Record-tying 7 Pac-12 women’s basketball teams selected for 2023 NCAA Tournament
SAN FRANCISCO - A league record-tying seven Pac-12 women’s basketball teams are headed to the 2023 NCAA Tournament, with Arizona, Colorado, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Utah and Washington State chosen to represent the Conference in March Madness. At least half of the league has now earned berths in six consecutive NCAA Tournaments and this will be the ninth consecutive event to feature at least five Pac-12 programs. The seven Pac-12 teams in the bracket matches a Conference record from 2016-17.
Pac-12 teams boast plenty of postseason success in recent years. Since the 2015-16 season, the Pac-12 leads all conferences in Final Four appearances (7), NCAA Tournament wins (76) and NCAA Tournament winning percentage (.685). Taking it back even further, the Pac-12 also leads all conferences in Final Four appearances since 2012-13 with nine. Those nine appearances have been spread across six different programs - Arizona (2021), California (2013), Oregon (2019), Oregon State (2016), Stanford (2022, 2021, 2017, 2014), Washington (2016) - which is two more than any other conference. Simply put, in an amazing display of depth, half of the Pac-12 has appeared in a Final Four in the past nine NCAA Tournaments. The ACC has had four different programs make the Final Four over the same span, the Big East three, the SEC two, and the Big Ten, Big 12 and American each one.
Stanford (28-5), the league's regular-season co-champion, earned the No. 1 seed in Seattle Regional 4, the program’s 13th time as a No. 1 seed and the 19th for a current league member all-time (USC - 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986; Washington - 1990; Colorado - 1995). The Cardinal's 36 NCAA Tournament appearances are the second-most all-time and its 13 No. 1 seeds are the third most. The Cardinal's tournament will kick off on The Farm when its hosts the winner of Southern and Sacred Heart on Friday, March 17.
Pac-12 regular-season co-champion Utah (25-4) is hosting first and second-round games in the tournament for the second time in program history (2001) as the No. 2 seed in Greenville Regional 2. The Utes, which are appearing in consecutive NCAA Tournaments for the first time since 2008 and 2009, have their best-ever seed and will host No. 15 seed Gardner-Webb on Friday, March 17 in Salt Lake City.
The No. 4 seed in Greenville Regional 1, UCLA (25-9) is headed to its 18th NCAA Tournament all-time and second in the last three seasons. The Pac-12 Tournament finalists are making their seventh NCAA appearance under head coach Cori Close and will host first and second-round games for the first time since 2018. The Bruins open with No. 13 seed Sacramento State in Pauley Pavilion on Saturday, March 18.
Pac-12 Tournament champion Washington State (23-10) will be making the program's fourth NCAA Tournament appearance all-time and third in a row. The No. 5 seed in Greenville Regional 2, it's the highest the Cougars have ever been seeded, besting their No. 8 from last season. WSU has already won a program-record 23 games and just won four games in four days, the last three over AP Top 25 opponents, to secure the team’s first Pac-12 Tournament title as the No. 7 seed, just the third team from a major conference seeded seventh or worse to win their league’s tournament (No. 9 seed Auburn - 1997 - SEC; No. 7 seed Kentucky - 2022 - SEC). The Cougars will face 12th-seeded FGCU on Saturday, March 18 in Villanova, Pa.
Making its 15th all-time NCAA Tournament appearance and fifth in the Pac-12 era, Colorado (23-8) is the No. 6 seed in Seattle Regional 4 and will face No. 11 seed Middle Tennessee on Saturday, March 18 in Durham, N.C. Nabbing an NCAA bid for the second straight season, it's the first time since 2001-04 the Buffs have made consecutive NCAA Tournaments. CU has been seeded sixth in three of its last five appearances (also 2003 and 2004).
A No. 7 seed in Greenville Regional 1, Arizona (21-9) is making its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, 10th overall and third under head coach Adia Barnes. National finalists in 2021, it's the first time the Wildcats have earned three straight NCAA berths since 2003-05. Arizona will start with No. 10 seed West Virginia on Friday, March 17 in College Park, Md. Senior forward Esmery Martinez, the team's third-leading scorer (10.5) and leading rebounder (8.3), played her first three seasons for the Mountaineers from 2020-22.
USC (21-9) is the No. 8 seed in Seattle Regional 3 and begins with No. 9 seed South Dakota State on Friday, March 17 in Blacksburg, Va. The Trojans are in the field for the first time since 2014, when they claimed the Conference's automatic bid by winning the Pac-12 Tournament, and are in this year via an at-large berth for the first time since 2006.
Oregon (17-14) and Washington (15-14) were both selected to play in the WNIT, which tips off this Wednesday, March 15.
2023 NCAA Tournament
Greenville Regional 1
No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 13 Sacramento State - Saturday, March 18 - Los Angeles, Calif.
No. 7 Arizona vs. No. 10 West Virginia - Friday, March 17 - College Park, Md.
Greenville Regional 2
No. 2 Utah vs. No. 15 Gardner-Webb - Friday, March 17 - Salt Lake City, Utah
No. 5 Washington State vs. No. 12 FGCU - Saturday, March 18 - Villanova, Pa.
Seattle Regional 3
No. 8 USC vs. No. 9 South Dakota State - Friday, March 17 - Blacksburg, Va.
Seattle Regional 4
No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 16 Southern/Sacred Heart - Friday, March 17 - Stanford, Calif.
No. 6 Colorado vs. No. 11 Middle Tennessee - Saturday, March 18 - Durham, N.C.