As the University of Toledo women’s basketball team gathered at Savage Arena on Monday night to learn its NCAA tournament fate, the Rockets got a bit of an unexpected surprise from the tournament committee.
In an apparent nod the strength of the Mid-American Conference and a challenging nonconference schedule, Toledo (25-8) earned a No. 10 seed and will face No. 7 seed Creighton (23-7) on Friday in Corvallis, Oregon.
“This will be a great matchup,” UT coach Tricia Cullop said. “I love this seed. I really thought today in my office I had 11 through 13 marked off and I had who might be those seeds. I’m so pleased that it’s a 10-seed. I think that is a huge compliment for the league and for Toledo and I’m excited for our program.”
The Toledo players and coaches sat in the front two rows of stands with a large group fans behind them, while the band and cheerleaders added to the atmosphere as the NCAA selection show on ESPN was broadcast over the main scoreboard.
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Fresh off winning four MAC tournament games in six days on the way to their first conference tournament title since 2001, the Rockets knew their name would be called at some point during the selection show. But that didn’t make the moment any less exciting for the players and fans.
“I didn’t even know who we were playing and what seed we were, just seeing our name up there is a dream come true,” UT junior Jay-Ann Bravo-Harriott said. “It’s amazing. Not many people get to experience this and it hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
Toledo, now winners of eight straight games, defeated fourth seed Northern Illinois 82-71 in the finals of the MAC tournament on Saturday. Sophomore Mikaela Boyd, named tournament MVP, had 27 points and 14 rebounds in the win over the Huskies at Quicken Loans Arena.
The Rockets finished the regular season MAC schedule with a record of 12-6, which had Toledo tied for third place in the MAC West with Northern Illinois. Central Michigan won the MAC West followed by second place Ball State.
“I was really surprised that we were 10, because I know people were predicting us to be around an 11 to 14 seed,” UT senior Janice Monakana said. “It’s just amazing that we were 10 and people recognized the talent we have with this team and the Mid- American Conference.”
Creighton will have a bit of a familiar feel for Cullop as she used to battle with longtime Blue Jays’ head coach Jim Flanery in the Missouri Valley Conference when she was head coach at Evansville.
“One thing that is cool about that matchup, is that I coached against Jim Flanery the whole time I was in the Missouri Valley Conference,” Cullop said. “I don’t know his current team, but I do know his style. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him. He’s a great coach and just a wonderful person and I’m looking forward to seeing him again.”
Toledo is on quite a roll as they enter the NCAA tournament and hope to carry that momentum into a possible first-round upset.
The winner of the Toledo-Creighton matchup will move on to face No. 2 seed Oregon State or No. 15 seed Long Beach State.
While the Rockets will soon be back to work preparing for the Blue Jays, the coaches and players were able to soak in the sights and sounds on Monday night at Savage Arena.
“We have waited for this moment for a long time,” Monakana said. “A lot of people have worked hard for us to be here. I’m just appreciative of the moment and humbled by it and hopefully this is something that is consistent with this program.”
T-shirts on sale
Toledo women’s basketball fans can celebrate the team’s 2016-17 Mid-American Conference tournament title with a souvenir MAC Championship T-shirt on sale now at Rocky’s Locker and online at UTRockets.com.
The gray T-shirt is $18 and comes in sizes from small to XXXL.
Rocky’s Locker is located in the Sullivan Athletic Complex at Savage Arena.
Contact Brian Buckey at: bbuckey@theblade.com or 419-724-6110.
First Published March 14, 2017, 4:13 a.m.
