The WAC women's basketball tournament is the conference championship tournament in basketball for the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). The WAC has held a postseason tournament to crown a women's basketball champion every year since 1991. At first the regular season champion hosted it but at its height, the tournament was held at larger urban venues. With the departure of the Mountain West Conference teams, the tournament had returned to campus, with each game in the tournament being held in one campus venue, each year. Since 2011, the tournament has been held at the Orleans Arena, part of the Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.[1]
| WAC women's basketball tournament | |
|---|---|
| Conference basketball championship | |
| Sport | College basketball |
| Conference | Western Athletic Conference |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| Format | Single-elimination tournament |
| Current stadium | Orleans Arena |
| Current location | Paradise, Nevada |
| Played | 1991–present |
| Last contest | 2024 |
| Current champion | California Baptist |
| Most championships | Louisiana Tech (5) |
| Official website | WACSports.com Women's Basketball |
The winner of the WAC tournament is normally guaranteed a berth into the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament every year. An exception to this was in 2021, when California Baptist won the WAC tournament but was ineligible for the NCAA tournament because the school was in the midst of its transition from NCAA Division II to Division I.
Starting with the 2023 tournament, the WAC adopted a new seeding system based on advanced team metrics, developed in large part by statistical guru Ken Pomeroy. Tournament entry will still be based on conference record.[2]
Results
edit| Year | Winner | Score | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Utah | 86–69 | Creighton | Arena-Auditorium (Laramie, Wyoming) |
| 1992 | Creighton | 74–63 | Utah | Salt Lake City |
| 1993 | BYU | 53–50 | Utah | Delta Center (Salt Lake City) |
| 1994 | San Diego State | 51–47 | Colorado State | Delta Center (Salt Lake City) |
| 1995 | Utah | 64–57 | San Diego State | The Pit (Albuquerque, New Mexico) |
| 1996 | Colorado State | 72–65 | New Mexico | The Pit (Albuquerque, New Mexico) |
| 1997 | San Diego State | 56–50 | Utah | Thomas & Mack Center (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 1998 | New Mexico | 69–48 | Rice | Thomas & Mack Center (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 1999 | SMU | 65–49 | Colorado State | Thomas & Mack Center (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2000 | Rice | 71–67 | SMU | Selland Arena (Fresno, California) |
| 2001 | TCU | 66–58 | Hawaii | Reynolds Center (Tulsa, Oklahoma) |
| 2002 | Louisiana Tech | 53–50 | Hawaii | Reynolds Center (Tulsa, Oklahoma) |
| 2003 | Louisiana Tech | 89–57 | Fresno State | Reynolds Center (Tulsa, Oklahoma) |
| 2004 | Louisiana Tech | 76–52 | Rice | Save Mart Center (Fresno, California) |
| 2005 | Rice | 86–66 | Louisiana Tech | Lawlor Events Center (Reno, Nevada) |
| 2006 | Louisiana Tech | 63–39 | New Mexico State | Lawlor Events Center (Reno, Nevada) |
| 2007 | Boise State | 49–39 | New Mexico State | Pan American Center (Las Cruces, New Mexico) |
| 2008 | Fresno State | 72–56 | New Mexico State | Pan American Center (Las Cruces, New Mexico) |
| 2009 | Fresno State | 56–49 | Nevada | Lawlor Events Center (Reno, Nevada) |
| 2010 | Louisiana Tech | 68–66 | Fresno State | Lawlor Events Center (Reno, Nevada) |
| 2011 | Fresno State | 78–76 | Louisiana Tech | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2012 | Fresno State | 89–61 | Louisiana Tech | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2013 | Idaho | 67–64 | Seattle | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2014 | Idaho | 75–67 | Seattle | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2015 | New Mexico State | 70–52 | Texas-Pan American | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2016 | New Mexico State | 80–53 | Texas-Rio Grande Valley | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2017 | New Mexico State | 63–48 | Seattle | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2018 | Seattle | 57–54 | Cal State Bakersfield | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2019 | New Mexico State | 76–73 2OT | Texas–Rio Grande Valley | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | |||
| 2021 | California Baptist | 78–60 | Grand Canyon | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2022 | Stephen F. Austin | 74–57 | Grand Canyon | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2023 | Southern Utah | 82–73 | California Baptist | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
| 2024 | California Baptist | 75–74 | Stephen F. Austin | Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada) |
Records
edit| School | Finals Record | Finals Appearances | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana Tech | 5–3 | 8 | 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2010 |
| New Mexico State | 4–3 | 7 | 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 |
| Fresno State | 4–2 | 6 | 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012 |
| Utah | 2–3 | 5 | 1991, 1995 |
| Rice | 2–2 | 4 | 2000, 2005 |
| San Diego State | 2–1 | 3 | 1994, 1997 |
| California Baptist | 2–1 | 3 | 2021, 2024 |
| Idaho | 2–0 | 2 | 2013, 2014 |
| Seattle | 1–3 | 4 | 2018 |
| Colorado State | 1–2 | 3 | 1996 |
| SMU | 1–1 | 2 | 1999 |
| New Mexico | 1–1 | 2 | 1998 |
| Creighton | 1–1 | 2 | 1992 |
| Stephen F. Austin | 1–1 | 2 | 2022 |
| Boise State | 1–0 | 1 | 2007 |
| Southern Utah | 1–0 | 1 | 2023 |
| TCU | 1–0 | 1 | 2001 |
| BYU | 1–0 | 1 | 1993 |
| Texas–Rio Grande Valley | 0–3 | 3 | |
| Hawai'i | 0–2 | 2 | |
| Grand Canyon | 0–2 | 2 | |
| Cal State Bakersfield | 0–1 | 1 | |
| Nevada | 0–1 | 1 |
Note: 2021 champion California Baptist began a transition from NCAA Division II in 2018 and thus was not eligible for NCAA-sponsored postseason play until the 2022–23 season.
- Schools highlighted in pink are former WAC members as of the current 2022–23 WAC season.
- Records for Texas–Rio Grande Valley include those of Texas–Pan American. UTRGV was formally founded in 2013 and began operation in 2015 via the merger of UTPA and UT Brownsville. The UTPA athletic program and its history were transferred to UTRGV.
- Among current WAC members, four have competed in at least one WAC tournament but have yet to reach the title game: Abilene Christian, Sam Houston, UT Arlington, and Utah Valley. Of these schools, only Utah Valley has competed in more than one WAC tournament. The 2021–22 season was the first for Abilene Christian and Sam Houston. UT Arlington competed in the 2013 tournament in the only season of its first WAC tenure; it rejoined for the 2022–23 season.
- Two other members, Tarleton and Utah Tech (renamed from Dixie State before the 2022–23 season), have yet to compete in a WAC tournament. Both schools started transitions from NCAA Division II to Division I in 2020. Under then-current WAC rules, transitional schools were ineligible to compete in the WAC tournament until their third transitional season. (This was changed in advance of the 2022–23 season to allow transitional schools to compete in the tournament upon joining the WAC.) Both schools are ineligible for NCAA-sponsored postseason play until 2024–25.
- Southern Utah is playing its first WAC season in 2022–23.
- New Mexico State and Sam Houston will leave the WAC after the 2022–23 season for Conference USA.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Courtesy: New Mexico State University (2009-06-24). "New Mexico State Athletics - 2011 and 2012 WAC Basketball Tournaments Headed to Las Vegas". Nmstatesports.com. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
- ^ "WAC Adopts Seeding System for Basketball Tournaments" (Press release). Western Athletic Conference. July 15, 2022. Retrieved September 17, 2022.