For the first time in history, one conference has placed five teams in the Final Four, or rather Final Fours, as the Louisville women dominated Tennessee to join the UConn women, Notre Dame women, Syracuse men and Louisville men to give the Big East five teams in the Final Four. The 2006 Women’s ACC and 1985 Men’s Big East were the only other conferences to put three teams into either the Men’s or Women’s Final Four since the Women’s tournament started in 1982.
The feat was accomplished the year before all of the teams’ move to the ACC except for UConn. Lousville also became the first 5-seed or lower to ever make the Women’s Final Four.
Shoni Schimmel scored 24 points to add to the 22 she scored in the stunning upset of Baylor in Louisville’s other game in Oklahoma City, and Louisville maintained a double digit lead almost the entire game until eight-time champion Tennessee put on a press that cut the lead to single digits down the stretch. Louisville had one final push to win 86-78.
The Women’s Final Four is played next Sunday and Tuesday, alternating with the Men’s Final Four being played Saturday and Monday. In 1985 Big East fans held up signs saying, “Who invited Memphis to the Big East tournament?” and Memphis later forfeited that appearance for recruiting violations. The only three non-Big East teams playing in the two tournaments are the Michigan men, California women and Wichita State men.
Year | Team1 | Team2 | Team3 | Team4 | Conf multi |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Connecticut | Louisville | Notre Dame | California | BE3 + Lville & Syr men |
2012 | Baylor | Notre Dame | Stanford | Connecticut | BE 2 |
2011 | Texas A&M | Notre Dame | Connecticut | Stanford | BE2 |
2010 | Connecticut | Stanford | Baylor | Oklahoma | |
2009 | Connecticut | Louisville | Stanford | Oklahoma | BE2 |
2008 | Tennessee | Stanford | LSU | Connecticut | SEC2 |
2007 | Tennessee | Rutgers | North Carolina | LSU | SEC2 |
2006 | Maryland | Duke | North Carolina | LSU | ACC3 |
2005 | Baylor | Michigan State | LSU | Tennessee | SEC2 |
2004 | Connecticut | Tennessee | Minnesota | LSU | SEC2 |
2003 | Connecticut | Tennessee | Texas | Duke | |
2002 | Connecticut | Oklahoma | Tennessee | Duke | |
2001 | Notre Dame | Purdue | Connecticut | SW Missouri St | BE2 |
2000 | Connecticut | Tennessee | Rutgers | Penn St. | BE2 |
1999 | Purdue | Duke | Louisiana Tech | Georgia | |
1998 | Tennessee | Louisiana Tech | Arkansas | NC State | SEC2 |
1997 | Tennessee | Old Dominion | Notre Dame | Stanford | |
1996 | Tennessee | Georgia | Connecticut | Stanford | SEC2 |
1995 | Connecticut | Tennessee | Stanford | Georgia | SEC2 |
1994 | North Carolina | Louisiana Tech | Purdue | Alabama | |
1993 | Texas Tech | Ohio State | Iowa | Vanderbilt | BTen2 |
1992 | Stanford | Western Kentucky | SW Missouri State | Virginia | |
1991 | Tennessee | Virginia | Connecticut | Stanford | |
1990 | Stanford | Auburn | Virginia | Louisiana Tech | |
1989 | Tennessee | Auburn | Louisiana Tech | Maryland | SEC2 |
1988 | Louisiana Tech | Auburn | Long Beach State | Tennessee | SEC2 |
1987 | Tennessee | Louisiana Tech | Texas | Long Beach State | |
1986 | Texas | USC | Western Kentucky | Tennessee | |
1985 | Old Dominion | Georgia | Western Kentucky | Northeast Louisiana | Men 3 BE |
1984 | USC | Tennessee | Cheyney State | Louisiana Tech | |
1983 | USC | Louisiana Tech | Old Dominion | Georgia | |
1982 | Louisiana Tech | Cheyney State | Tennessee | Maryland |
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