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Balance The Brackets

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By KATHERINE SMITH, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 25, 2008

An event five years in the making will come down to a weekend of men and women holed up in rooms fighting to determine the road to Tampa.

The 2008 Women's Final Four doesn't take place until a 10-member committee selects the teams for the bracket that will determine who finishes the season in Tampa.

"The best is when you see a great matchup," said Michelle Perry, director for the Division I Women's Basketball Championship.

The worst?

"Sometimes that team you fought to make a No. 10 seed, you watch them and say, 'Maybe they weren't a No. 10 seed,'" said Sue Donohoe, vice president for Division I Women's Basketball. "There's always second guessing."

Formulating the bracket is no easy task. Beginning on a Thursday night and working well into the following Monday afternoon, the selection committee sweats over each pick. The committee, a group comprised of various collegiate representatives who are appointed by the NCAA governing structure, collectively watch more than 1,000 games throughout the season to help with the process.

The easy part? The 31 automatic bids handed out to the conference champions. That leaves 33 at-large selections. That's where the debates begin.

Committee member pore over team sheets that highlight every win and loss. Then there's the RPI rankings. An important gauge in the process, but contrary to popular belief, not the end-all, be-all in the decision making. Regional advisory committee rankings of the teams carry a lot of weight, as do the conference tournaments.

Once the field of 64 is set, the real heated discussions take place. The overall field is seeded from 1-64, which will determine where each team is regionally seeded in the bracket.

Because the women's game strives to create the best game atmosphere as possible (i.e. sellouts) geography plays a vital role in where teams are seeded. The No. 1 overall seed will be placed in the No. 1 slot closest to its geographical proximity.

Making things a little more difficult is the rule that two teams from the same conference cannot meet prior to the regional finals.

The complaints are many.

They come from the coaches who don't like their seeding. They come from the bubble-team coaches who feel their program was slighted by not getting into the tournament.

As of today, the No. 1 seeds likely are UConn, Tennessee, Maryland and Rutgers. Bubble teams include Virginia Tech, Penn State and Indiana.

Ultimately, what defines a good bracket?

"Later that night, after the selection process is over, if there is balance, that's important," Donohoe said. "And then when the games begin, if there are some really good matchups, then you know it's a good bracket."

PROJECTED REGIONAL SEEDS

Staff writer Katherine Smith takes an early look at how the NCAA Tournament field might develop and which teams could wind up in Tampa:

Greensboro
1. Tennessee (25-2)
2. Baylor (23-3)
3. West Virginia (22-4)
4. Old Dominion (24-3)
Baylor hanging on by a thread after injuries shortened its bench.

New Orleans
1. UConn (26-1)
2. LSU (23-3)
3. California (23-4)
4. Kansas State (18-8)
An impressive showing by LSU in the SEC Tournament could bump the Tigers up to a No. 1 seed.

Spokane
1. Rutgers (22-4)
2. Stanford (25-3)
3. Duke (21-7)
4. Texas A&M (20-7)
Stanford is flying under the radar and could sneak its way to a No.1 seed.

Oklahoma City
1. Maryland (27-2)
2. North Carolina (25-2)
3. Oklahoma (20-5)
4. Notre Dame (21-6)
A dominating performance by North Carolina in the ACC Tournament could knock Maryland out of the No.1 spot.

AIR BALL

West Virginia guard LaQuita Owens has been suspended indefinitely for an unspecified violation of team rules. Owens is second on the team in scoring (13.7 ppg) and third in rebounding (5.1 rpg). She leads the team with 65 3-pointers.

COURTSIDE

The Tampa Bay Local Organizing Committee is still seeking help from the area community. Volunteers are needed for all of the events surrounding the Women's Final Four, including Hoop City.

All volunteers are required to register for an NCAA Women's Final Four Volunteer Training Session, where they will receive training specific to their selected event, uniforms and other instruction. General volunteer opportunities will be available from March 31-April 9 with multiple dates and shifts available. All volunteer positions for Hoop City, available April 5-7, require the ability to participate in some level of physical activity.

Volunteers will receive 2008 Women's Final Four apparel, a post-event volunteer appreciation party, and up-close involvement in the activities and festivities surrounding the 2008 Women's Final Four. Additionally, all Hoop City volunteers will be given two complimentary tickets to attend Hoop City.

Log on to 2008womensfinal4.theregistrationsystem.com or e-mail final4volunteer@visittampabay.com to register.

FINAL FOUR MOMENT

Tampa plays host to the Women's Final Four on April 6 and 8. General tickets are sold out for the games at the St. Pete Times Forum, but there will be plenty of other activities surrounding the event for basketball fans to enjoy.

This week's Final Four memory:

April 6, 2004
New Orleans Arena
Connecticut 70, Tennessee 61

Led by Diana Taurasi, the Huskies completed a sweep for Connecticut, with the men's team winning the NCAA title the previous night. In her final collegiate game, Taurasi had 17 points and was named the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player for the second consecutive year.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Connecticut at LSU
7 tonight, ESPN2

LSU has steamrolled through the SEC, including last week's 78-62 dismantling of then No. 1-ranked Tennessee.

The same can be said for Connecticut in the Big East. Except for a minor hiccup against Rutgers, the Huskies have dominated conference and nonconference opponents.

LSU is led by senior All-American Sylvia Fowles, while UConn presents a balanced attack led by freshman phenom Maya Moore.

Tonight's matchup could be a preview of a national semifinal or possibly the championship game as two of the best teams in the country square off.

BY THE NUMBERS

13: Number of 3-pointers by West Virginia in its 82-63 victory against Cincinnati on Tuesday night. Cincy also tied a school record with 13 3-pointers.

60: First-half points scored by Connecticut in its 95-63 rout of Marquette on Wednesday night. Freshman Maya Moore contributed 25 of her season-high 31 points in the first half, which included Moore hitting her first nine shots.

799: Career victories for Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer, who moved within one of 800 Saturday with her team's 62-43 victory against Providence. Stringer can hit 800 when the Scarlet Knights face DePaul on Wednesday night.

SLAM DUNK

The LSU women's team gave its support to a community mourning the death of a star basketball player.

Glen Oaks High junior point guard Shannon Veal collapsed and died during a Feb. 18 game. Veal stepped to the foul line in the game's first half, sank her free throws and then motioned to her coach that she needed to come out of the game.

Before she could reach the sideline, Veal collapsed. Paramedics arrived and administered CPR and used a defibrillator to no avail. The game was suspended and continued the following night.

LSU players and coaches attended the game.

''We just went in there and congratulated them and let them know to keep their heads up,'' LSU center Sylvia Fowles said.

THEY SAID IT

Obviously we'd love to have her another year. Who wouldn't? — Tennessee coach Pat Head Summitt on Candace Parker, who has decided to forego her senior year to pursue a pro career

We were forced to grow up. We were on the road, against an experienced team who's leading the conference, who's had great success through the conference run, and we were lousy in the first half. We had to dig our way out of it. — Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale after her team's 68-65 victory against Kansas State on Wednesday night

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