Coach Auriemma is one of the most successful coaches in college basketball: his 1149150 (.885) record as of April2022[update] represents the highest winning percentage among NCAA basketball coaches (minimum 10 seasons), any level, men's or women's,[9] while ranking him second in all-time women's wins behind current Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer. UConn finished the regular season undefeated and established a 70-game winning streak, shattering the previous mark of 54 set by Louisiana Tech; the streak ended in the Big East championship game loss to Villanova. The 6661 loss was UConn's first of the season, but not its last. In the National Tournament, both Connecticut and Notre Dame were seeded first in their respective playoff brackets; each advanced to the Final Four held in Tampa, Florida. 6 Creighton 85, No. With Faris and Doty graduated, sophomore Breanna Stewart was the undisputed leader of the 201314 UConn team, starting in all 40 games and leading the team with 19.4 points and 2.8 blocks per game; her 291 field goals made was the third-highest single-season total in UConn annals. Connecticut's final season record was 361 and Shea Ralph was named the Final Four's MVP. 283 teams have appeared in the NCAA tournament in at least one year starting with 1982 (the initial year that the post-season tournament was under the auspices of the NCAA). ESPN's standard definition channels were used to broadcast games on a regional basis, while games could also be viewed in their entirety on ESPN3 or alternate channels. The 200405 season was marked with sloppy play and ragged offense; UConn lost 8 games and failed to win the Big East regular season crown for the first time since 1993. In 202021, UConn rejoined several of its former conference mates in the current Big East Conference. Bascom had an immediate impact on the UConn program: in 1989 she won the Big East Player of the Year award as a sophomore (she also won the award in her junior and senior years) and led UConn to its first Big East regular season and Tournament title, along with its first-ever NCAA tournament appearance; the tournament ended in a first round loss. [75][76][77] In his astonishing career Auriemma has won more than 25 different national Coach of the Year awards and was inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. As the season progressed, however, the team quickly found its rhythm, beating ranked teams like Baylor, Notre Dame and Maryland, and showcasing a talented core of young players. The move to [48] It was the only game in the Huskies' 78-game winning streak that was won by fewer than 10 points. In the NCAA tournament Final Four UConn met Notre Dame for the fourth time of the season, with the underdog Fighting Irish prevailing and ending UConn's bid for a third straight national championship. UConn started the game with its worst first half in school history by scoring only 12 points; only 11 teams in tournament history have been held to 12 points or less in the first half: three of them were against UConn teams, and two of them (Southern and Temple) just days earlier in the 2010 Tournament. Since 1982, at least one #1 seed has made the Final Four every year. In 2010 Sports Illustrated selected the top 25 sports franchises of the decade 20002009. [17] The team was honored with a parade in Hartford, CT that drew over 100,000 spectators. Postseason invitational champion After beating Minnesota in the semifinals, UConn again defeated Tennessee for the national championship. 1 Maryland. (meaning that all first-round games involve teams whose seeds add up to 17). The #6 seed is 7533 against the #11 seed (.694). Prior to that final championship, her coach, Geno Auriemma, predicted his team's likelihood of winning with the statement, "We have Diana, and you don't. The four lowest-seeded automatic bids, and the four lowest-seeded at-large bids, compete in the First Four games to advance to the 64-team bracket in the first round. 8 Tennessee. From 1994 to 2021, 64 teams competed in each tournament. UConn has also been one of the leaders in women's basketball attendance; the team plays its home games at both the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs and the XL Center in Hartford. Tennessee avenged itself in the Final Four that year in Charlotte, defeating UConn 8883 in overtime; the game is often thought to be one of the more memorable tournament games in tournament history with many back and forth swings of momentum. Connecticut defeated Maryland 8158, while Notre Dame narrowly beat South Carolina, 6665, in the semifinals. [2], The Huskies have appeared in the NCAA tournament 34 times, every year since their first appearance in 1989. 5 Saint Mary's 55 | Watch highlights No. [51] That game, however, was largely a warm-up match for their biggest test of the season, a December 30 matchup at the powerhouse Stanford Cardinal. [18] In 2011, ESPN renewed this agreement through the 202324 season, in a deal reported to be worth $500 million in total. Among the report's findings was that U.S. television rights for the women's tournament would be worth at least $81 million annually by the time the current broadcast contract with ESPN expires in 2024. The starting five of Bird, Taurasi, Cash, Jones, and Williams is widely regarded as the best starting five in women's college basketball history. [22][23] Based on average viewership, Emily Caron and Eben Novy-Williams of Sportico estimated that the women's tournament could fetch at least $20 million per-year if its media rights were sold separately. The 201415 regular season started with an overtime loss to Stanford in the second game of the season, ending a 47-games winning streak for UConn. For each season, the 4 teams seeded No. Twenty UConn players have been selected in the first round of WNBA drafts. [58], In 2015 UConn landed another top recruit in #1 High School prospect Katie Lou Samuelson; she quickly earned a spot in the starting five alongside sophomore Kia Nurse and seniors Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck. In 1998, Tennessee (330) and Liberty (280) both entered the tournament unbeaten; Liberty lost in the first round to Tennessee, which went on to beat Louisiana Tech for the national title and ended the season 390. In addition to all players returning from the 2007 team, #1 ranked high school player Maya Moore joined the team after a bitter recruitment battle between UConn and Tennessee. The only team to play on its home court was Texas in 1987, which lost its semifinal game at the Frank Erwin Special Events Center. With their eleventh championship win in 2016, the UConn Huskies have tied the UCLA Bruins men's team for most college basketball championships, and became the first Division I women's basketball team to win four straight national championships. Rallying from a 14-point deficit in the NCAA regional final they beat conference rival Rutgers and advanced to their first Final Four since Taurasi graduated. Her absence and the loss of 6th-man Lorin Dixon left significant holes to fill in the roster. UConn was a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament, but eventually lost to LSU in the regional final to end the season with a 324 record. 1 are shown with double underline, and 12 teams seeded between No. 1 in WNBA draft - ESPN", "Connecticut Huskies' 90-Game Win Streak - Women's College Basketball Topics - ESPN", "Maya Moore Becomes First Women's Basketball Player Signed To Jordan Brand", "Breanna Stewart, Stefanie Dolson lead UConn to record 9th title", "UConn holds off Notre Dame to claim 10th national title", "Geno Auriemma passes John Wooden with his 11th NCAA title", "With fourth title in hand, Breanna Stewart delivers for UConn", "Geno Auriemma: "We Need A Good Old-Fashioned Ass-Kicking", "Kia Nurse, Gabby Williams have emerged as leaders as UConn women chase history", "UConn Women Win 90th Straight, Tying Their Own Record", "UConn women's basketball wins 100th straight game, beats South Carolina 66-55", "Connecticut's 111-Game Winning Streak Ends With Loss to Mississippi State", "UConn Is 1 Win From Being The Streakiest College Team Ever", "UConn Transfer Azura Stevens Talks Excitement To Play For Huskies", "Notre Dame, a UConn Nemesis, Topples the Huskies in a Final Four Thriller", "Geno Auriemma wins 1000th game as UConn beats Oklahoma 88-64", "DI Women's Basketball Championship History", "NCAA tournaments canceled over coronavirus", "Big East Conference Statistical Archives", "Connecticut's Geno Auriemma keeps making a case to be considered the greatest basketball coach", "Who's the best coach ever? Known as the Pacific-10 Conference, or Pac-10, when its first 4 titles were won. Because of the automatic bids, only 36 teams (the at-large bids) rely on the selection committee to secure them a spot in the tournament. All four #1 seeds have made it to the Final Four 4 times (champion in bold): The championship game has matched two #1 seeds 14 times: Three teams have beaten three #1 seeds during the course of a tournament (the largest number of such teams that can be faced) (all three teams won the national championship as beating a 3rd #1 seed in a single tournament can only happen in the finals): Prior to the expansion of the tournament to 64 teams, all four #1 seeds advanced to the Sweet Sixteen with three exceptions. She achieved legendary status among UConn fans, and is widely considered one of the greatest players of all time.[37]. Maya Moore gave UConn the lead (2322) in the second half with a three-pointer and led the team on a scoring run of 306 that eventually secured the national championship with a final score of 5347. Led by upperclassmen Shea Ralph, Kelly Schumacher, Svetlana Abrosimova and the TASS Force (the K was dropped when Keirsten Walters had to give up basketball due to knee problems), UConn went through the regular season with a 271 record, their only loss being a single-point defeat to Tennessee at homeUConn had beaten Tennessee earlier in the season in Knoxville, and this was the first year the teams met twice. In 2012, Baylor entered the tournament 340, beat Notre Dame for the national title, and ended the season 400. America East Conference commissioner Amy Huchthausen argued that the ESPN contract "provides a measure of financial certainty, but it does not provide women's basketball (or any of the other sports, for that matter) an incentive to grow". Only one team has ever played the Final Four on its home court. Top 9 largest point differentials accumulated over the entire tournament by tournament champion. The Women's Final Four and championship remained exclusive to ESPN. Inheriting a program that had only had one winning season in its entire history, Auriemma has overseen one of the most successful rebuilding projects in college sports history. Maya Moore and Tina Charles played little more than half the minutes of every game, with Moore averaging one point per minute played, and the team outscoring its opponents by an average of 47 points. Two other teams have played the Final Four in their home cities, and seven others have played the Final Four in their home states. [59], Senior Breanna Stewart was named Final Four Most Outstanding Player for a record 4th straight time; she also performed a back-to-back sweep of all individual honors, winning her 2nd straight Wade Trophy, a record 3rd Associated Press Women's College Basketball Player of the Year award, a record 3rd USBWA Women's National Player of the Year award, a record 3rd Naismith College Player of the Year award and her 2nd straight John R. Wooden Award. With Bascom and teammates Laura Lishness, Megan Pattyson, Wendy Davis and Debbie Baer, UConn reached the NCAA Tournament again in 1990, losing 6159 to Clemson in the second round after a first-round bye. [39] Behind a home state crowd, UConn almost upset #1 ranked Duke in the regional final, before falling in overtime by 2 points. [citation needed] The top-seeded team in each region plays the #16 team, the #2 team plays the #15, etc. The Connecticut Huskies were the #3 selection on the list, behind only the professional basketball Lakers and the professional football Patriots, making the Connecticut women's basketball team the highest ranked of the collegiate teams for the three sports under consideration. Charles, who won the John R. Wooden Award and Naismith College Player of the Year awards,[49] was chosen first overall in the WNBA draft days later.[50]. Their 89th win came at home against #20 Florida State to set the college basketball record for most consecutive wins, previously held by the UCLA men's team. In 2023, South Carolina entered the tournament 32-0, but lost in the Final Four to. The NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, sometimes referred to as Women's March Madness,[1] is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 women's college basketball teams from the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), to determine the national championship. She was also named the 2000 Naismith and Parade Magazine National High School Player of the Year. She led UConn to the Final Four, but in the national semifinals against Notre Dame in St. Louis, Taurasi had a poor shooting game, and despite UConn having attained a 16-point lead at one point, the team lost. After the end of the NCAA tournament, the Associated Press selects a Most Outstanding Player. [19], In the first two rounds, one channel (typically ESPN or ESPN2's high definition feed) typically aired "whiparound" coverage during each window, carrying rolling coverage of all games in progress. In the 2002 WNBA draft, the four UConn players tabbed "TASS Force" (Tamika Williams, Asjha Jones, Sue Bird, Swin Cash) were all first round selections, each having immediate impact with their WNBA team. Statistics correct through March 18, 2023.[78][79][80][81]. Auriemma was criticized for compromising the integrity of the game, but defended the decision saying it was a school record and he would never had done it without Bascom's blessing.[26]. The women's basketball players list includes guards Sue Bird, Bria Hartley, Moriah Jefferson, Renee Montgomery, Shea Ralph, Jennifer Rizzotti, Nykesha Sales, and Diana Taurasi; forwards Svetlana Abrosimova, Swin Cash, Napheesa Collier, Maya Moore, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Katie Lou Samuelson, Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck, and Gabby Williams; centers Kerry Bascom, Tina Charles, Stefanie Dolson, Rebecca Lobo, and Kara Wolters. Under coach Geno Auriemma, Connecticut has been seeded #1 a record 22 times. Geno Auriemma jokingly once referred to Pat Summitt and Tennessee as the "evil empire", like Red Sox president and CEO Larry Lucchino said of the Yankees. Although the entire team returned and expectations were sky high for a "three-peat" in Taurasi's senior year, UConn had an uneven season. The Huskies advanced to their 10th Final Four with an 8364 victory over Arizona State, and then to the 6th NCAA Championship Game in program history by defeating Stanford, also by the score of 8364. Presently, the Women's Final Four uses a Friday/Sunday scheduling, with its games occurring one day prior to the men's Final Four and championship respectively.[2]. [20] In 2023, the national championship game aired on ABC for the first time. [10], Auriemma pulled off one of his biggest and most important early recruiting successes in 1987 when he convinced an All American from New Hampshire, Kerry Bascom, to come to UConn. Odds to win Women's March Madness 2023. Amid scrutiny of inequality between the men's and women's tournaments that year, it has been suggested by critics that the structure of the NCAA's contract undervalues the media rights to the women's tournament. The UConn Huskies women's basketball team is the college basketball program representing the University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut, in NCAA Division I women's basketball competition. [24] With Shea Ralph and senior Nykesha Sales out for the entire season, freshman Svetlana Abrosimova led a young UConn team to the NCAA Tournament Regional Final where they eventually lost to North Carolina State 6052. The 201011 season began with high hopes but much uncertainty for the Huskies. Conference regular season champion The championship consisted of 32 teams from 1982 to 1985 (in 1983, 36), 40 teams from 1986 to 1988, and 48 teams from 1989 to 1993. [3], After losing the stellar trio of Stewart, Jefferson and Tuck, many predicted a sub-par season for UConn standards; the AP Poll ranked the team third in the nation, and coach Auriemma had designed a very tough non-conference calendar to test the strength of his young team. NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics, 1995 national championship: undefeated (350), 2002 national championship: undefeated (390), 2009 national championship: undefeated (390), 2010 national championship: undefeated (390), 2014 national championship: undefeated (400), 2016 national championship: undefeated (380), 202223 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, 199495 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, Associated Press Women's College Basketball Player of the Year, USBWA Women's National Player of the Year, All-sports Academic All-America of the Year, 19992000 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 200102 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 200203 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 200304 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 200809 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 200910 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 201011 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 201213 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team, 201314 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, 201415 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, 201516 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, 201617 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, 201718 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, United States women's national basketball team, UConn Huskies women's basketball statistical leaders, 202122 UConn Huskies women's basketball team, List of teams with the most victories in NCAA Division I women's college basketball, "UConn leaving AAC in '20, will owe $17M exit fee", "UConn Huskies coach Geno Auriemma passes UCLA Bruins' John Wooden for most NCAA championships", "Women's basketball: Longest active NCAA tournament streaks", "UConn Outlasts NC State in Double OT to Reach Record 14th Straight Final Four", "Morgan William steals show again, hits game winner to shock UConn", "Stanford Beats UConn to Halt Streak at 90", "Kalani Brown, No.