2000 NCAA Division I
women's basketball tournament
Teams64
Finals siteWells Fargo Center
Philadelphia
ChampionsConnecticut Huskies (2nd title)
Runner-upTennessee Volunteers (9th title game)
Semifinalists
MOPShea Ralph (Connecticut)
NCAA Division I women's tournaments
«1999 2001»

The 2000 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 17 and ended on April 2. The tournament featured 64 teams. The Final Four consisted of Connecticut, Penn St., Tennessee, and Rutgers, with Connecticut defeating Tennessee 71-52 to win its second NCAA title.[1] Connecticut's Shea Ralph was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.[2]

Notable events

Two of the number one seeds advanced to the Final four – Tennessee and Connecticut – while two failed to advance. Penn State upset Louisiana Tech in the Midwest Regional, while Rutgers upset Georgia in the West Regional. Tennessee faced Rutgers in one of the Final Four match ups. At the end of the half, the Lady Vols held only a two-point lead 28–26. Pat Summitt challenged her players at halftime, and advised Tamika Catchings to move around more. That advice helped, as Catchings, who had only scored two points in the first half, scored eleven in the second half. Michelle Snow blocked seven shots in the game setting a Final Four record. Kara Lawson ran the offense, and scored a total of 19 points, of which 14 were scored in the second half, and ended up earning the Player of the Game award, helping her team win 64–54 and advance to the national championship.[3]

The other semifinal match up was Connecticut against Penn State. The regional win by Penn State gave the team a chance to play in a Final Four in their home state. The Lady Lions were led by point guard Helen Darling, who would go on to win the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award that year. However, the defense by the Huskies held Darling scoreless on this day. UConn's point guard Sue Bird, had a better day, scoring 19 points, hitting five of her seven three point attempts. 20,060 fans were in the stands, the largest crowd ever to see a college basketball game in Pennsylvania. Connecticut had a nine-point lead at halftime, but Penn State had cut the lead to five points midway through the second half. However, the Huskies responded, and ended up winning the game by 22 points.[4]

The match up in the finals between Tennessee and Connecticut was highly anticipated. The teams have met ten times prior to this meeting, with each team winning five. In eight of the ten meetings, one of the teams has had a number one ranking in the country. Much has been at stake, not just rankings, but winning streaks, national championships and pride.[5]

Tennessee entered the final game on a 19-game winning streak; Connecticut on a 15-game winning streak, with their only loss of the season coming by a single point at the hands of Tennessee. UConn started the game with a 9–2 run. Kelly Schumacher set a record for blocks in a championship game, and had the record, with six, at halftime. She went on to record nine blocks, setting a new Final Four record, breaking the one established by Tennessee just two days before. The Huskies led 31–19 at the half, but the second half was yet to be played. Any chance of a comeback faded early, as UConn scored eight consecutive points to start the second half. Eight UConn players would get eleven or more minutes, giving Tennessee the impression that they were seeing fresh players every few minutes. Shea Ralph would score 15 points, on her way to winning the Most Outstanding Player award, and Svetlana Abrosimova scored 14. Connecticut ultimately defeated Tennessee by a score of 71–52 to win their second national championship.[6][7][8][9]

The 2000 Final Four, played at the then-First Union Center (now Wells Fargo Center) in Philadelphia, was notable for featuring three head coaches who had ties to the Philadelphia area: Penn State coach Rene Portland grew up in the Philadelphia area, played at Immaculata College (now Immaculata University) in suburban Philadelphia, and briefly coached at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia; Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer coached at then-Cheyney State College (now Cheyney University) in suburban Philadelphia earlier in her career, and national championship-winning Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma spent most of his childhood living in Norristown, Pennsylvania, located approximately 20 miles from Philadelphia, and served as a high school and college assistant coach in the Philadelphia area early in his coaching career.

Tournament records

  • Blocks – Kelly Schumacher, Connecticut, recorded nine blocks in the championship game against Tennessee, setting the record for blocks in a Final Four game.
  • Blocks – Connecticut recorded eleven blocks in the championship game against Tennessee, setting the record for blocks in a Final Four game.
  • Points – Connecticut scored 547 points in the tournament, setting the record for most points scored in an NCAA tournament.
  • Field goal percentage – Connecticut hit 203 of 363 field goal attempts(56.1%), setting the record for the field goal percentage in an NCAA tournament.
  • Steals – Connecticut recorded 81 steals in the tournament, setting the record for most steals in an NCAA tournament.[10]
  • Turnovers – Tennessee turned the ball over 26 times, a record for a championship game.[6]

Qualifying teams – automatic

Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the 2000 NCAA Tournament. Thirty conferences were eligible for an automatic bid to the 2000 NCAA tournament.[10]

Automatic Bids
    Record  
Qualifying School Conference Regular
Season		 Conference Seed
Alcorn State University SWAC 22–8 15–3 16
Campbell University Trans America 22–8 14–4 15
University of Connecticut Big East 30–1 16–0 1
Dartmouth College Ivy League 20–7 12–2 13
Drake University Missouri Valley Conference 23–6 15–3 8
Duke University ACC 26–5 12–4 2
Furman University Southern Conference 20–10 13–5 16
University of Wisconsin–Green Bay Horizon League 21–8 12–2 13
Hampton University MEAC 16–14 11–7 16
College of the Holy Cross Patriot League 23–6 11–1 15
Iowa State University Big 12 25–5 13–3 3
Kent State University MAC 25–5 15–1 9
Liberty University Big South Conference 23–7 12–2 14
Louisiana Tech University Sun Belt Conference 28–2 16–0 1
University of Montana Big Sky Conference 22–7 13–3 16
Old Dominion University Colonial 21–8 16–0 4
University of Oregon Pac-10 23–7 14–4 6
Purdue University Big Ten 22–7 11–5 4
Rice University WAC 21–9 10–4 13
University of San Diego West Coast Conference 17–12 7–7 15
St. Francis (PA) Northeast Conference 23–7 15–3 14
Saint Peter's College MAAC 23–7 14–4 14
Stephen F. Austin State University Southland 27–3 17–1 11
University of Tennessee SEC 28–3 13–1 1
Tennessee Technological University Ohio Valley Conference 25–8 16–2 14
Tulane University Conference USA 26–4 12–4 6
University of California, Santa Barbara Big West Conference 30–3 15–0 4
University of Vermont America East 25–5 15–3 11
Xavier University Atlantic 10 26–4 13–3 6
Youngstown State University Mid-Continent 22–8 12–4 15

Qualifying teams – at-large

Thirty-four additional teams were selected to complete the sixty-four invitations.[10]

At-large Bids
    Record  
Qualifying School Conference Regular
Season		 Conference Seed
University of Arizona Pacific-10 24–6 13–5 8
Auburn University Southeastern 21–7 9–5 7
Boston College Big East 25–8 12–4 5
Brigham Young University Mountain West 22–8 10–4 12
Clemson University Atlantic Coast 18–11 9–7 9
The George Washington University Atlantic 10 25–5 14–2 7
University of Georgia Southeastern 29–3 13–1 1
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Big Ten 22–10 11–5 6
University of Kansas Big 12 20–9 11–5 8
Louisiana State University Southeastern 22–6 11–3 3
University of Maine America East 20–10 14–4 12
Marquette University Conference USA 22–6 14–2 7
University of Michigan Big Ten 22–7 13–3 8
Mississippi State University Southeastern 23–7 8–6 3
Southwest Missouri State University Missouri Valley 23–8 14–4 10
University of Nebraska–Lincoln Big 12 18–12 10–6 12
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Atlantic Coast 18–12 8–8 5
North Carolina State University Atlantic Coast 20–8 11–5 5
University of Notre Dame Big East 25–4 15–1 2
University of Oklahoma Big 12 23–7 13–3 5
Pennsylvania State University Big Ten 26–4 15–1 2
Pepperdine University West Coast 21–9 12–2 13
Rutgers University Big East 22–7 12–4 2
Southern Methodist University Western Athletic 21–8 12–2 12
Saint Joseph's University Atlantic 10 24–5 14–2 10
Stanford University Pacific-10 20–8 13–5 9
University of Texas at Austin Big 12 21–12 9–7 7
Texas Tech University Big 12 25–4 13–3 3
University of Alabama at Birmingham Conference USA 19–12 8–8 11
University of California, Los Angeles Pacific-10 18–10 12–6 10
University of Utah Mountain West 23–7 11–3 11
Vanderbilt University Southeastern 20–12 6–8 9
University of Virginia Atlantic Coast 23–8 13–3 4
Western Kentucky University Sun Belt 21–9 13–3 10

Bids by conference

Thirty conferences earned an automatic bid. In fifteen cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference. Thirty-four additional at-large teams were selected from fifteen of the conferences.[10]

Bids Conference Teams
6 Big 12 Iowa St., Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech
6 Southeastern Tennessee, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Mississippi St., Vanderbilt
5 Atlantic Coast Duke, Clemson, North Carolina, North Carolina St., Virginia
4 Big East Connecticut, Boston College, Notre Dame, Rutgers
4 Big Ten Purdue, Illinois, Michigan, Penn St.
4 Pacific-10 Oregon, Arizona, Stanford, UCLA
3 Atlantic 10 Xavier, George Washington, St. Joseph's
3 Conference USA Tulane, Marquette, UAB
2 America East Vermont, Maine
2 Missouri Valley Drake, Missouri St.
2 Mountain West BYU, Utah
2 Northeast St. Francis Pa., St. Peter's
2 Sun Belt Louisiana Tech, Western Kentucky
2 West Coast San Diego, Pepperdine
2 Western Athletic Rice, SMU
1 Big Sky Montana
1 Big South Liberty
1 Big West UC Santa Barb.
1 Colonial Old Dominion
1 Horizon Green Bay
1 Ivy Dartmouth
1 Mid-American Kent St.
1 Mid-Continent Youngstown St.
1 Mid-Eastern Hampton.
1 Ohio Valley Tennessee Tech
1 Patriot Holy Cross
1 Southern Furman
1 Southland Stephen F. Austin
1 Southwestern Alcorn St.
1 Trans America Campbell

First and second rounds

2000 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament is located in the United States
Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge
West Lafayette
West Lafayette
Storrs
Storrs
Durham, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Notre Dame
Notre Dame
Knoxville
Knoxville
Lubbock
Lubbock
Charlottesville
Charlottesville
Norfolk
Norfolk
Ruston
Ruston
Ames
Ames
University Park
University Park
Athens
Athens
Piscataway
Piscataway
Eugene
Eugene
Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara
2000 NCAA NCAA first and second round venues

In 2000, the field remained at 64 teams. The teams were seeded, and assigned to four geographic regions, with seeds 1-16 in each region. In Round 1, seeds 1 and 16 faced each other, as well as seeds 2 and 15, seeds 3 and 14, seeds 4 and 13, seeds 5 and 12, seeds 6 and 11, seeds 7 and 10, and seeds 8 and 9. In the first two rounds, the top four seeds were given the opportunity to host the first-round game. In most cases, the higher seed accepted the opportunity. The exception:

  • Third seeded Mississippi State was unable to host, so sixth-seeded Oregon hosted three first- and second-round games

The following table lists the region, host school, venue and the sixteen first- and second-round locations:[11]

Region Rnd Host Venue City State
East 1&2 Louisiana State University LSU Assembly Center (Pete Maravich Assembly Center) Baton Rouge Louisiana
East 1&2 Purdue University Mackey Arena West Lafayette Indiana
East 1&2 University of Connecticut Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Storrs Connecticut
East 1&2 Duke University Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham North Carolina
Mideast 1&2 University of Notre Dame Edmund P. Joyce Center Notre Dame Indiana
Mideast 1&2 University of Tennessee Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville Tennessee
Mideast 1&2 Texas Tech University United Spirit Arena Lubbock Texas
Mideast 1&2 University of Virginia University Hall (University of Virginia) Charlottesville Virginia
Midwest 1&2 Old Dominion University Old Dominion University Fieldhouse Norfolk Virginia
Midwest 1&2 Louisiana Tech University Thomas Assembly Center Ruston Louisiana
Midwest 1&2 Iowa State University Hilton Coliseum Ames Iowa
Midwest 1&2 Pennsylvania State University Bryce Jordan Center University Park Pennsylvania
West 1&2 University of Georgia Georgia Coliseum (Stegeman Coliseum) Athens Georgia
West 1&2 Rutgers University Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway New Jersey
West 1&2 University of Oregon McArthur Court Eugene Oregon
West 1&2 University of California, Santa Barbara UC Santa Barbara Events Center Santa Barbara California

Regionals and Final Four

2000 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament is located in the United States
Richmond
Richmond
Memphis
Memphis
Kansas City
Kansas City
Portland
Portland
Philadelphia
Philadelphia
2000 NCAA regionals and Final Four

The Regionals, named for the general location, were held from March 25 to March 27 at these sites:

Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four held March 31 and April 2 in Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia) (Co-hosts: St. Joseph's University and University of Pennsylvania)

Bids by state

The sixty-four teams came from thirty-three states, plus Washington, D.C. Two states, California and Texas, had the most teams with five bids. Seventeen states did not have any teams receiving bids.[10]

NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 2000
Bids State Teams
5 California San Diego, UC Santa Barb., Pepperdine, Stanford, UCLA
5 Texas Rice, Stephen F. Austin, SMU, Texas, Texas Tech
4 North Carolina Campbell, Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina St.
4 Virginia Hampton., Liberty, Old Dominion, Virginia
3 Louisiana Louisiana Tech, Tulane, LSU
3 Ohio Kent St., Xavier, Youngstown St.
3 Tennessee Tennessee, Tennessee Tech, Vanderbilt
2 Alabama Auburn, UAB
2 Indiana Purdue, Notre Dame
2 Iowa Drake, Iowa St.
2 Massachusetts Holy Cross, Boston College
2 Mississippi Alcorn St., Mississippi St.
2 New Jersey St. Peter's, Rutgers
3 Pennsylvania Penn St., St. Joseph's, St Francis
2 South Carolina Furman, Clemson
2 Utah BYU, Utah
2 Wisconsin Green Bay, Marquette
1 Arizona Arizona
1 Connecticut Connecticut
1 District of Columbia George Washington
1 Georgia Georgia
1 Illinois Illinois
1 Kansas Kansas
1 Kentucky Western Kỳ.
1 Maine Maine
1 Michigan Michigan
1 Missouri Missouri St.
1 Montana Montana
1 Nebraska Nebraska
1 New Hampshire Dartmouth
1 Oklahoma Oklahoma
1 Oregon Oregon
1 Vermont Vermont

Brackets

Data source[12]

* – Denotes overtime period

East regional – Richmond, Virginia

First round
March 17–18 		Second round
March 19–20 		Regional semifinals
March 25 		Regional finals
March 27
            
1 at Connecticut 116
16 Hampton 45
1 Connecticut 83
9 Clemson 45
8 Drake 50
9 Clemson 64
1 Connecticut 102
5 Oklahoma 80
5 Oklahoma 86
12 BYU 81
5 Oklahoma 76
4 Purdue 74
4 at Purdue 70
13 Dartmouth 66
1 Connecticut 86
3 LSU 71
6 Xavier 72
11 Stephen F. Austin 73
11 Stephen F. Austin 45
3 LSU 57
3 at LSU 77
14 Liberty 54
3 LSU 79
2 Duke 66
7 Marquette 65
10 Western Kentucky 68
10 Western Kentucky 70
2 Duke 90
2 at Duke 71
15 Campbell 42

Midwest regional – Kansas City, Missouri

First round
March 17–18 		Second round
March 19–20 		Regional semifinals
March 25 		Regional finals
March 27
            
1 at Louisiana Tech 95
16 Alcorn State 53
1 Louisiana Tech 66
9 Vanderbilt 65
8 Kansas 69
9 Vanderbilt 71**
1 Louisiana Tech 86
4 Old Dominion 74
5 North Carolina State 63
12 Southern Methodist 64
12 Southern Methodist 76
4 Old Dominion 96
4 at Old Dominion 94
13 Green Bay 85
1 Louisiana Tech 65
2 Penn State 86
6 Illinois 73
11 Utah 58
6 Illinois 68
3 Iowa State 79
3 at Iowa State 92
14 St. Francis (PA) 63
3 Iowa State 65
2 Penn State 66
7 Auburn 78
10 Southwest Missouri State 74
7 Auburn 69
2 Penn State 75
2 at Penn State 83
15 Youngstown State 63

Mideast regional – Memphis, Tennessee

First round
March 17–18 		Second round
March 19–20 		Regional semifinals
March 25 		Regional finals
March 27
            
1 at Tennessee 90
16 Furman 38
1 Tennessee 75
8 Arizona 60
8 Arizona 73
9 Kent St. 61
1 Tennessee 77
4 Virginia 56
5 Boston College 93
12 Nebraska 76
5 Boston College 70
4 Virginia 74
4 at Virginia 74
13 Pepperdine 62
1 Tennessee 57
3 Texas Tech 44
6 Tulane 65
11 Vermont 60
6 Tulane 59
3 Texas Tech 76
3 at Texas Tech 83
14 Tennessee Tech 54
3 Texas Tech 69
2 Notre Dame 65
7 George Washington 79
10 UCLA 72
7 George Washington 60
2 Notre Dame 95
2 at Notre Dame 87
15 San Diego 61

West regional – Portland, Oregon

First round
March 17–18 		Second round
March 19–20 		Regional semifinals
March 25 		Regional finals
March 27
            
1 at Georgia 74
16 Montana 46
1 Georgia 83
9 Stanford 64
8 Michigan 74
9 Stanford 81*
1 Georgia 83
5 North Carolina 57
5 North Carolina 62
12 Maine 57
5 North Carolina 83
13 Rice 50
4 at UC Santa Barbara 64
13 Rice 67
1 Georgia 51
2 Rutgers 59
6 at Oregon 79
11 UAB 80*
11 UAB 78
3 Mississippi St. 72
3 Mississippi St. 94
14 St. Peter's 60
11 UAB 45
2 Rutgers 60
7 Texas 48
10 St. Joseph's 69
10 St. Joseph's 39
2 Rutgers 59
2 at Rutgers 91
15 Holy Cross 70

Final Four – Philadelphia

National semifinals
March 31 		National championship
April 2
      
E1 Connecticut 89
MW2 Penn St. 67
E1 Connecticut 71
ME1 Tennessee 52
ME1 Tennessee 64
W2 Rutgers 54

Record by conference

Seventeen conferences had more than one bid, or at least one win in NCAA Tournament play:

Conference # of Bids Record Win % Round
of 32		 Sweet
Sixteen		 Elite
Eight		 Final
Four		 Championship
Game
Southeastern 6 14–6 .700 6 3 3 1 1
Big 12 6 7–6 .538 3 3 1 – –
Atlantic Coast 5 7–5 .583 4 3 – – –
Big East 4 13–3 .813 4 3 2 2 1
Big Ten 4 6–4 .600 3 1 1 1 –
Pacific-10 4 2–4 .333 2 – – – –
Conference USA 3 3–3 .500 2 1 – – –
Atlantic 10 3 2–3 .400 2 – – – –
Sun Belt 2 4–2 .667 2 1 1 – –
Western Athletic 2 2–2 .500 2 – – – –
America East 2 0–2 – – – – – –
Missouri Valley 2 0–2 – – – – – –
Mountain West 2 0–2 – – – – – –
Northeast 2 0–2 – – – – – –
West Coast 2 0–2 – – – – – –
Colonial 1 2–1 .667 1 1 – – –
Southland 1 1–1 .500 1 – – – –

Thirteen conferences went 0-1: Big Sky Conference, Big South Conference, Big West Conference, Horizon League, Ivy League, MAC, Mid-Continent, MEAC, Ohio Valley Conference, Patriot League, Southern Conference, SWAC, and Trans America

All-Tournament team

Game officials

  • Scott Yarbrough (semifinal)
  • Ron Dressander (semifinal)
  • Carla Fujimoto (semifinal)
  • Bob Trammel (semifinal)
  • Wesley Dean (semifinal)
  • Bob Trammel (semifinal)
  • Sally Bell (final)
  • Dennis DeMayo (final)
  • Art Bomengen (final) [10]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Gregory Cooper. "2000 NCAA National Championship Tournament". Archived from the original on October 20, 2009. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
  2. ↑ "CHN Basketball History: Most Outstanding Player". Archived from the original on January 25, 2008. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
  3. ↑ Hirsley, Michael (April 1, 2000). "Catchings Rebounds In Every Way For Tennessee Women". Chicage Tribune. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  4. ↑ GUSTKEY, EARL (April 1, 2000). "Connecticut Bullies Past Penn State, 89-67". LA Times. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  5. ↑ ROBBINS, LIZ (April 2, 2000). "N.C.A.A. BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT; UConn-Tennessee: Game 3 Today Is What Counts". New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  6. 1 2 GUSTKEY, EARL (April 3, 2000). "Connecticut Women Rule". LA Times. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Best ever?". CNN SI. April 3, 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Connecticut 71, Tennessee 52". CNN SI. April 3, 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  9. ↑ Shipley, Amy (April 3, 2000). "In Title Roll, Connecticut Routs Tennessee, 71-52". Washington Post. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nixon, Rick. "Official 2022 NCAA Women's Final Four Records Book" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved April 22, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Attendance and Sites" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved March 19, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Official 2012 NCAA Women's Final Four Records Book". NCAA. February 2012. Retrieved April 17, 2012.
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