BOSTON -- Duke coach Gail Goestenkors hit the nail squarely on the head.
"I just feel like we're ready for neutral sites, and even if we don't sell out the neutral sites, I think that's what's fair," she said Monday night, in the midst of all the controversy surrounding the selections for the NCAA women's tournament.
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| Ivory Latta and the top-ranked Tar Heels will have to flex their muscles to win the Cleveland Region. (AP) |
We all know the NCAA men's selection committee gets things wrong. It happens every year -- it goes with the territory.
But when the men's side gets it wrong, it involves who's in, who's out, seeds, things like that. When the women's committee blunders, it sends higher-seeded teams to lower-seeded teams' home floors or areas. That's just nonsense.
Look, we all understand why the women's tournament is being played at home gyms -- to avoid the money bath (not to mention the embarrassment) of empty seats in neutral gyms. After all, nothing looks worse on national television than empty seats at NCAA games. The women's game has come a long way in the area of talent and entertainment, but empty seats allow the detractors to say, "See, this still isn't a big deal."
It is a big deal now, and that's where the dilemma comes in.
You can argue -- and be correct -- that North Carolina, the top seed in the tournament, was placed in a bracket that is too tough. But worse than that, the No. 1 Tar Heels might have to play eighth-seeded Vanderbilt as a road game in the second round.
Obviously, home games in the early rounds are not the only problem. But it's the one most easily fixable.
Now, the other headaches.
- Why was North Carolina placed in such a killer bracket?
- How is Tennessee not a No. 1 seed? (Heck, isn't the resumé alone enough to give Pat Summitt and her Lady Vols the benefit of the doubt?)
- Why should No. 1 seed Duke have to face the possibility of playing second-seeded UConn in Bridgeport, which, last we checked, is in Connecticut?
North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell was diplomatic -- "Wow, it's like a Final Four!" -- but called the system "probably the downfall of the NCAA Tournament." Summitt called her snub "a slap in the face."
Rutgers' C. Vivian Stringer -- the 748-game winner whose team ran the table in the Big East but was upset in the league tournament and got a 3-seed in the killer Cleveland region -- said, "It really doesn't matter."
The opinions will continue all week -- but we have to get to the games. Here's how North Carolina will win its second title since '94 (and after some classic games):
Cleveland Region
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| C. Pondexter (AP) |
No. 2: Tennessee
No. 3: Rutgers
No. 4: Purdue
As Hatchell said, "Wow."
But these four aren't the only ones to notice in this monster region.
"I don't know how any bracket can get tougher," Hatchell said.
She will use this as motivation, telling her players they were slighted by the committee. And don't think Summitt won't do the same thing.
"I guess it's my fault for putting together the toughest schedule in the country year in and year out," Summitt said. "But as far as I'm concerned, we got no respect and I don't understand it."
The committee probably did both UNC and Tennessee a favor. It also allowed Rutgers and its No. 1 defense in the country to sort of lie in the weeds and pounce -- and Cappie Pondexter and Co., who also could have spouted off about their seed, will do just that, all the way to the regional final (yes, beating Tennessee).
Once there, the Scarlet Knights will lose to the Tar Heels, who will move on to Boston.
Albuquerque Region
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| Sophia Young (AP) |
Doesn't matter -- Ohio State is probably the No. 1 seed that should have been a 2 to make room for Tennessee. And we're here to tell you the Buckeyes, led by Jessica Davenport, won't make it out of the region.
Sorry, we're going with the defending champs. No. 3 Baylor and Big 12 tourney MVP Sophia Young, stunned by an incredible performance (yes, 24 points and 26 rebounds is incredible) by Courtney Paris in the Big 12 Tournament final, will bounce back. Baylor will emerge from Tucson, head over to New Mexico, beat No. 2 seed Maryland in the regional semis, and then knock off Ohio State to get to Boston.
Bridgeport Region
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| Ann Strother (AP) |
"I don't know how the seedings work," said Auriemma, clearly trying not to scream and shout in front of everyone. "I know that we were going to be close to being a one or a two. I think it worked out exactly how I had hoped that it would."
The last time UConn was a No. 2 seed, in '04, the Huskies also played in Bridgeport, where they beat No. 1 Penn State in the regional final. This time, the Huskies will do it again, this time to Duke, and UConn will then have the home edge in Boston as it makes its sixth Final Four visit in the past seven years.
San Antonio Region
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| Sooners' Paris (AP) |
With Oklahoma, you get Paris, the hulking daughter of former NFL lineman Bubba Paris. She's one of the best freshmen ever and led the nation in rebounding.
The Sooners are young but are also the first women's team ever to run the table in the Big 12. Paris is wide enough and talented enough to carry a team on her shoulders; her feat in the Big 12 final was called "an amazing accomplishment" by her coach, Sherri Coale.
Oklahoma beats LSU and flies to Boston.
Final Four
At what is now called the TD Banknorth Garden, we like Oklahoma to beat UConn and North Carolina to take care of Baylor. Then the Tar Heels, having overcome all the craziness of this wacky draw, with point guard Ivory Latta working her magic, win it all with a tight victory over the Sooners.
