% tournament since upsetting Stanford to win the 2006 Pac-10 Tournament. This Rebounds 40 38 Turnovers 13 13 marked the Bruins’ first-ever WNIT Tournament appearance and was the latest UCLA had ever played a basketball game.

Page 4 Page 5 Media Contact: Andy Hansen | (970) 672-0517 | [email protected] www.womensnit.com 3930 Automation Way - Fort Collins, CO 80525 RECORD BOOK TEAM RECORDS INDIVIDUAL RECORDS Most Points - Game Most Points - Game 107 Wisconsin vs. Siena College, 03/14/99 45 Tamika Whitmore, Memphis vs. Arkansas St., 3/17/99 Most Points - Tournament Most Points - Tournament 452 Wyoming (2007) 147 Danielle McCray, Kansas (2009) Most Field Goals - Game Most Field Goals Made - Game 45 Illinois vs. Wisconsin Green Bay, 3/15/01 18 Aisha Hollans, Southern California vs. Washington, 3/17/02 Most Field Goals - Tournament Most Field Goals Made - Tournament 179 Florida (2000) 54 Toni Young, Oklahoma State (2012) Best Shooting Percentage - Game Best Shooting Percentage - Game (min. 12 attempts) .618 South Carolina vs. Hartford, 3/18/07 .917 Kelsey Kahle, Portland State (11 for 12) vs. Portland, 3/19/09 Most 3-Pointers - Game Most 3-Pointers - Game 17 Missouri State vs. Iowa, 3/28/05 9 Morgan Eye, Missouri vs. Kansas State, 3/22/15 9 Jordan Jones, South Carolina vs. NCA&T, 3/21/08 Most 3-Pointers - Tournament 58 Missouri State (2005) Most 3-Pointers - Tournament 22 Jenny Lingor, Missouri State (2005) Best 3-point Shooting Percentage - Game (min. 10 attempts) .750 Wyoming (9 for 12), vs. Nevada, 3/15/07 Best 3-point Shooting Percentage - Game (min. 6 attempts) 100.0 Valerie Nainima, Long Island (6 for 6), vs. Iona, 3/15/07 Most Free Throws - Game 37 Wyoming (37 of 52), vs. Kansas State, 3/28/07 Most Free Throws - Game 17 Hanna Zavecz (17 of 24), Wyoming vs. Kansas State, 3/28/07 Most Free Throws - Tournament 122 Wyoming (2007) Most Free Throws - Tournament 47 Hanna Zavecz, Wyoming (2007) Best Free Throw Shooting Percentage - Game (min. 15 attempts) 100.0 Wisconsin (20 for 20), vs. Western Kentucky, 3/28/07 Best Free Throw Shooting Percentage - Game (min. 13 attempts) 100.0 Crystal Kelly, Western Kentucky (14 for 14), vs. Minnesota, 3/19/07 Most Rebounds - Game 100.0 Krysten Boogaard, Kansas (13 for 13), vs. Prairie View A&M, 3/17/10 62 Fresno State vs. Santa Clara, 3/21/03 100.0 Kristi Cirone, Illinois State (13 for 13), vs. Marquette, 3/26/09 62 Missouri State vs. Oral Roberts, 3/19/10 100.0 Shantia Grace, South Florida (13 for 13), vs. St. Bonaventure, 3/29/09 Most Rebounds - Tournament Most Rebounds - Game 273 California-Berkeley (2010) 26 Katherine Plouffe, Marquette vs. Indiana State, 3/20/14 Most Offensive Rebounds - Game Most Rebounds - Tournament 32 South Florida vs. Florida, 3/18/10 68 Sophia Young, Baylor (2003) Most Offensive Rebounds - Tournament Most Offensive Rebounds - Game 85 Wisconsin (2007) 12 Shauntal Nobles, Texas Tech vs. San Diego, 3/22/12 Most Defensive Rebounds - Game Most Offensive Rebounds - Tournament 44 Illinois State vs. Rice, 3/15/07 20 Janese Banks, Wisconsin (2007) Most Defensive Rebounds - Tournament Most Defensive Rebounds - Game 184 Oklahoma State (2012) 20 Katherine Plouffe, Marquette vs. Indiana State, 3/20/14 Most Assists - Game Most Defensive Rebounds - Tournament 28 Kansas State vs. Idaho State, 3/17/06 49 Liz Donohoe, Oklahoma State (2012) Most Assists - Tournament Most Assists - Game 102 Oklahoma State (2012) 13 Shanon Smith, Michigan vs. Stony Brook 3/21/2014 13 Jamierra Faulkner, Southern Miss vs. Lamar, 3/20/14 Most Turnovers - Game 13 Ariana Elegado, Cal Poly vs. Washington, 3/14/12 30 Eastern Illinois vs. Marquette, 3/18/10 13 Dee Dee Pate, Wisconsin vs. Memphis, 3/20/99 30 Oral Roberts vs. Missouri State, 3/19/10 13 Kelsey Corbin, Ball State vs. Kentucky, 3/19/07 Most Turnovers - Tournament Most Assists - Tournament 106 James Madison University (2012) 43 Yolanda Paige, West Virginia (2005) Most Steals - Game Most Blocks - Game 23 Northern Colorado vs. Colorado, 3/14/12 10 Hillary Carlson, Wyoming, vs. Nevada, 3/19/10 Most Steals - Tournament Most Blocks - Tournament 60 Houston (2002) 24 Rachel Hollivay, Rutgers (2014)

Most Blocks - Game Most Steals - Game 16 South Florida vs. Coppin State, 3/19/07 10 Shala Crook, Ball State vs. Valparaiso, 3/16/02

Most Blocks - Tournament Most Steals - Tournament 21 Kayla Thornton, UTEP (2014) 42 Rutgers (2014)

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WNIT HISTORY ATTENDANCE RECORDS The Postseason WNIT began in 1998 with 16 teams play- The 1998 inaugural year attendance for a 16-team field was 50,479. ing for a postseason crown. The event has undergone four Attendance for the next seven years when the event expanded to 32 expansions, but its mission has remained the same: To give teams averaged 83,207 per year. The WNIT attendance record of deserving teams a quality opportunity to play exciting games 18,018 fans in a championship game was set at the 2001 Postseason for a postseason title. WNIT finale at New Mexico. The championship game for the 18 years of the postseason event averages nearly 10,000 spectators. Here is a look at the championship game numbers: Following the inaugural year, the field doubled to 32 teams and remained that way until 2006 when a renewed commit- 1998 Penn State at Baylor 10,057 1999 Wisconsin at Arkansas 14,163 ment was made to schools. The WNIT expanded to a 40-team 2000 Florida at Wisconsin 13,006 field to give spots to teams that won their regular-season con- 2001 Ohio State at New Mexico 18,018 ference title but did not win their conference tournament and 2002 Houston at Oregon 6,835 therefore were excluded from the NCAA Tournament. 2003 Auburn at Baylor 7,414 2004 UNLV at Creighton 4,180 The WNIT furthered that commitment to conferences in 2007, 2005 West Virginia at SMS 8,871 when it expanded to 48 teams and awarded an automatic 2006 Marquette at Kansas State 13,340 berth to each conference. The number of at-large berths re- 2007 Wisconsin at Wyoming 15,462 mained at 17 until 2010, when the WNIT felt that the level of 2008 Marquette at Michigan State 7,818 2009 South Florida at Kansas 16,113 women’s basketball warranted an expansion to the 64-team 2010 Miami at California 2,523 field. 2011 Southern Cal at Toledo 7,301 2012 JMU at Oklahoma State 6,157 The Postseason WNIT is the second longest running postsea- 2013 Utah at Drexel 1,922 son tournament in women’s college basketball history behind 2014 Rutgers at UTEP 12,222 the NCAA Tournament. Since its inception in 1998, the WNIT 2015 UCLA at West Virginia 8,403 has afforded hundreds of opportunities for schools in every TOP-10 CROWDS conference to play in the postseason. 1. New Mexico - 18,018 WNIT games showcase the best of women’s basketball, both Ohio State at New Mexico, Championship Game 2001 with fan excitement (the 2009 championship was played in front of a Big 12 record 16,113 fans at Kansas) and level of 2. Kansas - 16,113 play (teams that do well in the Post WNIT often make a huge South Florida at Kansas, Championship Game 2009 jump the following year to performing well in the NCAA Tour- nament). 3. Wyoming - 15,462 Wisconsin at Wyoming, Championship Game 2007 PAST CHAMPIONS 2015 - UCLA 4. Arkansas - 14,163 2014 - Rutgers Wisconsin at Arkansas, Championship Game 1999 2013 – Drexel 2012 – Oklahoma State 5. Kansas State - 13,340 2011 – Toledo Marquette at Kansas State, Championship Game 2006

2010 – California 6. Wisconsin - 13,006 2009 – South Florida Florida at Wisconsin, Championship Game 2000 2008 – Marquette 2007 – Wyoming 7. Wyoming - 12,225 2006 – Kansas State Kansas State at Wyoming, Semifinal Game 2007 2005 – Missouri State 2004 – Creighton 8. UTEP - 12,222 2003 – Auburn Rutgers at UTEP, Championship Game 2014 2002 – Oregon 9. UTEP - 12,222 2001 – Ohio State South Dakota State at UTEP, Semifinal Game 2014 2000 – Wisconsin 1999 – Arkansas 10. Wyoming - 11,253 1998 – Penn State South Dakota State at Wyoming, Quarterfinal Game 2007 Page 6 Page 7 Media Contact: Andy Hansen | (970) 672-0517 | [email protected] www.womensnit.com 3930 Automation Way - Fort Collins, CO 80525 2016 POSTSEASON WNIT Notes and Records www.womensnit.com

YEAR-BY-YEAR OVERVIEW

1998 – The Postseason WNIT began in March of 1998 and involved 2009 - South Florida relied on veteran leadership and took a cue from 16 teams from around the country. Penn State defeated Baylor in the 2008 Marquette team to win three straight road games, including a Waco, Texas in front of 10,057 extremely vocal hometown fans. Atten- championship at Kansas. South Florida edged the Jayhawks 75-71 in dance for the two semifinal games and championship game averaged front of a Kansas and Big 12 conference record-setting crowd of 16,113 7,970 spectators per game. fans at venerable Allen Fieldhouse.

1999 – The event was expanded to involve 32 schools. Arkansas and 2010 – California won six straight games, including two on the road, to Wisconsin drew a WNIT record 14,161 women’s basketball fans for capture its first national title. The Golden Bears defeated Miami 73-61 the championship matchup at Arkansas. in a championship game that showcased some of the nation’s best up- and-coming players. 2000 – The tournament saw Wisconsin reach the championship game for the second year in a row. This time, however, Wisconsin was 2011 – Toledo steamrolled its way to a championship that energized victorious against Florida in front of a crowd of 13,006 fans in Madison, the entire community. The Rockets hosted all six games, defeating Wis. Delaware, Auburn, Alabama, Syracuse, Charlotte, and USC. Toledo sold out its semifinal and championship games at more than 7,000 fans 2001 – Ohio State overcame a 12-point deficit against New Mexico to each, which set school and conference attendance records. beat the host Lobos at The Pit in front of 18,018 fans. This championship game sold out eight hours after tickets went on sale to the general 2012 – Oklahoma State wrapped up an emotional season that started public. The sell-out was the third fastest in the history of the facility. with the Cowgirls losing head coach Kurt Budke and assistant coach Miranda Serna in a plane crash. The season ended with an amazing 2002 – Oregon scored with 2.4 seconds remaining to give Oregon the storybook finish as the Cowgirls won game after game, until they de- Women's NIT championship with a 54-52 victory over Houston before feated JMU 75-68 to win the Postseason WNIT title. a season-high 6,835 fans at McArthur Court at Eugene, Ore. 2013 – Drexel (28-10) set a school record for victories and captured 2003 – Auburn overcame a six-point Baylor lead in the final two and a the program’s first postseason title by defeating Utah 46-43 after taking half minutes to win the championship game. Auburn edged Baylor 64- the lead with 21 seconds left in the championship game. The Dragons’ 63 in front of a deafening crowd of 7,314 at Waco, Texas. The winning route to the title included wins over Auburn, Bowling Green, and Florida. basket came with 3.2 seconds left in the contest. 2014 – Rutgers’ Tyler Scaife drove the length of the court and hit a la- 2004 – Creighton dominated UNLV from start to finish for a 73-52 vic- yup with 2 seconds on the clock to give the Scarlet Knights a 56-54 victory in front of 4,180 fans in Omaha. This was the second largest home tory and their first Postseason WNIT championship. Rutgers defeated crowd in school history for Creighton. UTEP in front of a capacity crowd of 12,222 at the Don Haskins Center, which sold out in less than two hours. 2005 – Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State) defeated West Virginia 78-70 in the championship. A sellout crowd of 8,870 vocal fans 2015 – Freshman Jordin Canada scored a career-high 31 points to witnessed the final game for the team before the school changed its lead the UCLA women’s basketball team past West Virginia, 62-60, to name to Missouri State. Jenny Lingor set the WNIT scoring record with win the 2015 Women’s NIT Championship on Saturday at the Charles- 116 points in five games and the team made a WNIT record 58 3-point- ton Civic Center.Canada connected on 9 of 19 shots from the field and ers during their tournament run. made 13 of 15 free throws, helping UCLA (19-18) win its sixth consecutive game. She was the Bruins’ only player to score in double figures, 2006 – Kansas State overcame a one-point halftime deficit and Mar- shattering her previous career high of 19 points, in addition to tallying quette’s hot 3-point shooting to win the WNIT championship. The four steals and two assists. game was played in front of a sellout crowd of 13,340 – at the time the third largest in WNIT history.

2007 – In the 10th year of the Postseason WNIT, Wyoming rolled with six straight wins, including a 72-56 victory over Wisconsin in the championship. The entire state of Wyoming got behind the Cowgirls, as they sold out the final game in less than 10 hours, and drew 52,541 fans for the entire event, including 15,462 for the championship.

2008 - Marquette beat the odds and became the first team to win three road games in the Postseason WNIT. The Golden Eagles topped Michigan State 81-66 in front of 7,818 fans at the Breslin Center to capture their first postseason championship.

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