INDIANAPOLIS - The end of the regular season in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference women’s basketball schedule is nearing completion with an NCAA Championship planning to be conducted in Division II.
Several teams in the Great Midwest have a legitimate opportunity – either through automatic qualifier or at-large selection(s) – to compete in the Atlantic Regional once the conference tournament crowns a champion.
The NCAA traditionally releases three different sets of regional rankings throughout the regular season and while the Great Midwest is normally aligned with the Midwest Region, a number factors including geographical proximity and actual conferences conducting a playing season, led to a temporary shift to the Atlantic Region.
The Atlantic Region will include (6) bids to the national tournament, including AQ’s from the Great Midwest and Mountain East Conference. That leaves (4) remaining at-large selections with the Great Midwest, MEC and a handful of competing Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) programs and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA).
On Wednesday, the NCAA published an announcement of teams “Under Consideration” across Division II. Great Midwest programs in that list include Cedarville (17-3), Kentucky Wesleyan (13-4), Ohio Dominican (13-5) and Walsh (12-4).
So what does “Under Consideration” mean? (8) teams across six regions in Division II were alphabetically listed as basketball programs with essentially a chance for national championship seeding. The regional advisory committee will apply certain criteria (i.e. In-Region RPI, SOS, winning % vs. opponents above .500) to rank teams before their recommendations are approved by the national committee. So while it may be more difficult to track where a program may stand week-to-week, it gives observers a general idea of who is at least in the picture. It still leaves this list open to a lot of interpretation and may not quite provide a full answer as to why a team dropped out or moved in by the time Selection Sunday arrives. Teams should still be motivated to perform at their highest level with an at-large selection certainly not guaranteed at any point. National rankings through the WBCA or D2SIDA organizations also have no bearing on region rankings.
The regular season championship is still up for grabs as the current favorite Cedarville has two games remaining on the schedule, while Kentucky Wesleyan and Ohio Dominican have four, and Walsh has five remaining contests. The regular season title is based on winning percentage in the standings.
Cedarville took a tough hit recently losing two of the last four games to end a 15-game winning streak, but still remains ranked in the WBCA Coaches Poll at No. 24. The Yellow Jackets are guaranteed to host a quarterfinal playoff game.
Kentucky Wesleyan is looking solid heading into the postseason, as the Panthers have won their last four games, including a home win over ODU and road wins over Tiffin and CU. The Panthers will also look to host a quarterfinal playoff game.
After losing two in a row in early February, ODU has gotten back on track with three-straight wins. With the same number of wins and only one more loss than KWC, the ODU Panthers will likely host a quarterfinal game as well.
The reigning Great Midwest Champion, Walsh, had a rocky first half of the season, but seems to be peaking at the right time as the Cavaliers have won five-straight. Walsh still has five games to go as they look to remain in the top four of the conference standings.
The official 8-team conference tournament field will not be announced until the final day of the regular season on Sunday, Feb. 28. All (8) teams are qualifying for the Great Midwest Championship bracket through the Point Rating System (PRS). The PRS is updated following any conference contest by the end of the day.
The previously approved bracket size reduction of 25% means that the traditional field of 64 teams is now a 48-team bracket for the 2020-21 national tournament in Division II.
It was also already announced by the championships committee that Ohio Dominican and the Greater Columbus Sports Commission will serve as the Atlantic Region predetermined host site in Columbus, Ohio at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
The NCAA Selection Show for Division II women’s basketball is scheduled for Sunday, March 7, at 10 p.m. ET exclusively on NCAA.com.
Regional quarterfinal games will begin Friday, March 12, followed by the semifinals Saturday, March 13, and the regional championship Monday, March 15. Winners will advance to the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Elite Eight in Columbus, Ohio on March 23-26.