It’s already been a historic season for Michigan women’s basketball.
Now, the Wolverines will look to make it a banner season. Their quest for their first-ever Big Ten championship begins this week at the conference tournament in Indianapolis.
Michigan has never won a Big Ten championship, regular season or tournament. UM is the No. 3 seed in this year’s tournament, and will play its first game in the quarterfinals at 9 p.m. Friday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Michigan will play either No. 6 Maryland, No. 11 Purdue or No. 14 Oregon.
The semifinals are Saturday, and the championship game is Sunday, March 8.
“They want to win championships and they are on a mission to do that,” Michigan head coach Kim Barnes Arico said after Saturday’s 87-69 victory over No. 14 Maryland at Crisler Center on Saturday.
“We know everyone now. We’ve played everyone now. We know what every team is going to bring.”
Michigan, ranked No. 8 in the country, set program records for regular-season wins (24) and Big Ten wins (15), and closed the regular season with three wins over ranked teams (Michigan State, Ohio State, Maryland), sandwiched around a loss to nationally ranked Iowa.
The Big Ten women’s tournament starts Wednesday.
No. 15 Michigan State (22-7, 11-7) is the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten tournament and opens Thursday against either Illinois or Wisconsin, with the Spartans’ game set for a 6:30 p.m. tip-off.
The Spartans, under third-year head coach Robyn Fralick, dropped five of their last eight regular-season games, including two to Michigan, and Sunday’s finale, 87-68 to No. 13 Ohio State at Breslin Center.
All five of Michigan State’s losses in that span were to teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.
“This league also makes you ready for the postseason,” Fralick said, “because you see all the best teams.”
UCLA (27-1, 18-0) is the top seed in the Big Ten tournament, and No. 2 nationally.
Both the Wolverines and Spartans are heading to the NCAA Tournament and are battling in Indianapolis for seeding. Michigan is a near-lock to host first- and second-round NCAA Tournament games.
Big Ten women’s tournament
At Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
WEDNESDAY
➤ No. 12 Nebraska (18-11, 7-11) vs. No. 13 Indiana (17-13, 6-12), 3:30, Peacock
➤ No. 10 Illinois (19-10, 9-9) vs. No. 15 Wisconsin (13-16, 5-13), 6, Peacock
➤ No. 11 Oregon (20-11, 8-10) vs. No. 14 Purdue (13-16, 5-13), 8:30, Peacock
THURSDAY
➤ No. 8 Washington (20-9, 10-8) vs. No. 9 Southern Cal (17-12, 9-9), noon, BTN
➤ No. 5 Ohio State (24-6, 13-5) vs. Nebraska/Indiana, 2:30, BTN
➤ No. 7 Michigan State (22-7, 11-7) vs. Illinois/Wisconsin, 6:30, BTN
➤ No. 6 Maryland (23-7, 11-7) vs. Oregon/Purdue, 9, BTN
FRIDAY
➤ No. 1 UCLA (28-1, 18-0) vs. Washington/Southern Cal, noon, BTN
➤ No. 4 Minnesota (22-7, 13-5) vs. Nebraska/Indiana/Ohio State, 2:30, BTN
➤ No. 2 Iowa (24-5, 15-3) vs. Illinois/Wisconsin/Michigan State, 6:30, BTN
➤ No .3 Michigan (24-5, 15-3) vs. Oregon/Purdue/Maryland, 9, BTN
SATURDAY
➤ Semifinals, 2 and 4:30, BTN
SUNDAY, MARCH 8
➤ Championship game, 2:15, CBS
tpaul@detroitnews.com
@tonypaul1984
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: No. 8 UM, No. 15 MSU go banner hunting; Big Ten women’s schedule here
Reporting by Tony Paul, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
