College basketball

The usual suspects, plus LSU, are seeded at top

Tennessee or Duke could get shot at UConn in women's championship game.

Compiled from Times wires
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 17, 2003

LSU joined regulars Connecticut, Tennessee and Duke as No.1 seeds Sunday in the NCAA women's tournament, which might have some suspense now that UConn lost a game.

It's the first No.1 for LSU (27-3), which beat Tennessee in the Southeastern Conference tournament and tops the West Region.

Connecticut (31-1), the defending national champion, is the top seed in the East, Tennessee (28-4) in the Mideast and Duke (31-1) in the Midwest.

UConn, a No.1 seed for the ninth time in 10 seasons, remains the favorite, but the Huskies no longer are trying to extend their winning streak.

Their 52-48 loss to Villanova in the Big East tournament broke a 70-game streak that was the longest in NCAA women's history and gave hope to others.

"I think this is probably the most exciting year of all," Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. "Because I think so many teams can get to the Final Four and win the national title. It's wide open."

The Huskies, who also won national titles in 1995 and 2000, open at home Sunday against Boston University, which made the tournament for the first time and gets a team stinging from its first loss since the 2001 Final Four.

Tennessee, a top seed for the 14th time in 16 seasons, could advance to the Final Four without leaving home. The Volunteers play host to first- and second-round games and also have the Mideast Region. They open against Alabama State on Saturday.

Duke and LSU have a more challenging road because neither plays at home and both could play on the opponent's homecourt.

Duke, a No.1 seed for the third consecutive year, plays Georgia State in Raleigh, N.C., on Sunday and also would play the second round there.

If they advance, the Blue Devils would head to New Mexico for the Midwest Region. The Lobos are the No.6 seed and are the host of first- and second-round games.

LSU would advance to the West Region at Stanford if it survives the first two rounds and might play the third-seeded Cardinal in the region final. The Tigers go to Eugene, Ore., for their subregion. LSU plays Southwest Texas State in the first round Saturday.

Previously, first- and second-round games were played on the courts of the 16 highest seeds. The sites this year were chosen last summer, with the agreement that the host teams would be placed there if they made the tournament.

Duke and LSU will play at the only two sites that don't have a home team: North Carolina State and Oregon.

Pairings for the national semifinals are Mideast vs. Midwest and East vs. West. That sets up the possibility of UConn playing Duke or Tennessee in the championship. The Huskies beat both this season.

LSU got the nod over Texas as the final No.1 seed because of its SEC tournament win over Tennessee, said Cheryl Marra, selection committee chairwoman.

"They played through their conference tournament and beat another No.1 seed," Marra said.

Texas is the No.2 seed in the West and its Big 12 rival, Texas Tech, was seeded second in the Midwest. The Longhorns won the regular-season league title and beat the Red Raiders in the conference tournament championship.

Villanova's victory over UConn and a 25-5 record helped the Wildcats become the No.2 seed in the Mideast. Big Ten tournament champion Purdue is seeded second in the East.

Virginia (16-13) became the first at-large team with more than 12 losses. The Cavaliers won eight of their past 10, including an upset of North Carolina.

Miami (18-12) made it after finishing seventh in the Big East, an indication of the selection committee's high regard for that league.

"They were the No.3 conference in the country and clearly, night in and night out, they were playing a very, very tough schedule," Marra said. "What was impressive is what the Big East teams did against the tough teams out there in the country."

WNIT: Florida State (16-12) hosts Florida International (19-10) on Thursday.

The Seminoles were 15-7 at one point and seemed certain to earn an NCAA Tournament berth but lost seven of their last eight. The WNIT bid gives FSU its second trip to a national postseason tournament in the past 11 years.

This is the third straight trip to a national postseason tournament for FIU, which reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season and lost in the opening round of the 2001 WNIT.

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