The eight-team field for the 25th annual Big West Women's Basketball Tournament, March 12-15 at the Anaheim Convention Center, is set with UC Santa Barbara and UC Davis securing the top two seeds. The third seed belongs to UC Riverside and the fourth seed was awarded to Pacific. The women's tournament kicks off Wednesday, March 12 when No. 5 Cal Poly takes on No. 8 UC Irvine at noon. No. 6 Cal State Fullerton and No. 7 Long Beach State battle it out 30 minutes later in the second half of the doubleheader.
The Gauchos collected their 13th regular season title, 12th in the last 13 years, with a 15-1 mark and received the No. 1 seed and a bye to the semifinals of the women's tournament. UC Santa Barbara also claimed the No. 1 seed on the men's side, marking the first time since 2003 that the top seed from both the men's and women's tournaments came from the same school. UCSB was the same school to accomplish the feat in 2003 with the women winning the tournament title and the men losing in the semifinals.
Also earning a free pass to a semifinal matchup is first-year member UC Davis, who finished the season second in the league standings with a 12-4 record. UC Santa Barbara, entering the week having won 16 of the last 17 contests, and UC Davis play their first contests of the tournament Friday, March 14 against undetermined opponents.
UC Riverside, who played most of the season without 2006-07 Big West Player of the Year Kemie Nkele, secured the third spot in the conference with a 10-6 record. The Highlanders enter the tournament as the two-time defending champion after defeating UC Santa Barbara in the prior two championship games by scores of 70-67 (‘07) and 59-58 (‘06). This season UC Riverside must win three straight games to grab their third straight tournament title and the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
As the No. 3 seed, UC Riverside earned a bye into Thursday’s quarterfinals and plays the lowest remaining seed, while fourth-seeded Pacific draws the highest seed remaining. The Tigers, posting a conference mark of 9-7 to grab the fourth slot, enter the tournament on a hot streak, wining four of the last five contests.
Saturday’s championship game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Net-Prime Ticket at noon (PST).
To purchase tournament tickets, please call the Anaheim Convention Center box office at (714) 765-8980. Full details of the 2008 Big West Women's Basketball Tournament can be viewed online at the Championship Information Center at bigwest.org.