Gophers Earn Berth In NCAA Womens Tourney

MINNEAPOLIS (gophersports.com) – The University of Minnesota women’s basketball team will be dancing for the first time in six years. The Golden Gophers were awarded the No. 8 seed for the 2015 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament and will face No. 9 seed DePaul in South Bend, Ind. on Friday, March 20. The game is set for 4 p.m. CT and will be televised on ESPN2.

Notre Dame earned the No. 1 seed for the Oklahoma City Region and will play No. 16 seed Montana following the Gophers’ opening round contest. The winners of the two contests will face off in the second round Sunday, March 22.

It will be the ninth NCAA Tournament appearance for the Maroon and Gold and its first appearance since 2009. Minnesota is 11-8 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, which includes a magical run to the Final Four in 2004. The Gophers have advanced to the Sweet 16 three times (2003, 2004, 2005) in program history, while also competing in one Elite Eight (2004). The Maroon and Gold made its first NCAA Appearance in 1994.

Minnesota earned the No. 8 seed for the second time in program history after posting a 23-9 overall record, its most wins since 2004-05, and an 11-7 Big Ten record. The team was also awarded the No. 8 seed in 2006.  

The Gophers and the Blue Demons have met only one other time in history, with Minnesota picking up an 82-64 victory in its 1982-83 season opener as part of the Dial Classic in Minneapolis.

DePaul enters the tournament with a 26-7 record and earned an automatic bid into the event after winning the BIG EAST Championship with a 78-68 win over Seton Hall in the title game. Brittany Hrynko leads the Blue Demons with a 19.6 points-per-game average. The senior is a finalist for the Dawn Staley Award, given to the nation’s top guard.