1997 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

American college basketball tournament August 2023 March 2026 Women's 1997 1997WomensFinalFourLogo.jpg 150px 64 Riverfront Coliseum Cincinnati, Ohio Tennessee Volunteers 5th 7th 10th Old Dominion Monarchs 2nd 3rd Stanford Cardinal 6th Notre Dame Fighting Irish 1st Pat Summitt 5th Chamique Holdsclaw Tennessee The 1997 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 14, 1997, and concluded on March 30, 1997, when Tennessee won the national title. The Final Four was held at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati on March 28–30, 1997. Tennessee, Old Dominion, Stanford, and Notre Dame qualified for the Final Four. Tennessee and Old Dominion won their semi-final Final Four matchups and continued on to the championship. Tennessee defeated Old Dominion 68–59 for their fifth national title. Tournament records Field goal percentage – Kristin Folkl, Stanford, hit all eight field goal attempts in the semi-final game against Old Dominion, setting the record for field goal percentage in a Final Four game. Assists – Kellie Jolly, Tennessee, recorded eleven assists in the championship game against Old Dominion, setting the record for most assists in a Final Four game. Field goal percentage – Tennessee hit 29 of 49 field goals attempts (59.2%) in the championship game against Old Dominion, setting the record for the field goal percentage in a Final Four game. Qualifying teams – automatic Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the 1997 NCAA Tournament. Thirty conferences were eligible for an automatic bid to the 1997 NCAA tournament. Automatic bids     Record   Qualifying School Conference Regular Season Conference Seed Auburn University SEC 0.7 21–9 0.417 5–7 7 University of Colorado at Boulder Big 12 0.724 21–8 0.75 12–4 2 University of Connecticut Big East 1.03 30–0 1.018 18–0 1 University of Detroit Mercy Midwestern Collegiate 0.793 23–6 0.875 14–2 14 Drake University Missouri Valley Conference 0.767 23–7 0.778 14–4 13 Eastern Kentucky University Ohio Valley Conference 0.828 24–5 0.889 16–2 15 Florida International University Trans America 0.724 21–8 0.75 12–4 14 Grambling State University SWAC 0.828 24–5 1.014 14–0 14 Harvard University Ivy League 0.769 20–6 1.014 14–0 16 Howard University MEAC 0.828 24–5 1.018 18–0 16 University of Iowa Big Ten 0.607 17–11 0.563 9–7 9 Lehigh University Patriot League 0.517 15–14 0.583 7–5 16 Liberty University Big South Conference 0.759 22–7 0.643 9–5 16 Louisiana Tech University Sun Belt Conference 0.906 29–3 0.857 12–2 2 University of Maine America East 0.759 22–7 0.944 17–1 13 Marshall University Southern Conference 0.621 18–11 0.643 9–5 15 University of Montana Big Sky Conference 0.893 25–3 1.016 16–0 9 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ACC 0.931 27–2 0.938 15–1 1 Old Dominion University Colonial 0.967 29–1 1.016 16–0 1 San Diego State University WAC 0.793 23–6 0.938 15–1 11 University of San Francisco West Coast Conference 0.833 25–5 0.786 11–3 11 St. Francis (PA) Northeast Conference 0.655 19–10 0.889 16–2 15 Saint Joseph's University Atlantic 10 0.862 25–4 0.938 15–1 7 Saint Peter's College MAAC 0.893 25–3 1.014 14–0 15 Stanford University Pac-10 0.968 30–1 1.018 18–0 1 Texas State University Southland 0.607 17–11 0.688 11–5 14 University of Toledo MAC 0.9 27–3 0.889 16–2 10 Troy University Mid-Continent 0.793 23–6 0.813 13–3 13 Tulane University Conference USA 0.867 26–4 0.857 12–2 4 University of California, Santa Barbara Big West Conference 0.828 24–5 0.933 14–1 13 Qualifying teams – at-large Thirty-four additional teams were selected to complete the sixty-four invitations. At-large Bids     Record   Qualifying School Conference Regular Season Conference Seed University of Alabama Southeastern 0.793 23–6 0.833 10–2 2 University of Arizona Pacific-10 0.759 22–7 0.667 12–6 7 Clemson University Atlantic Coast 0.655 19–10 0.5 8–8 5 DePaul University Conference USA 0.714 20–8 0.714 10–4 12 Duke University Atlantic Coast 0.643 18–10 0.563 9–7 5 University of Florida Southeastern 0.724 21–8 0.75 9–3 3 The George Washington University Atlantic 10 0.833 25–5 1.016 16–0 5 University of Georgia Southeastern 0.815 22–5 0.917 11–1 2 University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Big Ten 0.759 22–7 0.75 12–4 4 Iowa State University Big 12 0.607 17–11 0.563 9–7 12 University of Kansas Big 12 0.828 24–5 0.875 14–2 3 Kansas State University Big 12 0.633 19–11 0.563 9–7 10 University of Louisville Conference USA 0.714 20–8 0.857 12–2 10 Louisiana State University Southeastern 0.852 23–4 0.75 9–3 4 Marquette University Conference USA 0.69 20–9 0.714 10–4 12 University of Maryland, College Park Atlantic Coast 0.667 18–9 0.563 9–7 9 University of Memphis Conference USA 0.786 22–6 0.857 12–2 11 Michigan State University Big Ten 0.75 21–7 0.75 12–4 8 North Carolina State University Atlantic Coast 0.633 19–11 0.563 9–7 8 Northwestern University Big Ten 0.63 17–10 0.563 9–7 12 University of Notre Dame Big East 0.818 27–6 0.944 17–1 6 University of Oregon Pacific-10 0.778 21–6 0.778 14–4 6 University of Portland West Coast 0.931 27–2 1.014 14–0 9 Purdue University Big Ten 0.615 16–10 0.75 12–4 8 University of Southern California Pacific-10 0.667 18–9 0.722 13–5 6 Stephen F. Austin State University Southland 0.871 27–4 1.016 16–0 7 University of Tennessee Southeastern 0.697 23–10 0.667 8–4 3 University of Texas at Austin Big 12 0.75 21–7 0.75 12–4 3 Texas Tech University Big 12 0.704 19–8 0.688 11–5 8 University of Utah Western Athletic 0.828 24–5 0.938 15–1 5 Vanderbilt University Southeastern 0.643 18–10 0.5 6–6 6 University of Virginia Atlantic Coast 0.75 21–7 0.75 12–4 4 University of Washington Pacific-10 0.607 17–11 0.667 12–6 11 Western Kentucky University Sun Belt 0.733 22–8 0.857 12–2 10 Bids by conference Thirty conferences earned an automatic bid. In eighteen cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference. Thirty-four additional at-large teams were selected from twelve of the conferences. Bids Conference Teams 7 Southeastern Auburn, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Tennessee, Vanderbilt 6 Atlantic Coast North Carolina, Clemson, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina St., Virginia 6 Big 12 Colorado, Iowa St., Kansas, Kansas St., Texas, Texas Tech 5 Big Ten Iowa, Illinois, Michigan St., Northwestern, Purdue 5 Conference USA Tulane, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis 5 Pacific-10 Stanford, Arizona, Oregon, Southern California, Washington 2 Atlantic 10 St. Joseph's, George Washington 2 Big East Connecticut, Notre Dame 2 Southland Texas St., Stephen F. Austin 2 Sun Belt Louisiana Tech, Western Kentucky 2 West Coast San Francisco, Portland 2 Western Athletic San Diego St., Utah 1 America East Maine 1 Big Sky Montana 1 Big South Liberty 1 Big West UC Santa Barb. 1 Colonial Old Dominion 1 Ivy Harvard 1 Metro Atlantic St. Peter's 1 Mid-American Toledo 1 Mid-Continent Troy 1 Mid-Eastern Howard 1 Midwestern Detroit 1 Missouri Valley Drake 1 Northeast St. Francis (PA) 1 Ohio Valley Eastern Kentucky 1 Patriot Lehigh 1 Southern Marshall 1 Southwestern Grambling State 1 Trans America FIU First and second rounds USA 500 right 1997 NCAA NCAA first and second round venues USA green pog.svg 35.909526 -79.045408 right Chapel Hill USA green pog.svg 30.276958 -97.732216 left Austin USA green pog.svg 33.202939 -87.539706 top Tuscaloosa USA green pog.svg 38.897755 -77.049329 top Washington USA green pog.svg 30.4142 -91.1845 bottom Baton Rouge USA green pog.svg 36.885959 -76.311494 right Norfolk USA green pog.svg 32.5321 -92.6584 left Ruston USA green pog.svg 29.649365 -82.351102 bottom Gainesville USA green pog.svg 35.951167 -83.925028 left Knoxville USA green pog.svg 40.004639 -105.260583 left Boulder USA green pog.svg 41.805292 -72.254194 right Storrs USA green pog.svg 40.096259 -88.235956 top Champaign USA green pog.svg 33.9428 -83.378 bottom Athens USA green pog.svg 38.044611 -78.508961 left Charlottesville USA green pog.svg 37.429646 -122.160528 right Stanford USA green pog.svg 38.954306 -95.252394 left Lawrence In 1997, the field remained at 64 teams. The teams were seeded, and assigned to four geographic regions, with seeds 1–16 in each region. In Round 1, seeds 1 and 16 faced each other, as well as seeds 2 and 15, seeds 3 and 14, seeds 4 and 13, seeds 5 and 12, seeds 6 and 11, seeds 7 and 10, and seeds 8 and 9. In the first two rounds, the top four seeds were given the opportunity to host the first-round game. In most cases, the higher seed accepted the opportunity. The exception: Fourth seeded Tulane was unable to host due to a "facility/hotel availability conflict", so fifth seeded George Washington hosted three first and second-round games Michigan State was involved in two overtime games, winning in  the first round against Portland then losing in overtime in the second round against North Carolina. Old Dominion was also involved in two overtime games, winning in the second round against Purdue, then winning in the national semifinal game against Stanford. The following table lists the region, host school, venue and the sixteen first and second round locations: Region RndHostVenue City State East 1&2 University of North Carolina Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill North Carolina East 1&2 University of Texas Frank Erwin Center Austin Texas East 1&2 University of Alabama Coleman Coliseum Tuscaloosa Alabama East 1&2 George Washington University Charles E. Smith Athletic Center Washington District of Columbia Mideast 1&2 Louisiana State University LSU Assembly Center (Pete Maravich Assembly Center) Baton Rouge Louisiana Mideast 1&2 Old Dominion University Old Dominion University Fieldhouse Norfolk Virginia Mideast 1&2 Louisiana Tech University Thomas Assembly Center Ruston Louisiana Mideast 1&2 University of Florida O'Connell Center Gainesville Florida Midwest 1&2 University of Tennessee Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville Tennessee Midwest 1&2 University of Colorado CU Events Center (Coors Events Center) Boulder Colorado Midwest 1&2 University of Connecticut Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Storrs Connecticut Midwest 1&2 University of Illinois Assembly Hall (Champaign) Champaign Illinois West 1&2 University of Georgia Georgia Coliseum (Stegeman Coliseum) Athens Georgia West 1&2 University of Virginia University Hall (University of Virginia) Charlottesville Virginia West 1&2 Stanford University Maples Pavilion Stanford California West 1&2 University of Kansas Allen Field House Lawrence Kansas Regionals and Final Four USA 500 right 1997 NCAA regionals and Final Four USA blue pog.svg 33.993611 -81.0325 bottom Columbia USA blue pog.svg 40.433322 -86.916144 left West Lafayette USA blue pog.svg 41.663611 -91.554444 left Iowa City USA blue pog.svg 46.863819 -113.983403 top Missoula USA red pog.svg 39.097778 -84.504444 right Cincinnati The Regionals, named for the general location, were held from March 22 to March 24 at these sites: East Regional Carolina Coliseum, Columbia, South Carolina (Host: University of South Carolina) Mideast Regional Mackey Arena, West Lafayette, Indiana (Host: Purdue University) Midwest Regional Carver–Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, Iowa (Host: University of Iowa) West Regional Dahlberg Arena, Missoula, Montana (Host: University of Montana) Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four held March 28 and March 30 in Cincinnati at the Riverfront Coliseum Bids by state The sixty-four teams came from thirty-two states, plus Washington, D.C. California had the most teams with five bids. Eighteen states did not have any teams receiving bids. thumb|right|500 px|NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 1997 Bids State Teams 5 California San Diego St., San Francisco, Stanford, UC Santa Barb., Southern California 4 Louisiana Grambling, Louisiana Tech, Tulane, LSU 4 Texas Texas St., Stephen F. Austin, Texas, Texas Tech 3 Alabama Auburn, Troy, Alabama 3 Illinois DePaul, Illinois, Northwestern 3 Iowa Drake, Iowa, Iowa St. 3 Kentucky Eastern Kentucky, Louisville, Western Kentuck. 3 North Carolina North Carolina, Duke, North Carolina St. 3 Tennessee Memphis, Tennessee, Vanderbilt 3 Virginia Liberty, Old Dominion, Virginia 2 District of Columbia Howard, George Washington 2 Florida FIU, Florida 2 Indiana Notre Dame, Purdue 2 Kansas Kansas, Kansas St. 2 Michigan Detroit, Michigan St. 2 Oregon Oregon, Portland 3 Pennsylvania Lehigh, St. Joseph's, St Francis 1 Arizona Arizona 1 Colorado Colorado 1 Connecticut Connecticut 1 Georgia Georgia 1 Maine Maine 1 Maryland Maryland 1 Massachusetts Harvard 1 Montana Montana 1 New Jersey St. Peter's 1 Ohio Toledo 1 South Carolina Clemson 1 Utah Utah 1 Washington Washington 1 West Virginia Marshall 1 Wisconsin Marquette Brackets Data source * – Denotes overtime periodTHE TOURNAMENT http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_final_four_records_book/2022/Tourney.pdf live 16 April 2022 NCAA 86–87 https://web.archive.org/web/20220322020422/http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_final_four_records_book/2022/Tourney.pdf 2022-03-22 East Region First roundMarch 14 and 15 Higher Seed's Home Court Second roundMarch 16 and 17 Higher Seed's Home Court Regional semifinalsMarch 22 Carolina Coliseum Columbia, South Carolina Regional finalsMarch 24 Carolina Coliseum Columbia, South Carolina at North Carolina Harvard 78 53 1 16 Michigan State Portland 75OT 70 8 9 at George Washington† Northwestern 61 46 Tulane UCSB 72 69 Notre Dame Memphis 93 62 at Texas SW Texas State 66 38 Saint Joseph's Kansas State 70 52 at Alabama Saint Francis 94 50 1 North Carolina 8 Michigan State 81OT 71 5 George Washington† 4 Tulane 81 67 6 Notre Dame 3 Texas 86 83 7 Saint Joseph's 2 Alabama 52 61 1 North Carolina 5 George Washington 46 55 6 Notre Dame 2 Alabama 87 71 5 George Washington 6 Notre Dame 52 62 † George Washington was a host as a #5 seed, as #4 seed Tulane's facility was considered inadequate by the NCAA. Mideast Region First roundMarch 14 and 15 Higher Seed's Home Court Second roundMarch 16 and 17 Higher Seed's Home Court Regional semifinalsMarch 22 Mackey Arena West Lafayette, Indiana Regional finalsMarch 24 Mackey Arena West lafayette, Indiana at Old Dominion Liberty 102 52 Purdue Maryland 74 48 Clemson Marquette 66 70 at LSU Maine 88 79 USC San Francisco 68 55 at Florida Florida International 92 68 Auburn Louisville 68 65 at Louisiana Tech Saint Peter's 94 50 1 Old Dominion 8 Purdue 69OT 65 12 Marquette 4 LSU 58 71 6 USC 3 Florida 78 92 7 Auburn 2 Louisiana Tech 48 74 1 Old Dominion 4 LSU 62 49 3 Florida 2 Louisiana Tech 71 57 1 Old Dominion 3 Florida 53 51 Midwest Region First roundMarch 14 and 15 Higher Seed's Home Court Second roundMarch 16 and 17 Higher Seed's Home Court Regional semifinalsMarch 22 Carver–Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa Regional finalsMarch 24 Carver–Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa at Connecticut Lehigh 103 35 North Carolina State Iowa 50 56 Duke DePaul 70 56 at Illinois Drake 79 62 Oregon San Diego State 80 68 at Tennessee Grambling State 91 54 Stephen F. Austin Toledo 79 66 at Colorado Marshall 69 49 1 Connecticut 9 Iowa 72 53 5 Duke 4 Illinois 67 85 6 Oregon 3 Tennessee 59 76 7 Stephen F. Austin 2 Colorado 57 66 1 Connecticut 4 Illinois 78 73 3 Tennessee 2 Colorado 75 67 1 Connecticut 3 Tennessee 81 91 West Region First roundMarch 14 and 15 Higher Seed's Home Court Second roundMarch 16 and 17 Higher Seed's Home Court Regional semifinalsMarch 22 Dahlberg Arena Missoula, Montana Regional finalsMarch 24 Dahlberg Arena Missoula, Montana at Stanford Howard 111 59 Texas Tech Montana 47 45 Utah Iowa State 66 57 at Virginia Troy State 96 74 Vanderbilt Washington 74 62 at Kansas Detroit 81 67 Arizona Western Kentucky 76 54 at Georgia Eastern Kentucky 91 55 1 Stanford 8 Texas Tech 67 45 5 Utah 4 Virginia 46 65 6 Vanderbilt 3 Kansas 51 44 7 Arizona 2 Georgia 74 80 1 Stanford 4 Virginia 91 69 6 Vanderbilt 2 Georgia 52 66 1 Stanford 2 Georgia 82 47 Final Four National semifinalsMarch 28 Riverfront Coliseum Cincinnati National championshipMarch 30 Riverfront Coliseum Cincinnati E6 Notre Dame 66 MW3 Tennessee 80 ME1 Old Dominion 83OT W1 Stanford 82 MW3 Tennessee 68 ME1 Old Dominion 59 E-East; ME-Mideast; MW-Midwest; W-West. Record by conference Thirteen conferences had more than one bid, or at least one win in NCAA Tournament play: Conference# of BidsRecordWin %Round of 32Sweet SixteenElite EightFinal FourChampionship Game Southeastern 7 0.76 19–6 .760 7 6 3 1 1 Atlantic Coast 6 0.455 5–6 .455 3 2 – – – Big 12 6 0.455 5–6 .455 4 1 – – – Pacific-10 5 0.583 7–5 .583 4 1 1 1 – Big Ten 5 0.5 5–5 .500 4 1 – – – Conference USA 5 0.286 2–5 .286 2 – – – – Big East 2 0.778 7–2 .778 2 2 2 1 – Atlantic 10 2 0.667 4–2 .667 2 1 1 – – Sun Belt 2 0.5 2–2 .500 1 1 – – – Southland 2 0.333 1–2 .333 1 – – – – Western Athletic 2 0.333 1–2 .333 1 – – – – West Coast 2 0 0–2 – – – – – – Colonial 1 0.833 5–1 .833 1 1 1 1 1 Seventeen conferences went 0-1: America East, Big Sky Conference, Big South Conference, Big West Conference, Ivy League, MAAC, MAC, Mid-Continent, MEAC, Midwestern Collegiate, Missouri Valley Conference, Northeast Conference, Ohio Valley Conference, Patriot League, Southern Conference, SWAC, and Trans America All-Tournament team Chamique Holdsclaw, Tennessee Kellie Jolly, Tennessee Ticha Penicheiro, Old Dominion Nyree Roberts, Old Dominion Clarisse Machanguana, Old Dominion Game officials Sally Bell (semifinal) Carla Fujimoto (semifinal) Ray Bomeli (semifinal) John Morningstar (semifinal) Scott Yarbrough (semifinal) Judy Schneider (semifinal) Yvette McKinney (final) Dee Kantner (final) Violet Palmer (final) Dee Kantner and Violet Palmer were hired into the NBA for its 1997-98 season, becoming the first female officials in any major North American professional sports league. Following her dismissal from the NBA in 2001, Kantner returned to women's college basketball and has officiated numerous Final Fours, while Palmer remained in the NBA through the 2015-16 season. See also 1997 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament 1997 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament 1997 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament 1997 NAIA Division I women's basketball tournament Notes Attendance and Sites http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_final4/2012/Attend.pdf NCAA 19 March 2012 Voepel Mechelle Predetermined sites haven't boosted attendance https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/columns/story?columnist=voepel_mechelle&id=2669437 ESPN 18 April 2012 November 20, 2006 http://www.ncaapublications.com/p-4269-official-2012-ncaa-womens-final-four-record-book.aspx Official 2012 NCAA Women's Final Four Records Book February 2012 NCAA 2012-04-17 Nixon Rick Official 2012 NCAA Women's Final Four Records Book http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/WFF12.pdf NCAA 22 April 2012 November 7, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151107014710/http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/WFF12.pdf dead Category:NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament Category:Basketball in Austin, Texas NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, 1997