NCAA Selects Division I First And Second-Recond, Regional Sites For 2012

Oct. 26, 2010

 

NCAA Release

INDIANAPOLIS -
The NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee has selected the first- and second-round and regional sites for the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship and those sites have been approved by the Administrative Committee of the NCAA Division I Championships/Sports Management Cabinet.
    
Cities chosen to host first- and second-round games in 2012 include Ames, Iowa; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Bowling Green, Ohio; Bridgeport, Connecticut; Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; College Park, Maryland; College Station, Texas; Little Rock, Arkansas; Nashville, Tennessee; Norfolk, Virginia; Norman, Oklahoma; Notre Dame, Indiana; Spokane, Washington; Tallahassee, Florida; and West Lafayette, Indiana.  The four selected regional sites are Des Moines, Iowa; Fresno, California; Kingston, Rhode Island; and Raleigh, North Carolina.
    
"As a committee we are excited that in 2012 our championship will be hosted by institutions from 14 different conferences, with College Station, Little Rock and Kingston hosting for the first time," said Marilyn McNeil, vice president and director of athletics at Monmouth University and chair of the Division I Women's Basketball Committee.  "Having this blend of sites is important to the committee as we continue to look for ways to grow our game."

The following first- and second-round sites will host games either Saturday, March 17, and Monday, March 19 or Sunday, March 18 and Tuesday, March 20, 2012 (dates to be determined in June 2011):

Site Host(s)
Hilton Coliseum Iowa State University
Ames, Iowa
 
Pete Maravich Assembly Center Louisiana State University
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
 
Stroh Center Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, Ohio
 
Arena at Harbor Yard Fairfield University
Bridgeport, Connecticut
 
Carmichael Arena University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
 
Allstate Arena DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois
 
Comcast Center University of Maryland, College Park
College Park, Maryland
 
Reed Arena Texas A&M University, College Station
College Station, Texas
 
Jack Stephens Center University of Arkansas, Little Rock
Little Rock, Arkansas
 
Memorial Gymnasium Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tennessee
 
Ted Constant Center Old Dominion University
Norfolk, Virginia
 
Lloyd Noble Center University of Oklahoma
Norman, Oklahoma
 
Joyce Center University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, Indiana
 
McCarthey Athletic Center Gonzaga University
Spokane, Washington
 
Tucker Center Florida State University
Tallahassee, Florida
 
Mackey Arena Purdue University
West Lafayette, Indiana

The following regional sites will host games either Saturday, March 24 and Monday, March 26 or Sunday, March 25 and Tuesday, March 27, 2012 (dates to be determined in June, 2011):

Site Host(s)
Wells Fargo Arena University of Northern Iowa
Des Moines, Iowa
 
SaveMart Center California State University, Fresno
Fresno, California
 
The Ryan Center University of Rhode Island
Kingston, Rhode Island
 
RBC Center North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina

About the NCAA and Division I Women's Basketball

The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletic opportunities for more than 400,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities.  Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships in Divisions I, II and III sports.  Visit www.ncaa.org and www.ncaa.com for more details about the Association, its goals and members and corporate partnerships that help support programs for student-athletes.  

NCAA women's basketball is characterized by strong fundamentals, high quality of play, sportsmanship, role model student-athletes and family oriented entertainment. The latest NCAA Graduation Success Rate figures show 83 percent of NCAA Division I women's basketball players graduate. In terms of the NCAA Academic Progress Rate, which measures term-by-term academic success, the overall score is 966, well above the NCAA benchmark of 925.

For the latest news in regard to the Women's Final Four, visit www.ncaa.com/finalfour.