American Conference/Ben Solomon

UCF, South Florida To Represent The American In The 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship

03.14.22

IRVING, Texas – Less than one week after winning its first American Athletic Conference women’s basketball tournament championship, UCF led a pair of American selections into the 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship during the NCAA selection show on Sunday. The Knights earned the No. 7 seed in the Bridgeport Region and will face No. 10 Florida on March 19 at 3:30 p.m. (ET) in Storrs, Connecticut on ESPNEWS, and South Florida claimed the ninth seed in the Greensboro Region and will face off with No. 8 Miami (Fla.) on March 18 at 11:30 a.m. (ET) in Columbia, South Carolina on ESPN2.
 
Multiple teams from The American have entered every NCAA Tournament that has been contested since the conference was reconstituted in 2013-14.
 
UCF (25-3) has won its last 13 games overall, claiming both the regular-season and tournament championships in The American for the first time. The Knights boast the top-ranked scoring defense in the country (47.5 points per game allowed) and have held opponents under 50 points on 17 occasions (16-1 record). Senior guard Diamond Battles was named the American Player of the Year, American Defensive Player of the Year and American Women’s Basketball Championship Most Outstanding Player during UCF’s run to a double league title. UCF is set for its seventh NCAA Tournament berth all-time and third trip to the dance under head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson.
 
South Florida (24-8) finished as the runner-up in both the regular-season standings and championship tournament in The American as the conference’s defending title holder. The Bulls owned a pair of wins against top 25 teams in the NCAA NET, including the top seed in the Spokane Regional, Stanford, during the regular season. South Florida will make its eighth all-time NCAA Tournament appearance and fifth as a member of The American, and the Bulls have advanced to the NCAA Second Round four times under head coach Jose Fernandez.
 
American Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball
2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship
 
NCAA First Round – Friday, March 18/Saturday, March 19
No. 7 UCF vs. No. 10 Florida – Bridgeport Region; Storrs, Connecticut (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPNEWS)
No. 8 Miami (Fla.) vs. No. 9 South Florida – Greensboro Region; Columbia, South Carolina (Friday, 11:30 a.m. ET, ESPN2)