Feb. 27, 2006
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BIG TEN TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY XBOX LIVE
The Big Ten Conference announced Feb. 9 an exclusive three-year marketing agreement with Xbox Live, making it the presenting sponsor of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
Single-session tickets for the tournament are on sale from $10-$14. In addition, all-session tickets can be purchased for $55. Fans can buy tickets through any Ticketmaster outlet, Ticketmaster charge-by-phone numbers (317-239-5151 in central Indiana), www.ticketmaster.com and the Conseco Fieldhouse box office.
The Big Ten Tournament presented by Xbox Live will be held March 2-6 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. No tournament games will take place on Saturday, March 4 due to the IHSAA Girl's State Basketball Finals.
WELCOME BACK TO INDIANAPOLIS
The 2006 Big Ten Tournament presented by Xbox Live will mark the 11th in Indianapolis and the 12th modern day women's basketball tournament in league history. It will be the sixth time the tournament has been held at Conseco Fieldhouse, as the venue was home to the 2000 event and has served as host since 2002. Indianapolis and Conseco Fieldhouse will also host the 2007 Big Ten Tournament presented by Xbox Live. Prior to competing at Conseco Fieldhouse, the league held its postseason tournament at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse from 1995-96 and at the RCA Dome from 1997-99. The lone year the tournament was played outside of the Circle City was in 2001 when Grand Rapids, Mich., served as host.
BUCKEYES THIRD TEAM TO REPEAT AS TOP SEED
For just the third time in the history of the Big Ten Tournament, a team will enter the event as the top seed for the second-straight year. Ohio State, which won the outright conference title in 2006 and was a co-champion with Michigan State in 2005, earned its second consecutive No. 1 seed. Purdue opened the 2001 and 2002 tournaments as the top seed, while Penn State entered as the No. 1 in 2003 and 2004.
NOTES ON THE NUMBER ONE SEED
Since 1995, the tournament's No. 1 seeds have won the event on just two occasions - Penn State's victory in 1995 and Purdue's win in 1999. Over the last 11 tournaments, the top seeds have a combined record of 17-10. Three of the last four No. 1 seeds, Purdue in 2002, Penn State in 2003 and Ohio State in 2005, have fallen in the semifinals.
GOOD TO BE NO. 2?
For the second-straight year and the fourth time in the history of the Big Ten Tournament, the No. 2 seed captured the postseason title last season. In the past 11 years, the second-seed has won the tournament four times, followed by the No. 1, 3 and 4 seeds, which have all won the event twice. Indiana was the highest-seeded team to capture the title when the No. 5 Hoosiers won in 2002.
BOILERMAKERS AVOID FIRST-DAY PLAY
With its No. 2 seed in this year's bracket, Purdue has kept alive its streak of never having competed on the first day of the tournament. With exception of the 1996 and 1998 seasons, when Purdue earned the No. 4 seed, and in 2005 as the No. 5 seed, the Boilermakers had never been seeded outside of the top three since the inception of the tournament. The Boilermakers own a league-best five Big Ten Tournament crowns (1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004) and have been the top seed on four occasions.
HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS
In the 11 editions of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament, one of the teams from the state of Indiana -- Purdue and Indiana -- has advanced to the championship game on eight occasions, including seven of the last eight years. Three of the last four tournament titles have gone to Indiana teams, as Purdue won the 2003 and 2004 events, while the Hoosiers were crowned champions in 2002. The two programs are a combined 29-16 (.644) in Big Ten Tournament play since 1995 and 26-14 (.650) when the event is held in Indianapolis.
HOOSIER-STATE HOMECOMINGS
A total of 16 student-athletes who will be in action at the Big Ten Tournament hail from the state of Indiana. Seven of the 16 Indiana natives play for the Hoosiers, while five play for Purdue. Ohio State boasts a pair of players from the Hoosier state, while Penn State and Wisconsin each have one. Below is a complete list of 16:
Name, School, Hometown, High School
Brigett Branson, IND, Bloomingdale, Turkey Run
Jenny DeMuth, IND, Highland, Highland
Leah Enterline, IND, Monroeville, Heritage
Kim Roberson, IND, Indianapolis, Catherdral
Carrie Smith, IND, Indianapolis, Brebeuf
Whitney Thomas, IND, Bloomington, North
Cyndi Valentin, IND, Bloomington, South
Ashley Allen, OSU, Indianapolis, Ben Davis
Candace Dark, OSU, Kingman, Fountain Central
Adrienne Squire, PSU, Indianapolis, Indian Creek
Carol Duncan, PUR, Nappanee, NorthWood
Katie Gearlds, PUR, Beech Grove, Beech Grove
Jodi Howell, PUR, Alexandria, Alexandria-Monroe
Ashley Mays, PUR, Indianapolis, Warren Central
Sharika Webb, PUR, Indianapolis, Cathedral
Janese Banks, WIS, Indianapolis, Ben Davis
GOING HEAD-TO-HEAD IN THE FIRST TWO ROUNDS
As the first two rounds of this year's tournament are now mapped out, here is a look inside the postseason series history between the matchups:
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State vs. No. 9 Wisconsin
Penn State leads Big Ten Tournament series, 1-0
2002 S No. 2 PSU def. No. 6 WIS, 76-62
Game 2: No. 7 Illinois vs. No. 10 Northwestern
Illinois leads Big Ten Tournament series, 2-0
2001 1st No. 6 ILL def. No. 11 NU, 75-60
2005 1st No. 7 ILL def. No. 10 NU, 66-43
Game 3: No. 6 Indiana vs. No. 11 Michigan
Indiana leads Big Ten Tournament series, 1-0
1997 1st No. 8 IND def. No. 9 MICH, 72-54
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State vs. Game 1 Winner (PSU/WIS)
Ohio State leads Big Ten Tournament series vs. WIS, 3-0
1996 Q No. 6 OSU def. No. 3 WIS, 72-58
1999 Q No. 5 OSU def. No. 4 WIS, 70-61
2005 Q No. 1 OSU def. No. 8 WIS, 70-46
Ohio State trails Big Ten Tournament series vs. PSU, 2-4
1995 F No. 1 PSU def. No. 7 OSU, 68-63
1996 S No. 2 PSU def. No. 6 OSU, 84-70
1997 1st No. 10 OSU def. No. 7 PSU, 80-79
2000 Q No. 1 PSU def. No. 9 OSU, 64-48
2002 Q No. 2 PSU def. No. 7 OSU, 70-55
2003 S No. 4 OSU def. No. 1 PSU, 72-61
Game 5: No. 4 Michigan State vs. No. 5 Iowa
Michigan State leads Big Ten Tournament series vs. IOWA, 1-0
2004 Q No. 5 MSU def. No. 4 IOWA, 81-54
Game 6: No. 2 Purdue vs. Game 2 Winner (ILL/NU)
Purdue leads Big Ten Tournament series vs. ILL, 1-0
1999 F No. 1 PUR def. No. 3 ILL, 80-76
Purdue leads Big Ten Tournament series vs. NU, 1-0
1999 Q No. 1 PUR def. No. 9 NU, 79-56
Game 7: No. 3 Minnesota vs. Game 3 Winner (IND/MICH)
Minnesota trails Big Ten Tournament series vs. IND, 0-1
2001 1st No. 7 IND def. No. 10 MINN, 78-56
Minnesota trails Big Ten Tournament series vs. MICH, 0-1
1999 1st No. 6 MICH def. No. 11 MINN, 74-55
PLAYING A LITTLE EXTRA
For just the second time in the 11-year history of the Big Ten Tournament, three of the 10 games in 2005 were sent to overtime. Three overtime contests were played in the 2002 tournament, including one double-overtime game between Ohio State and Michigan State. The 2005 event also produced a double-overtime outcome when Wisconsin defeated Indiana, 75-74, in two extra sessions of the first game of the tournament.
SPEAKING OF EXCITING GAMES...
Tournament games have been highly competitive in recent years. Three games reached overtime in 2002 and 2005, while 15 games in the last four tournaments have been decided by five points or less.
SURPASSING THE 30,000 MARK
The four most recent editions of the women's tournament have posted the highest attendance in the event's history, surpassing the 30,000-patron mark each year. The 2005 tournament attendance of 30,211 was the fourth-highest total in the 11-year history of the tournament, while the 2004 event set records for total attendance (37,635), single-session (9,417) and session average (7,527).
EASY AS 1-2-3-4
Last year marked the second time in the 11-year history of the Big Ten Tournament and the first since 2000 that the top four seeds advanced to the semifinals. In 2005, No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 Penn State and No. 4 Minnesota all advanced, while in 2000, top-seed Penn State, followed by Michigan, Purdue and Illinois, advanced to semifinal play.
TOURNEY FINALE BOASTS NATION'S BEST
Over the past two years, the Big Ten Tournament championship final has been fought over by two of the nation's top teams. In 2004, the tournament championship was decided by two teams ranked in the nation's top 10 for the first time in the event's history. Penn State entered the final game ranked fifth in the Associated Press poll and sixth in the ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll, while Purdue was seventh in both polls. This past season, a pair of top 15 squads battled for the title in No. 8 Michigan State and No. 15 Minnesota. The 2005 tournament final marked the fourth time in 11 years the Big Ten Tournament title was decided by a pair of teams in the nation's top 15.
TWO GOES INTO FOUR
The 2005 championship game was the second-ever contest between the No. 2 seed (Michigan State) and No. 4 seed (Minnesota) in tournament history. The No. 2 seed holds a 2-0 advantage as second-seeded Penn State defeated No. 4 Purdue, 71-69, in 1996.
A SCORING STRUGGLE
The 104 points scored in the 2005 tournament final was the lowest-ever point total scored in a Big Ten Tournament championship game. The previous low was 108 in 1998 (Purdue 59, Penn State 49).
DOUBLE DIPPING
Michigan State, who shared the Big Ten title last season with Ohio State, became the first team since Purdue in 1999 to win both the regular season and tournament titles in the same year. Penn State also did it in 1995, the first year of the Big Ten Tournament.
A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
With the win over Minnesota in the 2005 final, Michigan State won its first Big Ten Tournament while competing in its first-ever championship game appearance. Minnesota also made its first visit in school history to the tournament final. The championship game marked the first-ever matchup between Minnesota and Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament as well.
TITLE GAME NAILBITERS
Since 2001, the tournament's title game has been decided by six points or less, including three or fewer in 2002, 2003 and 2004. Indiana claimed its lone tournament title in 2002 with a 75-72 win over Penn State, while Purdue handed Ohio State a 67-65 loss in the 2003 final. In 2004, Purdue defeated Penn State, 59-58, in the closest tournament final in league history, while Michigan State topped Minnesota by six, 55-49, in last year's title game. In the 11-year history of the tournament, the title game has been decided by an average of 4.8 points and the winning margin has only reach double figures once, when Purdue defeated Penn State, 59-49, for the 1998 title.
BIG TEN TOURNEY WINS BREED NCAA SUCCESS
Recent history has shown that winning in the Big Ten Tournament breeds success for conference teams in the NCAA Tournament. Since 1995, the teams that have won the Big Ten Women's Tournament have combined to post a 25-10 (.714) record in the NCAA Championship. Purdue captured the league's first-ever NCAA women's title in 1999 after winning the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 1 seed. Penn State appeared in the 2000 NCAA Final Four after finishing as the runner-up in that year's Big Ten Tournament, while Purdue made an appearance in the 2001 National Championship game after also finishing second in that year's conference tournament. With the return of Lindsay Whalen after the 2004 Big Ten Tournament, Minnesota went on to its first Final Four appearance in school history. Michigan State, the 2005 conference tournament champion, entered NCAA play as a No. 1 seed and finished 5-1 after falling to Baylor in the national championship game.
RECORD TRENDS IN TOURNAMENT ACTION
Since the Big Ten Tournament returned to Indianapolis in 2002, a total of 37 team and individual tournament records have been matched or broken. Penn State's Kelly Mazzante set single-game and tournament records in field goal attempts (29, 68), three-point field goals (9, 15) and three-point field goal attempts (14, 31) in 2002. In 2003, Indiana's Angela Hawkins broke the tournament single-game record for rebounding with 17 boards against Wisconsin in the first round. Penn State set multiple team records during its two-game run in 2003, including the mark for best free-throw average. The Lady Lions were 29-of-31 from the charity stripe for a 93.4 percent average. In 2004, Minnesota's Janel McCarville posted the event's first-ever triple-double with 23 points, 11 rebounds and a tournament record 10 steals against Ohio State in the quarterfinals. In that same game, the Buckeyes swatted a tournament record 11 shots against the Golden Gophers. Last year, Minnesota tied the team championship-game record for rebounds with 45 in a loss to Michigan State.
BUCKEYES' WILBURN EYEING TOURNEY MARKS
Ohio State senior Kim Wilburn enters the 2006 Big Ten Tournament presented by Xbox Live with an opportunity to leave her mark in a pair of significant categories in the event's history. Wilburn will open the tournament just three steals of matching the all-time Big Ten Tournament record of 26, set by Purdue's Katie Douglas over 12 games from 1998-2001. Wilburn has posted 23 swipes over eight games since 2003. Two players stand between Wilburn and Douglas at 25 career tournament steals. Penn State's Helen Darling (10 games, 1997-2000) and Purdue's Michelle Duhart (10, 1997-2000) are tied for second all-time.
In addition, Wilburn is currently tied for ninth all-time in tournament history with 36 career assists. The Buckeye senior shares ninth place with Purdue's Stephanie White (10, 1996-99) and Ukari Figgs (10, 1996-99). The assists record is held by Penn State's Helen Darling, who dished 64 assists over 10 games between 1997-2000. A pair of Lady Lions -- Tanisha Wright and Jess Strom -- graduated last year with 41 and 40 tournament assists, respectively, which ranks them fifth and sixth all-time.
NEW TOURNEY RECORD HOLDER ON THE "BLOCK?"
While on the topic of tournament records being broken at the 2006 event, Ohio State's Jessica Davenport would like a little attention as well. Davenport, a junior center on the top-seeded Buckeyes, is tied for eighth all-time on career blocked shots in Big Ten Tournament play and is just five swats shy of equaling the record. The reigning Big Ten Player of the Year has blocked 13 shots over four games since 2004 and is tied with Purdue's Shereka Wright, who needed 11 contests between 2001-04 to collect 13 rejections. The all-time record is 18 blocks, set by Michigan State's Kristin Rasmussen over a six-game span from 1997-2000. Davenport has her eyes set on becoming the top Buckeye shot-blocker at the tournament as well. Currently, LaToya Turner holds the OSU mark with 17 blocks over seven games from 2000-04, which is tied with Indiana's Quacy Barnes for second all-time.
IU'S HAWKINS BOARDING UP FOR RECORD RUN
Indiana's Angela Hawkins, the Big Ten Tournament's single-game record holder with 17 rebounds, is just two boards shy of entering the top 10 for all-time career caroms in the event's history. Over five games since 2003, Hawkins has posted an impressive mark of 61 rebounds (12.2 boards per game) and trails Iowa's Tangela Smith (9 games, 1995-98) and Wisconsin's Jessie Stomski (7, 1999-2002), who are tied for ninth at 63 caroms. Former Hoosier Jill Chapman, who played seven tournament games from 1999-2002, is IU's career leader and is tied for seventh all-time with 67 career rebounds.
OSU EARNS FIRST OUTRIGHT TITLE IN 20 YEARS
With a 67-58 victory over Purdue on Feb. 23, Ohio State clinched its first outright Big Ten crown since the 1985-86 season. It is the ninth conference championship and fourth outright league title for the Buckeyes. The victory also marked the first time OSU has won back-to-back Big Ten regular season championships since 1985-86 and 1986-87. Ohio State will enter the Big Ten Tournament this week with its second consecutive No. 1 seed. In addition, OSU increased its current win-streak to 15 games, tying the third-longest win streak in Buckeye history. The other 15-game streak was set during the 1986-87 season. The Ohio State record is 20-consecutive wins in the 1984-85 campaign.
DAVENPORT REPEATS AS BIG TEN SCORING QUEEN
Ohio State's Jessica Davenport closed out the regular season repeating as the Big Ten's scoring leader. The Buckeye center racked up 327 points in 16 conference games for an average of 20.4 points per game. She was 2.5 points better than runner-up Cyndi Valentin of Indiana, who averaged 17.9 per contest. Davenport is just the third Buckeye to win the scoring title and the third to claim two straight as well. Nikita Lowry won the crown in 1987-88 (23.7 ppg) and 1988-89 (18.9), and Katie Smith was the league's top scorer in 1993-94 (22.4) and 1994-95 (21.2). The last player to win back-to-back scoring titles was Penn State's Kelly Mazzante, who earned three straight from 2001-2003.
SKOUBY TOP-SCORING FROSH SINCE `01
Third place in the conference scoring race went to Iowa freshman Megan Skouby (16.8 ppg), which marks the highest finish for a freshman since Penn State's Kelly Mazzante won the scoring title as a newcomer at 19.7 points per game in 2000-01. Last season, Wisconsin freshman Jolene Anderson averaged more points than Skouby at 18.1 points per contest, but was fourth in conference scoring.
FOUR BIG TEN TEAMS RANKED IN NATION'S TOP 25
Four conference squads were ranked in both the final Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls before print deadline. Ohio State was No. 6/7, followed by No. 12/11 Purdue, No. 14/16 Michigan State, and No. 22/21 Minnesota.
FIVE LEAGUE SQUADS MAKE TOP 50 OF NCAA RPI
In the official RPI report released by the NCAA on Feb. 22, the last before print deadline, five Big Ten squads were ranked in the top 50. Ohio State was ninth, followed by No. 18 Michigan State, No. 26 Purdue, No. 46 Minnesota and No. 50 Indiana. The NCAA will release its pre-tournament RPI report on Wednesday, March 1.
OHIO STATE'S FOSTER EARNS WIN NO. 600
With a win on Feb. 20 against Michigan State, Ohio State head coach Jim Foster became the third current coach in the Big Ten to possess 600 career victories. He joined Illinois' Theresa Grentz (650-297, 32 seasons) and Penn State's Rene Portland (677-248, 31 seasons) in the league and is the 12th active coach in the nation to amass 600 career wins. Foster has recorded his 602 career wins at three different stops in 28 seasons as a Division I head coach. Since 1978, Foster has found success at St. Joseph's (248-126, 1978-91), Vanderbilt (256-99, 1991-2002) and Ohio State (98-27, 2002-present).
ILLINOIS' GRENTZ CAPTURES CAREER WIN NO. 650
Illinois head coach Theresa Grentz became the 10th Division I coach to reach 650 wins for her career, following a road win at Michigan on the last day of the regular season. Grentz, in her 32nd season overall and 11th at Illinois, has coached in 947 games and has won 69 percent of those contests. Penn State's Rene Portland is already a member of the 650-win club, having won 677 career games.
PAIR OF SPARTANS SETTING SCORING RECORD
In a race to the finish, two Spartan seniors are continuing to battle over the Michigan State scoring record. Lindsay Bowen, who became her school's all-time points leader in her final home game on Feb. 16, currently sits at 1,685 points, while teammate Liz Shimek is currently second all-time at 1,682. Both Spartans have eclipsed the previous record of 1,668, set by Kisha Kelley.
WILBURN SETS OSU STEALS MARK; BIG TEN'S NEXT?
Kim Wilburn, Ohio State's school record holder in steals, posted one swipe against Penn State in the final game of the regular season to bring her career total to 353, which ties her for second all-time in Big Ten history. Wilburn's mark equals Wisconsin's Tamara Moore's, which she set from 1999-2002. The Big Ten record holder is Michigan's Stacey Thomas (`96-00) at 372.
