On the rise, Big Ten eyes women’s NCAA tourney breakthrough

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Basketball Writer

The Big Ten has been a big disappointment when the women’s NCAA Tournament has rolled around the past few years. Only once since 2005 has the league gotten a team to the Final Four, and that was Maryland in its first year joining from the ACC in 2015. The only time the league has hung an NCAA banner came in 1999 with Purdue. But the Big Ten has three of the top eight seeds in this year’s bracket, and four of the top 12, led by No. 1 seed Indiana. It also has favorable matchups all the way to the Elite Eight, raising hopes that this could be the year the Big Ten finally gets back to the big stage in women’s hoops.