The Conference USA women's basketball tournament is held annually following the end of the regular season of NCAA Division I women's basketball.
| Conference USA women's basketball tournament | |
|---|---|
| Conference basketball championship | |
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| Sport | College basketball |
| Conference | Conference USA |
| Number of teams | 10 (as of 2024–25) |
| Format | Single-elimination tournament |
| Current stadium | Propst Arena |
| Current location | Huntsville, Alabama |
| Played | 1996–present |
| Last contest | 2024 |
| Current champion | Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (5) |
| Most championships | Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders & Tulane Green Wave (5) |
| Official website | ConferenceUSA.com |
The tournament has been played every year since the inception of Conference USA in 1996. The winner receives an automatic berth into the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.
Tournament champions
edit| Year | Winner | Score | Opponent | Site | MVP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Memphis | 93–87 (OT) | DePaul | Bartow Arena, Birmingham, Alabama | Keeta Matthews, Memphis |
| 1997 | Tulane | 76–53 | Marquette | Alumni Hall, Chicago, Illinois | Mary Lowry, Tulane |
| 1998 | Memphis | 79–75 | Louisville | Louisville Gardens, Louisville, Kentucky | LaTonya Johnson, Memphis |
| 1999 | Tulane | 58–44 | Cincinnati | Fogelman Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana | Grace Daley, Tulane |
| 2000 | Tulane | 73–70 | UAB | Freedom Hall, Louisville, Kentucky | Janell Burse, Tulane |
| 2001 | Tulane | 63–50 | Cincinnati | U.S. Cellular Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Valerie King, Cincinnati |
| 2002 | Cincinnati | 68–56 | Tulane | DePaul Athletic Center, Chicago, Illinois | Valerie King, Cincinnati |
| 2003 | TCU | 85–76 (OT) | Cincinnati | The Pyramid, Memphis, Tennessee | Sandora Irvin, TCU |
| 2004 | Houston | 86–75 | TCU | Daniel-Meyer Coliseum, Fort Worth, Texas | Chandi Jones, Houston |
| 2005 | TCU | 60–41 | Louisville | Dale F. Halton Arena, Charlotte, North Carolina | Sandora Irvin, TCU |
| 2006 | Tulsa | 55–52 | Rice | Moody Coliseum, Dallas, Texas | Jillian Robbins, Tulsa |
| 2007 | East Carolina | 79–70 | Rice | Reynolds Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma | LaCoya Terry, East Carolina |
| 2008 | SMU | 73–57 | UTEP | UCF Arena, Orlando, Florida | Janielle Dodds, SMU |
| 2009 | UCF | 65–54 (OT) | Southern Miss | Fogelman Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana | Emma Cannon, UCF |
| 2010 | Tulane | 62–54 | UAB | Reynolds Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma | Danielle Nunn, Tulane |
| 2011 | UCF | 85–73 | Tulane | Don Haskins Center Memorial Gym, El Paso, Texas |
Jelisa Caldwell, UCF |
| 2012 | UTEP | 69–65 | Tulane | FedExForum Elma Roane Fieldhouse, Memphis, Tennessee |
Gloria Brown, UTEP |
| 2013 | Tulsa | 75–66 | UCF | BOK Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma | Taleya Mayberry, Tulsa |
| 2014 | Middle Tennessee | 84–55 | Tulsa | Don Haskins Center Memorial Gym, El Paso, Texas |
Ebony Rowe, Middle Tennessee |
| 2015 | Western Kentucky | 60–57 | Southern Miss | Legacy Arena, Birmingham, Alabama | Alexis Govan, Western Kentucky |
| 2016 | Middle Tennessee | 70–54 | Old Dominion | Legacy Arena, Birmingham, Alabama | Ty Petty, Middle Tennessee |
| 2017 | Western Kentucky | 67–56 | Southern Miss | Legacy Arena, Birmingham, Alabama | Kendall Noble, Western Kentucky |
| 2018 | Western Kentucky | 72–57 | UAB | The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas | Tashia Brown, Western Kentucky |
| 2019 | Rice | 69–54 | Middle Tennessee | The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas | Nancy Mulkey, Rice |
| 2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||
| 2021 | Middle Tennessee | 68–65 | Rice | The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas | Anastasia Hayes, Middle Tennessee |
| 2022 | Charlotte | 68–63 | Louisiana Tech | The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas | Octavia Jett-Wilson, Charlotte |
| 2023 | Middle Tennessee | 82-70 | Western Kentucky | The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas | Jalynn Gregory, Middle Tennessee |
| 2024 | Middle Tennessee | 67–51 | Liberty | Propst Arena, Huntsville, Alabama | Savannah Wheeler, Middle Tennessee |
| 2025 | Propst Arena, Huntsville, Alabama | ||||
Tournament Championships by School
editCurrent members
editMembers as of July 1, 2024. Kennesaw State, in italics, will play its first CUSA season in 2024–25.
| School | Championships | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Middle Tennessee | 5
|
2014, 2016, 2021, 2023, 2024
|
| Western Kentucky | 3
|
2015, 2017, 2018
|
| UTEP | 1
|
2012
|
| FIU | 0
|
|
| Jacksonville State | 0
|
|
| Kennesaw State | 0
|
|
| Liberty | 0
|
|
| Louisiana Tech | 0
|
|
| New Mexico State | 0
|
|
| Sam Houston | 0
|
Former members
editFormer members that have won the tournament as of July 1, 2024.
| School | Championships | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Tulane | 5
|
1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2010
|
| Memphis | 2
|
1996, 1998
|
| TCU | 2
|
2003, 2005
|
| Tulsa | 2
|
2006, 2013
|
| UCF | 2
|
2009, 2011
|
| Charlotte | 1
|
2022
|
| Cincinnati | 1
|
2002
|
| East Carolina | 1
|
2007
|
| Houston | 1
|
2004
|
| Rice | 1
|
2019
|
| SMU | 1
|
2008
|