1999 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

The 1999 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 12, 1999, and concluded on March 28, 1999, when Purdue won its first national championship in any women's sport. The Final Four was held at the San Jose Arena in San Jose, California, on March 26–28, 1999. Purdue defeated Duke 62-45 in Carolyn Peck's final game as head coach for the Boilermakers. She had previously announced her intention of leaving Purdue after two seasons to coach the expansion WNBA Orlando Miracle.

1999 NCAA Division I
women's basketball tournament
Teams64
Finals siteSan Jose Arena
San Jose, California
ChampionsPurdue Boilermakers (1st title, 1st title game,
2nd Final Four)
Runner-upDuke Blue Devils (1st title game,
1st Final Four)
Semifinalists
Winning coachCarolyn Peck (1st title)
MOPUkari Figgs (Purdue)
NCAA Division I women's tournaments
«19982000»

The two finalists had recent "off the court" history. Duke's coach, Gail Goestenkors, was a former assistant coach at Purdue under Lin Dunn until becoming the Blue Devils' head coach in 1992. Dunn's firing from Purdue in 1996 and the subsequent player defections resulted in the unusual scenario that two Blue Devil players in the championship game had formerly transferred from Purdue. Purdue's Ukari Figgs was named Most Outstanding Player.[1]

Notable events

Tennessee, which had won the prior three national championships, was selected as a No. 1 seed, and started out strongly, beating Appalachian State, 113–54. They continued on easily through the second and third rounds, then faced Duke in the East regional final. Duke was the 3 seed, but had upset Old Dominion 76–63 to reach the regional final. Tennessee and Duke had met in the regular season, with the Lady Vols winning by 14. The game was played in North Carolina, but Tennessee fans outnumbered Duke fans. Tennessee's Chamique Holdsclaw, generally considered the top player in the college game, missed her first ten shots, and ended up with only eight points, her lowest point total of the year. Duke reached an eleven-point lead in the first half, but Tennessee started the second half strong, hitting four baskets in a row, and cut the lead to four points. Duke went over five minutes without scoring a basket, but Tennessee could only cut the lead to a single point. Duke's Georgia Schweitzer tied her career high with 22 points, and the Blue Devils advanced to the Final Four for the first time in their history.[2][3]

Connecticut was the 1 seed in the Mideast regional, and hosted the first two rounds at their home court, Gampel Pavilion. The Huskies won their first game easily, beating St. Francis (PA) by 51 points. The second game, against Xavier, would prove to be very different. Xavier led by as many as ten points in the second half, and with just over two minutes to play, the Musketeers had an eight-point lead, 84–76. UConn scored six consecutive points to tie the game at 84 points each. With 37 seconds left in the game Xavier's Nikki Kremer was fouled, and headed to the line, having hit all eight free throw attempts on the day. She missed both attempts. After Shea Ralph missed a jumper, Tamika Williams snared the rebound and was fouled. With seven seconds left in the game she hit both free throws. Xavier tried two desperation shots, but missed both, and UConn narrowly escaped an upset on their own court.[4][5]

Georgia faced Duke in one of the national semi-finals. Georgia hit nine of their sixteen three-point attempts, and held the Miller twins, who had been averaging 37 points per game, to only 31. Duke led at halftime, then went on a 14–5 run to extend the lead. Georgia later responded with a 13–4 run, but could not take the lead. Duke won the game, 81–69, and advanced to their first championship game.[6]

Louisiana Tech returned to the Final Four, a year after reaching the championship game. However, Purdue came into the game riding a 30-game winning streak. Purdue's Ukari Figgs scored 18 points in the first half, leading to a 40–27 lead at halftime. The Lady Techsters fought back in the second half, and cut the lead to three points, but Purdue's Stephanie White-McCarty stole the ball for a score, and followed it with a shot-clock-beating basket to extend the lead back to seven points. Louisiana Tech did not get closer again, and the Boilermakers extended their winning streak to 31 games, and a place in the championship match with a 77–63 win.[7]

Tournament records

  • Steals in a first or second round game – Old Dominion, recorded 25 steals in an East region first-round game against Tennessee Tech, tying the record for most steals in any NCAA tournament game, set by Maryland against Stephen F. Austin in 1989, since the statistic was first recorded in 1988.[8]
  • Personal fouls – Missouri State committed 36 personal fouls in a West region second-round game against Colorado State, setting the record for most personal fouls committed in an NCAA tournament game.[8]

Qualifying teams – automatic

Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the 1999 NCAA Tournament. Thirty conferences were eligible for an automatic bid to the 1999 NCAA tournament.[8]

Automatic Bids
  Record 
Qualifying SchoolConferenceRegular
Season
ConferenceSeed
Appalachian StateSouthern Conference14–147–1016
CSU-NorthridgeBig Sky Conference21–713–315
ClemsonACC24–511–52
ConnecticutBig East27–417–11
DartmouthIvy League19–811–314
EvansvilleMissouri Valley Conference19–1011–713
Florida A&MMEAC18–1114–415
Grambling StateSWAC25–416–012
Green BayMidwestern Collegiate19–913–114
Holy CrossPatriot League21–711–114
LibertyBig South Conference21–79–114
Louisiana TechSun Belt Conference26–212–01
NortheasternAmerica East22–713–513
Old DominionColonial26–316–02
Oral RobertsMid-Continent17–128–616
PurdueBig Ten28–116–01
SMUWAC19–1011–311
St. Francis (PA)Northeast Conference18–1114–616
St. Joseph'sAtlantic 1029–714–211
St. Mary's (CA)West Coast Conference26–610–412
St. Peter'sMAAC25–515–313
Stephen F. AustinSouthland17–1112–615
TennesseeSEC28–213–11
Tennessee TechOhio Valley Conference21–814–415
Texas TechBig 1228–314–22
ToledoMAC25–514–26
TulaneConference USA24–512–46
UC-Santa BarbaraBig West Conference26–315–010
UCFTrans America20–913–316
UCLAPac-1023–715–33

Qualifying teams – at-large

Thirty-four additional teams were selected to complete the sixty-four invitations.[8]

At-large Bids
  Record 
Qualifying SchoolConferenceRegular
Season
ConferenceSeed
University of AlabamaSoutheastern19–107–75
University of ArizonaPacific-1017–1012–66
Auburn UniversitySoutheastern19–88–65
Boston CollegeBig East21–712–68
University of CincinnatiConference USA22–812–412
Colorado State UniversityWestern Athletic31–214–02
Duke UniversityAtlantic Coast24–615–13
Florida International UniversitySun Belt23–69–39
University of FloridaSoutheastern19–136–811
University of GeorgiaSoutheastern23–69–53
University of IllinoisBig Ten18–1110–67
Iowa State UniversityBig 1222–712–44
University of KansasBig 1222–911–59
University of KentuckySoutheastern20–107–76
University of LouisvilleConference USA21–1012–410
Louisiana State UniversitySoutheastern20–710–44
University of MaineAmerica East23–617–110
Marquette UniversityConference USA21–712–48
Mississippi State UniversitySoutheastern17–107–77
Missouri State UniversityMissouri Valley24–615–37
University of Nebraska–LincolnBig 1221–118–811
University of North CarolinaAtlantic Coast26–711–54
North Carolina State UniversityAtlantic Coast16–119–710
University of Notre DameBig East25–415–35
Ohio State UniversityBig Ten17–119–79
University of OregonPacific-1024–515–35
Pennsylvania State UniversityBig Ten21–712–48
Rutgers UniversityBig East26–517–13
Santa Clara UniversityWest Coast22–611–313
Stanford UniversityPacific-1018–1114–47
University of Texas at AustinBig 1216–1110–612
University of VirginiaAtlantic Coast20–812–49
Virginia TechAtlantic 1026–215–14
Xavier UniversityAtlantic 1023–811–58

Bids by conference

Thirty conferences earned an automatic bid. In seventeen cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference. Thirty-four additional at-large teams were selected from thirteen of the conferences.[8]

BidsConferenceTeams
8SoutheasternTennessee, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi St.
5Atlantic CoastClemson, Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina St., Virginia
5Big 12Texas Tech, Iowa St., Kansas, Nebraska, Texas
4Big EastConnecticut, Boston College, Notre Dame, Rutgers
4Big TenPurdue, Illinois, Ohio St., Penn St.
4Conference USATulane, Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette
4Pacific-10UCLA, Arizona, Oregon, Stanford
3Atlantic 10St. Joseph's, Virginia Tech, Xavier
2America EastNortheastern, Maine
2Missouri ValleyEvansville, Missouri St.
2Sun BeltLouisiana Tech, FIU
2West CoastSt. Mary's, Santa Clara
2Western AthleticSMU, Colorado St.
1Big SkyCal St. Northridge
1Big SouthLiberty
1Big WestUC Santa Barb.
1ColonialOld Dominion
1IvyDartmouth
1Metro AtlanticSt. Peter's
1Mid-AmericanToledo
1Mid-ContinentOral Roberts
1Mid-EasternFlorida A&M
1Midwestern CollegiateGreen Bay
1NortheastSt. Francis (PA)
1Ohio ValleyTennessee Tech
1PatriotHoly Cross
1SouthernAppalachian St.
1SouthlandStephen F. Austin
1SouthwesternGrambling
1Trans AmericaUCF

1999 NCAA tournament schedule and venues

Norfolk
Knoxville
Durham
Blacksburg
Athens
Clemson
Storrs
Ames
Chapel Hill
Piscataway
West Lafayette
Lubbock
Baton Rouge
Los Angeles
Ruston
Fort Collins
1999 NCAA NCAA first and second round venues
Normal
Los Angeles
Cincinnati
Greensboro
San Jose
1999 NCAA regionals and Final Four

In 1999, the field remained at 64 teams. The teams were seeded, and assigned to four geographic regions, with seeds 1-16 in each region. In Round 1, seeds 1 and 16 faced each other, as well as seeds 2 and 15, seeds 3 and 14, seeds 4 and 13, seeds 5 and 12, seeds 6 and 11, seeds 7 and 10, and seeds 8 and 9. In the first two rounds, the top four seeds were given the opportunity to host the first-round game. In all cases, the higher seed accepted the opportunity.

First and Second rounds

The following lists the region, host school, venue and the sixteen first and second round locations:[9]

Regional semifinals and finals

The Regionals, named for the general location, were held from March 20 to March 22 at these sites:

Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four held March 26 and March 28 in San Jose, California at the San Jose Arena

Bids by state

The sixty-four teams came from thirty-one states. California had the most teams with six bids. Nineteen states did not have any teams receiving bids.[8]

NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 1999
BidsStateTeams
6CaliforniaCal St. Northridge, St. Mary's, UC Santa Barb., UCLA, Santa Clara, Stanford
4FloridaFlorida A&M, UCF, FIU, Florida
4LouisianaGrambling, Louisiana Tech, Tulane, LSU
4North CarolinaAppalachian St., Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina St.
4OhioToledo, Cincinnati, Ohio St., Xavier
4TexasSMU, Stephen F. Austin, Texas Tech, Texas
4VirginiaLiberty, Old Dominion, Virginia, Virginia Tech
3IndianaEvansville, Purdue, Notre Dame
3MassachusettsHoly Cross, Northeastern, Boston College
2AlabamaAlabama, Auburn
2KentuckyKentucky, Louisville
2New JerseySt. Peter's, Rutgers
3PennsylvaniaSt. Joseph's, Penn St., St Francis
2TennesseeTennessee, Tennessee Tech
2WisconsinGreen Bay, Marquette
1ArizonaArizona
1ColoradoColorado St.
1ConnecticutConnecticut
1GeorgiaGeorgia
1IllinoisIllinois
1IowaIowa St.
1KansasKansas
1MaineMaine
1MississippiMississippi St.
1MissouriMissouri St.
1NebraskaNebraska
1New HampshireDartmouth
1OklahomaOral Roberts
1OregonOregon
1South CarolinaClemson

Brackets

Data source[1]

* – Denotes overtime period

East Region – Greensboro, North Carolina

First round
March 12 and 13
Second round
March 14 and 15
Regional semifinals
March 20
Regional finals
March 22
            
1Tennessee113
16Appalachian State54
1Tennessee89
Knoxville, Tennessee – Sat/Mon
8Boston College62
8Boston College72
9Ohio State59
1Tennessee68
4Virginia Tech52
5Auburn69
12Texas61
5Auburn61
Blacksburg, Virginia – Sat/Mon
4Virginia Tech76
4Virginia Tech73
13St. Peter's48
1Tennessee63
3Duke69
6Tulane72
11Saint Joseph's83
11Saint Joseph's60
Durham, North Carolina – Sat/Mon
3Duke66
3Duke79
14Holy Cross51
3Duke76
2Old Dominion63
7Stanford58
10Maine60
10Maine62
Norfolk, Virginia – Fri/Sun
2Old Dominion72
2Old Dominion74
15Tennessee Tech48

Mideast Region – Cincinnati

First round
March 12 and 13
Second round
March 14 and 15
Regional semifinals
March 20
Regional finals
March 22
            
1Connecticut97
16St. Francis (PA)46
1Connecticut86
Storrs, Connecticut – Fri/Sun
8Xavier84
8Xavier85
9Florida International71
1Connecticut58
4Iowa State64
5Oregon65
12Cincinnati56
5Oregon70
Ames, Iowa – Fri/Sun
4Iowa State85
4Iowa State74
13Santa Clara61
4Iowa State71
3Georgia89
6Toledo76
11SMU91
11SMU55
Athens, Georgia – Sat/Mon
3Georgia68
3Georgia73
14Liberty52
3Georgia67
2Clemson54
7Illinois69
10Louisville67
7Illinois51
Clemson, South Carolina – Fri/Sun
2Clemson63
2Clemson76
15Florida A&M45

Midwest Region – Normal, Illinois

First round
March 12 and 13
Second round
March 14 and 15
Regional semifinals
March 20
Regional finals
March 22
            
1Purdue68
16Oral Roberts48
1Purdue55
West Lafayette, Indiana – Sat/Mon
9Kansas41
8Marquette58
9Kansas64
1Purdue82
4North Carolina59
5Alabama80
12Grambling State68
5Alabama56
Chapel Hill, North Carolina – Fri/Sun
4North Carolina70
4North Carolina64
13Northeastern55
1Purdue75
3Rutgers62
6Arizona87*
11Florida84
6Arizona47
Piscataway, New Jersey – Fri/Sun
3Rutgers90
3Rutgers84
14Dartmouth70
3Rutgers53
2Texas Tech42
7Mississippi State57
10NC State76
10NC State78
Lubbock, Texas – Sat/Mon
2Texas Tech85
2Texas Tech80
15Stephen F. Austin54

West Region – Los Angeles

First round
March 12 and 13
Second round
March 14 and 15
Regional semifinals
March 20
Regional finals
March 22
            
1Louisiana Tech90
16UCF48
1Louisiana Tech79
Ruston, Louisiana – Fri/Sun
8Penn State62
8Penn State82
9Virginia69
1Louisiana Tech73
4LSU52
5Notre Dame61
12St. Mary's (CA)57
5Notre Dame64
Baton Rouge, Louisiana – Sat/Mon
4LSU74
4LSU78
13Evansville69
1Louisiana Tech88
3UCLA62
6Kentucky98
11Nebraska92
6Kentucky63
Los Angeles California – Sat/Mon
3UCLA87
3UCLA76
14Green Bay69
3UCLA77
2Colorado State68
7SW Missouri State72
10UC Santa Barbara70
7SW Missouri State70
Fort Collins, Colorado – Fri/Sun
2Colorado State86
2Colorado State71
15Cal State Northridge59

Final Four – San Jose, California

National semifinals
March 26
National championship
March 28
      
E3Duke81
ME3Georgia69
E3Duke45
MW1Purdue62
MW1Purdue77
W1Louisiana Tech63

E-East; ME-Mideast; MW-Midwest; W-West.

Record by conference

Fourteen conferences had more than one bid, or at least one win in NCAA Tournament play:[8]

Conference# of BidsRecordWin %Round
of 32
Sweet
Sixteen
Elite
Eight
Final
Four
Championship
Game
Southeastern812–8.6006321
Atlantic Coast510–5.66743111
Big 1256–5.545321
Big Ten48–3.72731111
Big East47–4.636421
Pacific-1045–4.556311
Conference USA40–4
Atlantic 1034–3.57131
Sun Belt24–2.6671111
Western Athletic23–2.60021
America East21–2.3331
Missouri Valley21–2.3331
West Coast20–2
Colonial12–1.66711

Sixteen conferences went 0-1: Big Sky Conference, Big South Conference, Big West Conference, Ivy League, MAAC, MAC, Mid-Continent, MEAC, Midwestern Collegiate, Northeast Conference, Ohio Valley Conference, Patriot League, Southern Conference, Southland, SWAC, and Trans America[8]

All-Tournament team

Game officials

  • Scott Yarbrough (semifinal)
  • Kim Balque(semifinal)
  • Dennis DeMayo (semifinal)
  • Sally Bell (semifinal)
  • Stan Gaxiola (semifinal)
  • Lisa Mattingly (semifinal)
  • Melissa Barlow (final)
  • Bob Trammell (final)
  • Teresa Dahlem (final) [8]

See also

Notes