OKC, Big 12 Awarded 2009 Regional

INDIANAPOLIS--The NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee has selected the first- and second-round and regional sites for the 2009 and 2010 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championships and those sites have been approved by the Administrative Committee of the NCAA Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet.

The Big 12 has been awarded regionals in 2009 and 2010. The conference will host the 2009 regional in Oklahoma City's Ford Center and a 2010 regional in Kansas City's Sprint Center, which is currently under construction. In addition, the Big 12 will also host a 2008 Regional in the Ford Center in a transfer from the University of Oklahoma.

"To be honest, I am excited for the fans," said Oklahoma head coach Sherri Coale. "It could be a decisive advantage to have our home fans pack the Ford Center for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds. It is a tremendous opportunity and stage for the state, the conference and the University of Oklahoma."

In addition to the two regionals in 2008 and 2009, the Big 12 Basketball Championships are coming to OKC in 2007. The women's tournament will be played at the Cox Convention Center, while the men's tourney will be held at the Ford Center.

The announcement also means that Sooner standouts Courtney and Ashley Paris could play in postseason tournaments on their home turf during the final three years of their collegiate careers.

“The Big 12 Conference is certainly pleased to serve as a regional host for the 2009 and 2010 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championships,” said Big 12 Associate Commissioner Dru Hancock.. “It's an honor to partner with Kansas City and Oklahoma City for these outstanding events and we look forward to the opportunity,”

“Additionally, we are pleased that the NCAA Division I Committee recognizes the rich basketball communities at Texas Tech University and the University of Texas by awarding them first-round sites,” Hancock added. “The Big 12 has established itself as a prominent conference in women's basketball by leading the country in attendance for several years. Lubbock and Austin will provide a great environment for these games.”

This marks the first NCAA women's basketball postseason events hosted by the league office since hosting the 1998 Women's Final Four in Kansas City's Kemper Arena. In addition to the regionals awarded to the Big 12 office, Texas Tech will host first and second rounds in 2009 while Texas hosts first and second rounds in 2010. Texas will also host first and second rounds in 2007 with Iowa State serving as host of 2008 first and second rounds in Des Moines. Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech have all hosted first and second rounds since the NCAA began using predetermined sites in 2003. Prior to 2003 the top 16 seeds hosted first and second rounds at their home sites.

Cities chosen to host first- and second-round games in 2009 include Albuquerque, N.M.; Baton Rouge, La.; College Park, Md.; Columbus, Ohio; Duluth, Ga.; Lubbock, Texas; Los Angeles, Calif.; and Piscataway, N.J. The four regionals are Berkeley, Calif.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; Raleigh, N.C.; and Trenton, N.J.

The first- and second-rounds of the 2010 championship will be played in Austin, Texas; Berkeley, Calif.; Knoxville, Tenn.; Minneapolis, Minn.; Norfolk, Va.; Notre Dame, Ind.; Tempe, Ariz.; and Trenton, N.J. The four regional sites are Dayton, Ohio; Kansas City, Mo.; Memphis, Tenn.; and Sacramento, Calif.

St. Louis will host the 2009 Women's Final Four and San Antonio will serve as the host city in 2010.

“The high level of interest in our championship that we found from cities, institutions and conferences across the country was very pleasing to our committee,” said Joni Comstock, Director of Athletics at American University and chair of the Division I Women's Basketball Committee. “To be able to get a good blend of cities that have past hosting experience in combination with a number of new cities and venues is good for the continued growth of the game of women's basketball and our championship.”

The following first- and second-round sites will host games either Saturday, March 21, and Monday, March 23 or Sunday, March 22 and Tuesday, March 24, 2009:

The Pit/Bob King Court (15,932)
University of New Mexico - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Pete Maravich Assembly Center (13,394)
Louisiana State University - Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Comcast Center (17,950)
University of Maryland, College Park - College Park, Maryland

Value City Arena at the Jerome Schottenstein (18,500)
The Ohio State University Center - Columbus, Ohio

Arena at Gwinnett (13,100)
University of Georgia - Duluth, Georgia

United Spirit Arena (15,098)
Texas Tech University - Lubbock, Texas

Galen Events Center (10,244)
University of Southern California - Los Angeles, California

Louis Brown Athletic Center (8,000)
Rutgers University - Piscataway, New Jersey

The following regional sites will host games either Saturday, March 28, and Monday, March 30 or Sunday, March 29 and Tuesday, March 31, 2009:

Haas Pavilion (11,896)
University of California, Berkeley - Berkeley, California

Ford Center (18,929)
Big 12 Conference - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

RBC Center (19,722)
North Carolina State - Raleigh, North Carolina

Sovereign Bank Arena (8,500)
MAAC and Rider University - Trenton, N.J.

The following first- and second-round sites will host games either Saturday, March 20, and Monday, March 22 or Sunday, March 21 and Tuesday, March 23, 2010:

Frank Erwin Special Events Center (16,755)
University of Texas - Austin, Texas

Haas Pavilion (11,896)
University of California - Berkeley, California

Thompson-Boling Arena (25,000)
University of Tennessee - Knoxville, Tennessee

Williams Arena (14,699)
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities - Minneapolis, Minnesota

Constant Convocation Center (8,639)
Old Dominion University - Norfolk, Virginia

Joyce Center (11,300)
University of Notre Dame - Notre Dame, Indiana

Wells Fargo Arena (14,141)
Arizona State University - Tempe, Arizona

Sovereign Bank Arena (8,500)
MAAC and Rider University - Trenton, N.J.

The following regional sites will host games either Saturday, March 27, and Monday, March 29 or Sunday, March 28 and Tuesday, March 30, 2010:

University of Dayton Arena (13,000)
University of Dayton - Dayton, Ohio

Sprint Center (18,500)
Big 12 Conference - Kansas City, Missouri

FedEx Forum (18,200)
University of Memphis - Memphis, Tennessee

ARCO Arena (16,461)
The University of the Pacific - Sacramento, California