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Tennessee Gets Program-Worst No. 5 Seed

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The Associated Press

Published: March 16, 2009

Tennessee coach Pat Summitt spent Monday trying to keep herself from thinking too much about the Lady Volunteers' fate in the NCAA Tournament bracket after a roller-coaster 10-loss season.

A practice, a workout, a nap and an afternoon in the kitchen later, Summitt and the Lady Vols found out they were a No. 5 seed - the program's worst seeding ever.

"It doesn't really bother me," Summitt said. "A four seed? Yeah, that would have been good, but as I look at the bracket, I don't see where it's a big deal."

Tennessee (22-10) drew the Berkeley, Calif., regional and a first-round matchup against Ball State in Bowling Green, Ky., on Sunday. That region features five teams the Lady Vols faced this season, including two that beat them: sixth-seeded Texas and top-seed Duke.

The Lady Vols are the defending national champions in name only after graduating five seniors and replacing them with seven freshmen.

Monday was the first time the freshmen participated in Summitt's selection day cookout. The team crowded into her pool house to watch the announcements, cheering at clips of themselves and falling silent at a clip of Summitt speaking of her frustration from the season.

A fixture atop the bracket since the first NCAA Tournament in 1982, Tennessee has earned a top seed 19 times, a No. 2 seed four times and No. 3 seed three times. The analysts usually talk about Tennessee being among the teams to beat, but this time the talk was about the Lady Vols' off year.

"It just motivates us," said freshman Shekinna Stricklen, the team's leading scorer. "Some people like us and some people don't, and we're going to get there either way we go."

Tennessee, which is the only team to play in every NCAA Tournament, has only been seeded as low as fourth once - in 1986. The Lady Vols also hold an unblemished streak of reaching the regional semifinals in every NCAA Tournament.

Tennessee took 10 losses into the NCAA Tournament in 1997, earned a No. 3 seed and made an unlikely run to the title.

1ST TIME'S THE CHARM

South Dakota State made the NCAA Tournament in its first year of eligibility, getting a No. 7 seed and a trip to face TCU in the first round.

The Jackrabbits (31-2) will play the Horned Frogs (20-10) Sunday in Lubbock, Texas.

SDSU's move from NCAA Division II to Division I left the Jackrabbits ineligible for the postseason the past four years. This year they earned an automatic berth by winning the Summit League Tournament with a come-from-behind victory over Oakland.

TRAVELING PANTHERS

Pittsburgh won't be playing a single game closer than 600 miles to home - and even then, they'd have to make the Final Four in St. Louis just to do that.

The fourth-seeded Panthers (23-7) will play Big Sky Conference champion Montana in Seattle on Saturday, and could face Gonzaga or Xavier for a spot in the round of 16 - which is in Oklahoma City.

The NCAA selection committee had few options to keep Pitt on the East Coast because the Panthers could not play at any site where other Big East schools were playing. Teams from the same conference cannot meet until the round of 16.

SEVENS UP

DePaul (23-9) has made its seventh straight NCAA Tournament, getting a No. 7 seed in the Berkeley Region.

The Blue Demons will face No. 10 seed San Diego State (23-7) in San Diego on Saturday.

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