DRC Womens BB NIT..IN OR OUT

[OldTimer]

Women's basketball: In or out?

North Texas women to get NIT answer Monday

08:09 AM CST on Monday, March 13, 2006

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

North Texas coach Tina Slinker has talked to her contacts and studied the resumes of teams from across the country. All the information she gathered points to the same reality.

UNT is on the WNIT bubble.

DRC/Gary Payne

North Texas’ Natalie Mireles (11) tries to gain control of the ball while attempting to break a press by Middle Tennessee’s Chrissy Givens (22, left) and Latoya Barclay (14) on Feb. 8 at the Super Pit.

The Mean Green won the Sun Belt Conference West Division title, have a few quality wins and a 19-9 record in their favor, but they also have a few factors working against them. CollegeRPI.com has UNT rated No. 105 nationally in its RPI rankings and the Mean Green fell in the quarterfinals of the Sun Belt Tournament to Arkansas State, one of its chief rivals for a WNIT bid.

The WNIT field will be announced late Monday night following the release of the NCAA Tournament field.

“What I have heard is that we are a bubble team and that our fate will be decided on how we merit and how the automatic berths come out from other conferences,” Slinker said.

UNT went to the WNIT in the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons and is trying to get back to the postseason for the first time since those trips.

UNT’s postseason future is in trouble largely because of the Mean Green’s early exit from the Sun Belt tournament. UNT likely needs a few scenarios to play out in their favor to receive a WNIT bid, beginning with the NCAA Tournament’s selections.

Middle Tennessee has already earned the Sun Belt’s automatic NCAA bid by winning the conference tournament, but Western Kentucky also has a solid resume with a 24-6 record and a No. 17 ranking by CollegeRPI.com. The Sun Belt has improved its reputation the last two years when MTSU won first-round games in the NCAA Tournament.

If both MTSU and WKU both earn NCAA bids, it would open up another spot in the WNIT for the rest of the Sun Belt’s teams and elevate the league’s reputation in the eyes of the WNIT selection committee.

The Sun Belt could also be helped by its recent history of success in the WNIT. ASU won two games in the tournament last year, while WKU won two games in 2004.

“I think our conference is worthy of three WNIT bids,” Slinker said. “We have had good showings when Sun Belt teams have gone to the WNIT and NCAA Tournaments. Middle has won in the NCAA Tournament the last two years and Western has some impressive wins. All of that will go through the committee’s minds.”

UNT’s chances could also improve if a few teams from major conferences turn down WNIT bids.

The Mean Green have practiced a few times since being ousted in the conference tournament and would quickly ramp up their preparations if they receive a WNIT bid.

“We want to go to the NCAA Tournament and do better in the Sun Belt, but we did accomplish some great things this year,” Slinker said. “We are pleased with winning the division and our overall record. To go to the WNIT would be icing on the cake, even though we are disappointed that we didn’t go to the NCAA Tournament.”

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com

WHY THEY'RE IN

* Wins — UNT’s season might not have ended like the Mean Green hoped, but they did finish 19-9. UNT’s record could catch the attention of the WNIT selection committee.

* Quality wins — UNT doesn’t have many, but victories over Sun Belt tournament champion Middle Tennessee, Southland Tournament champion Stephen F. Austin and SMU look solid.

* The Sun Belt — The Sun Belt was a solid women’s league this year and has a growing reputation. Middle Tennessee won in the first round of the NCAA Tournament the last two years.

WHY THEY'RE OUT

* A flub at the finish — UNT could have sealed a postseason bid with a win or two in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, but fell flat against Arkansas State.

* A soft RPI — While UNT has some quality wins, its overall RPI is low. CollegeRPI.com has UNT ranked No. 105.

* A weak schedule — CollegeRPI.com rates UNT’s strength of schedule No. 181.

* Conference competition — The WNIT has invited as few as one (2000) and as many as many as four (2001) Sun Belt teams since the 2000 season. UNT lost to Arkansas State twice and Florida International once and is likely behind both in the pecking order for the WNIT. CollegeRPI.com ranks FIU No. 74, while ASU is No. 81.

Edited March 13, 2006 by OldTimer

[gksmith]

I guess we find out Monday night after the NCAA has picked their teams.

[ADLER]

Women's basketball: UNT women snubbed by WNIT

07:54 AM CST on Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Denton Record-Chronicle

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

North Texas’ bubble officially burst on Monday night.

The Mean Green knew heading into the weekend that they were out of the picture when it came to an NCAA Tournament bid, but held out hope that the WNIT might come calling.

Those hopes ended when the WNIT selection committee released its field of 40 teams.

The announcement of the WNIT bracket officially brought to an end a solid season for UNT, which won the Sun Belt Conference West Division title and finished with a 19-9 record. The Mean Green fell just two wins short of the school record for victories in a season.

“I am more disappointed than I thought I would be,” UNT coach Tina Slinker said. “We had a good year and were probably one win away from getting in. It helped that we beat Middle Tennessee, Stephen F. Austin and SMU. That put us close to getting in.”

UNT’s division title and its overall record were its two greatest assets heading into the selection process.

What ended up hurting the Mean Green was an early exit from the Sun Belt tournament, a low RPI rating and a soft schedule.

UNT came into the Sun Belt tournament as the top seed from the West Division, but ended up falling to Arkansas State in the quarterfinals. The Mean Green also finished 102 in the NCAA’s RPI ratings and played a schedule ranked No. 181 by CollegeRPI.com.

Those flaws dropped the Mean Green down in the pecking order for WNIT bids. What hurt UNT even more was the Sun Belt sending just one team to the NCAA Tournament.

MTSU received the league’s only NCAA bid after beating Western Kentucky in the conference tournament finals. The Lady Toppers ended up in the WNIT despite finishing with a 24-6 record and an RPI of 15.

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com

DENTON RECORD-CHRONICLE

[GreenBat]

Their schedule was so soft that they did not deserve to get in WNIT.

[gksmith]

So the Men's season is over and apparently so is the Women's.

RATS!

[GrandGreen]

“I am more disappointed than I thought I would be,” UNT coach Tina Slinker said. “We had a good year and were probably one win away from getting in. It helped that we beat Middle Tennessee, Stephen F. Austin and SMU. That put us close to getting in.”

I can't believe even Slinker thought that NT had a chance at getting in the NIT. Playing .500 ball for the last half of the season and not losing the first game of the Belt tournament but getting blown out. If another Belt team had been taken, I think that would have went to ASU who owned Slinker's team. The big wins SfA and SMU were at the first of the year and both of those team substantially improved while NT went in the oppossite direction. Despite the record and Western Division championship, this team imo underachieved.

Edited March 16, 2006 by GrandGreen