1986 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

American college basketball tournament August 2023 March 2026 Women's 1986 1986WomensFinalFourLogo.jpg 150px 40 Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky Texas 1st 1st 1st USC 3rd 3rd Western Kentucky 2nd Tennessee 3rd Jody Conradt 1st Clarissa Davis Texas The 1986 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 12 and ended on March 30. The tournament expanded to 40 teams from 32. The Final Four consisted of Texas, Tennessee, Western Kentucky, and USC, with Texas defeating Southern California, 97–81 in the championship game.http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/1244/1986-bracket.html 1986 NCAA National Championship Tournament 2007-03-30 Gregory Cooper https://web.archive.org/web/20091020031819/http://geocities.com/Colosseum/1244/1986-bracket.html 2009-10-20 dead Texas's Clarissa Davis was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.http://www.collegehoopsnet.com/history/tournament/womensmop.htm CHN Basketball History: Most Outstanding Player 2007-03-30 https://web.archive.org/web/20080125012447/http://www.collegehoopsnet.com/history/tournament/womensmop.htm 2008-01-25 dead With their championship win, Texas completed the first undefeated season (34–0) since the NCAA began sponsoring women's basketball in 1982. ESPN expanded their coverage to show all four Regional finals and the National semifinals. CBS continued to broadcast the Championship game. Notable events thumb|300 px|The Texas team, in front of the main tower, lit up with #1 thumb|300 px|Annette Smith and Jody Conradt with the National Championship trophy James Madison opened their regular season with a game against Virginia, which the Cavaliers won by 14 points, 71–57. James Madison went on to a regular season record of 26–3, which earned them an 8 seed in the Tournament. As the higher seed, they were eligible to play their first-round game at home, but they were unable to host, so played their opponent, Providence at the home court of Providence. James Madison won the close game 55–53, to move on to the second round. Their opponent would be Virginia, who earned a number 1 seed in the tournament. The game started out with the Cavaliers taking five points with just over eleven minutes to go in the first half. The JMU Dukes then held Virginia to only a single field goal for the rest of the half and took an eleven-point lead at halftime. The two teams would play roughly evenly in the second half, with Virginia only managing to reduce the lead by two points. James Madison won the game 71–62, advancing to the regional semifinal, which was the first time in the five-year history of the NCAA Tournament that a team had defeated a number 1 seed prior to the Regional round. After earning a number one national ranking in 1984, but stumbling in the regional's finals to national power Louisiana Tech, Texas seemed poised for a better result in 1985. Not only did the team earn another top national ranking, but they entered the NCAA Tournament knowing that if they reached the Final Four, they would have the home court advantage with the final games scheduled for their own Frank Erwin Center. Home court would play a part, but not the part hoped for by the Longhorns. In the regional semi-finals, played at the home court of Western Kentucky University, the Hilltoppers stymied the Longhorn's hopes with a 92–90 victory. They would return to the 1986 tournament viewed as one of the top teams in the nation and were once again ranked the top team in the nation, but they still did not have a Final Four NCAA appearance on their resume. The Texas team won their first game easily, then continued to the regional, this time on their home court. They dispatched Oklahoma easily, then struggled against Ole Miss, who were trying to prevent the team from a Final Four yet again. This time, Texas prevailed and beat Ole Miss by three points to head to their first NCAA Final Four. Their opponent in the semifinal was none other than Western Kentucky, who had denied them the previous year. This time, the result would be very different, as the Longhorns beat Western Kentucky easily, 90–65. The other semifinal pitted Tennessee against Southern California. Cheryl Miller was the best player at USC, and had led the team to the national championship in 1984. Miller went on to play for the USA national team and helped the USA win the gold medal at the 1984 Olympics. 1986 was Miller's senior year at USC. The game between Tennessee and USC was a rematch of a physical game played in December, in which Miller was thrown out of the game for an elbow. The game was close, but USC ended up with an 85–77 win. In the rematch, Miller would again come out of the game, but under very different circumstances. She was worried about getting hurt, and with a 70–51 lead, didn't need to stay in. In that game, USC won by 24 points, 83–59. That set up the championship game between USC and undefeated Texas. The Texas team was very deep but had suffered a number of injuries during the year. The game was close early with the Trojans leading at times in the first half, but Texas went on a 10–2 run to take a seven-point lead. Miller would have one of the worst games in her career. Although she scored 16 points, twelve of those were from the free throw line. She was only 2 for 11 from the field, without a single point in the second half. In contrast, Texas' Clarissa Davis came off the bench to score 25 and earn Most Outstanding Player honors. USC's Cynthia Cooper scored 27 points, and Texas won the national championship 97–81 to complete the first undefeated season in NCAA history. Records Cheryl Miller set the Final Four record of free throws in a single game with 12, in the championship game. Clarissa Davis set the Final Four record for rebounds in a half, with 14 in the second half of the semifinal game. The National Championship game between Texas and USC set several Final Four scoring marks: Most points by one team – 97 Most points combined by both teams – 178 Most field goals in a game – 40 Texas had 23 assists in the semi-final game, a record (since 1985, when the category was established), and followed that with 22 in the championship game. Kamie Ethridge had 20 assists in the two Final Four games, a record for the combined Final Four games. Qualifying teams – automatic Forty teams were selected to participate in the 1986 NCAA Tournament. Seventeen conferences were eligible for an automatic bid to the 1986 NCAA tournament. Automatic bids     Record   Qualifying School Conference Regular Season Conference Seed Pennsylvania State University Atlantic 10 0.767 23–7 0.75 12–4 3 University of Maryland, College Park ACC 0.586 17–12 0.429 6–8 6 Villanova University Big East 0.75 21–7 0.75 12–4 7 University of Missouri Big Eight 0.633 19–11 0.571 8–6 9 Ohio State University Big Ten 0.786 22–6 0.889 16–2 3 University of Utah High Country 0.75 21–7 0.917 11–1 9 University of South Carolina Metro 0.655 19–10 0.9 9–1 7 La Salle University MAAC 0.724 21–8 0.833 10–2 10 Ohio University MAC 0.929 26–2 0.889 16–2 9 University of Southern Illinois Missouri Valley Conference 0.893 25–3 1.018 18–0 6 University of Montana Mountain West Athletic 0.765 26–8 0.929 13–1 8 Middle Tennessee State University Ohio Valley Conference 0.679 19–9 0.929 13–1 10 University of Georgia SEC 0.967 29–1 1.009 9–0 1 University of North Texas Southland 0.69 20–9 0.7 7–3 10 University of Texas at Austin Southwest 1.029 29–0 1.016 16–0 1 Western Kentucky University Sun Belt Conference 0.906 29–3 1.006 6–0 4 University of Nevada, Las Vegas Pacific Coast 0.733 22–8 0.786 11–3 5 Qualifying teams – at-large Twenty-three additional teams were selected to complete the forty invitations. At-large bids     Record   Qualifying school Conference Regular Season Conference Seed Rutgers University Atlantic 10 0.9 27–3 1.016 16–0 2 Saint Joseph's University Atlantic 10 0.786 22–6 0.75 12–4 5 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Atlantic Coast 0.733 22–8 0.714 10–4 4 North Carolina State University Atlantic Coast 0.643 18–10 0.643 9–5 6 University of Virginia Atlantic Coast 0.929 26–2 0.929 13–1 1 Providence College Big East 0.828 24–5 0.875 14–2 9 University of Oklahoma Big Eight 0.793 23–6 0.714 10–4 4 University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Big Ten 0.679 19–9 0.667 12–6 8 University of Iowa Big Ten 0.786 22–6 0.833 15–3 5 James Madison University Colonial 0.897 26–3 0.917 11–1 8 Louisiana Tech University Independent 0.862 25–4 - -–- 2 Drake University Missouri Valley 0.75 21–7 0.889 16–2 10 University of Washington Northern Pacific 0.821 23–5 0.833 10–2 7 California State University, Long Beach Pacific Coast 0.875 28–4 1.014 14–0 3 University of Southern California Pacific West 0.871 27–4 1.008 8–0 1 Auburn University Southeastern 0.821 23–5 0.667 6–3 3 University of Kentucky Southeastern 0.643 18–10 0.444 4–5 7 Louisiana State University Southeastern 0.833 25–5 0.667 6–3 2 University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) Southeastern 0.759 22–7 0.667 6–3 2 University of Tennessee Southeastern 0.7 21–9 0.556 5–4 4 Vanderbilt University Southeastern 0.733 22–8 0.444 4–5 5 University of Arkansas Southwest 0.759 22–7 0.813 13–3 8 Texas Tech University Southwest 0.724 21–8 0.813 13–3 6 Bids by conference Twenty-one conferences earned an automatic bid. In thirteen cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference. Eighteen additional at-large teams were selected from seven of the conferences, plus one independent (not associated with an athletic conference) team earned at-large bids. Bids Conference Teams 7 Southeastern Auburn, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Vanderbilt 4 Atlantic Coast Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina St., Virginia 3 Southwest Arkansas, Texas Tech, Texas 3 Big Ten Illinois, Iowa, Ohio St. 3 Atlantic 10 Penn St., Rutgers, St. Joseph's 2 Big East Providence, Villanova 2 Big Eight Missouri, Oklahoma 2 Missouri Valley Drake, Southern Ill. 2 Pacific Coast Long Beach St., UNLV 1 Pacific West Southern California 1 Ohio Valley Middle Tenn. 1 Northern Pacific Washington 1 Mountain West Athletic Montana 1 Mid-American Ohio 1 Metro South Carolina 1 Metro Atlantic La Salle 1 Independent Louisiana Tech 1 High Country Utah 1 Sun Belt Western Kentucky 1 Colonial James Madison First and second rounds In 1986, the field expanded to 40 teams. The teams were seeded, and assigned to four geographic regions, with seeds 1–10 in each region. In Round 1, seeds 8 and 9 faced each other for the opportunity to face the 1 seed in the second round, while seeds 7 and 10 faced each other for the opportunity to face the 2 seed. In the first two rounds, the higher seed was given the opportunity to host the first-round game. In most cases, the higher seed accepted the opportunity. The exceptions: Illinois was an eight seed, but chose not to host, so the game was played at nine seed Ohio James Madison, the eight seed, played ninth seeded Providence at Providence Arkansas, the eight seed, played ninth seeded Missouri at Missouri Kentucky, the seven seed, played the tenth seeded Drake at Drake The following table lists the region, host school, venue and the twenty-four first round locations: USA 500 right 1986 NCAA first round USA green pog.svg 41.84575 -71.437029 left Providence USA green pog.svg 39.951411 -75.188606 bottom Philadelphia USA green pog.svg 33.993611 -81.0325 right Columbia USA green pog.svg 39.323056 -82.105556 left Athens USA green pog.svg 41.604318 -93.653948 left Des Moines USA green pog.svg 38.93434 -92.3306 bottom Columbia USA green pog.svg 46.863819 -113.983403 top Missoula USA green pog.svg 47.65212 -122.30223 bottom Seattle USA 500 right 1986 NCAA second round USA purple pog.svg 40.79578 -77.869399 top University Park USA purple pog.svg 38.044611 -78.508961 top Charlottesville USA purple pog.svg 36.985833 -86.4575 top Bowling Green USA purple pog.svg 40.525278 -74.441111 right Piscataway USA purple pog.svg 33.9428 -83.378 right Athens USA purple pog.svg 30.4142 -91.1845 bottom Baton Rouge USA purple pog.svg 40.005278 -83.018889 left Columbus USA purple pog.svg 35.951226 -83.929442 left Knoxville USA purple pog.svg 32.600161 -85.492333 left Auburn USA purple pog.svg 35.187438 -97.444504 left Norman USA purple pog.svg 30.276958 -97.732216 left Austin USA purple pog.svg 34.362197 -89.539303 left Oxford USA purple pog.svg 35.909526 -79.045408 top Chapel Hill USA purple pog.svg 33.783022 -118.112858 top Long Beach USA purple pog.svg 34.013056 -118.284444 bottom Los Angeles USA purple pog.svg 32.5321 -92.6584 left Ruston Region RndHostVenue City State East 1 Providence College Alumni Hall (Providence) Providence Rhode Island East 1 Villanova University Palestra Philadelphia Pennsylvania East 2 Pennsylvania State University Recreation Building (Rec Hall) University Park Pennsylvania East 2 University of Virginia University Hall (University of Virginia) Charlottesville Virginia East 2 Western Kentucky University E.A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green Kentucky East 2 Rutgers University Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway New Jersey Mideast 1 University of South Carolina Carolina Coliseum Columbia South Carolina Mideast 1 Ohio University Convocation Center Athens Ohio Mideast 2 University of Georgia Georgia Coliseum (Stegeman Coliseum) Athens Georgia Mideast 2 Louisiana State University LSU Assembly Center (Pete Maravich Assembly Center) Baton Rouge Louisiana Mideast 2 Ohio State University St. John Arena Columbus Ohio Mideast 2 University of Tennessee Stokely Athletic Center Knoxville Tennessee Midwest 1 Drake University Drake Fieldhouse Des Moines Iowa Midwest 1 University of Missouri Hearnes Center Columbia Missouri Midwest 2 Auburn University Memorial Coliseum (Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum) Auburn Alabama Midwest 2 University of Oklahoma Lloyd Noble Center Norman Oklahoma Midwest 2 University of Texas Frank Erwin Center Austin Texas Midwest 2 University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) Tad Smith Coliseum Oxford Mississippi West 1 University of Montana Dahlberg Arena Missoula Montana West 1 University of Washington Hec Edmundson Pavilion Seattle Washington West 2 University of North Carolina Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill North Carolina West 2 Long Beach State University Gym (Gold Mine) Long Beach California West 2 University of Southern California Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles California West 2 Louisiana Tech University Thomas Assembly Center Ruston Louisiana Regionals and Final Four USA 500 right 1986 NCAA regionals and Final Four USA blue pog.svg 30.276958 -97.732216 bottom Austin USA blue pog.svg 39.951411 -75.188606 left Philadelphia USA blue pog.svg 41.663611 -91.554444 right Iowa City USA blue pog.svg 33.763889 -118.188333 top Long Beach USA red pog.svg 38.049444 -84.502778 right Lexington The regionals, named for the general location, were held from March 20 to March 23 at these sites: Midwest Regional Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas (Host: University of Texas) East Regional Palestra, Philadelphia (Host: Villanova University) Mideast Regional Carver–Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, Iowa (Host: University of Iowa) West Regional Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, California (Host: Long Beach State) Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four, held March 28 and March 30 in Lexington, Kentucky at Rupp Arena. The University of Kentucky served as the host institution. Bids by state The forty teams came from twenty-five states. Pennsylvania had the most teams with four. Twenty-five states did not have any teams receiving bids. thumb|right|500 px|NCAA Women's basketball Tournament invitations by state 1986 Bids State Teams 4 Pennsylvania Penn St, Villanova, La Salle, St Joseph's 3 Tennessee Middle Tenn, Tennessee, Vanderbilt 3 Texas North Texas, Texas, Texas Tech 2 California Long Beach St, Southern California 2 Illinois Illinois, Southern Illinois 2 Iowa Iowa, Drake 2 Kentucky Western Kentucky, Kentucky 2 Louisiana Louisiana Tech, LSU 2 North Carolina North Carolina, North Carolina St 2 Ohio Ohio St, Ohio 2 Virginia Virginia, James Madison 1 Alabama Auburn 1 Arkansas Arkansas 1 Georgia Georgia 1 Maryland Maryland 1 Mississippi Ole Miss 1 Missouri Missouri 1 Montana Montana 1 Nevada UNLV 1 New Jersey Rutgers 1 Oklahoma Oklahoma 1 Rhode Island Providence 1 South Carolina South Carolina 1 Utah Utah 1 Washington Washington Brackets Games played at better seed except where noted. East regional – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Palestra) First roundMarch 12 Second roundMarch 14–16 Regional semifinalsMarch 20–21 Regional finalsMarch 22 8 James Madison 55 9 at Providence 53 7 Villanova 60 10 La Salle 55 8 James Madison 71 1 Virginia 62 5 St. Joseph's 65 4 Western Kentucky 74 7 Villanova 58 2 Rutgers 85 3 Penn State 63 6 North Carolina State 59 8 James Madison 51 4 Western Kentucky 72 2 Rutgers 85 3 Penn State 72 4 Western Kentucky 89 2 Rutgers 74 Midwest regional – University of Texas – Austin, Texas (Frank Erwin Center) First roundMarch 12 Second roundMarch 14–16 Regional semifinalsMarch 20–21 Regional finalsMarch 23 8 Arkansas 65 9 at Missouri 66 7 Kentucky 70 10 at Drake 73 9 Missouri 67 1 Texas 108 5 Vanderbilt 67 4 Oklahoma 86 10 Drake 71 2 Ole Miss 84 3 Auburn 61 6 Southern Illinois 39 1 Texas 85 4 Oklahoma 59 2 Ole Miss 56 3 Auburn 55 1 Texas 66 2 Ole Miss 63 Mideast regional – University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa (Carver–Hawkeye Arena) First roundMarch 12 Second roundMarch 14–16 Regional semifinalsMarch 20–21 Regional finalsMarch 23 8 Illinois 69 9 at Ohio 68 7 South Carolina 77 10 Middle Tennessee State 78 8 Illinois 64 1 Georgia 103 5 Iowa 68 4 Tennessee 73 10 Middle Tennessee State 65 2 LSU 78 3 Ohio State 87 6 Maryland 71 1 Georgia 82 4 Tennessee 85 2 LSU 81 3 Ohio State 80 4 Tennessee 67 2 LSU 65 West regional – Long Beach State University – Long Beach, California (Long Beach Arena) First roundMarch 12 Second roundMarch 14–16 Regional semifinalsMarch 20–21 Regional finalsMarch 23 8 Montana 58 9 Utah 46 7 Washington 69 10 North Texas State 54 8 Montana 50 1 USC 81 5 UNLV 76 4 North Carolina 82 7 Washington 54 2 Louisiana Tech 79 3 Long Beach State 78 6 Texas Tech 73 (OT) 1 USC 84 4 North Carolina 70 2 Louisiana Tech 71 3 Long Beach State 69 1 USC 80 2 Louisiana Tech 64 Final Four – Lexington, Kentucky (Rupp Arena) National semifinalsMarch 28 National championshipMarch 30 4E Western Kentucky 65 1MW Texas 90 4ME Tennessee 59 1W USC 83 1MW Texas 97 1W USC 81 Record by conference Sixteen 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 0.563 9–7 .563 6 5 3 1 – Atlantic Coast 4 0.2 1–4 .200 4 1 – – – Southwest 3 0.714 5–2 .714 2 1 1 1 1 Atlantic 10 3 0.5 3–3 .500 3 2 1 – – Big Ten 3 0.4 2–3 .400 3 1 – – – Big Eight 2 0.5 2–2 .500 2 1 – – – Pacific Coast 2 0.5 1–2 .333 2 1 – – – Big East 2 0.333 1–2 .333 1 – – – – Pacific West 1 0.8 4–1 .800 1 1 1 1 1 Sun Belt 1 0.75 3–1 .750 1 1 1 1 – Colonial 1 0.667 2–1 .667 1 1 – – – Independent 1 0.667 2–1 .667 1 1 1 – – Missouri Valley 1 0.5 1–1 .500 1 – – – – Mountain West Athletic 1 0.5 1–1 .500 1 – – – – Northern Pacific 1 0.5 1–1 .500 1 – – – – Ohio Valley 1 0.5 1–1 .500 1 – – – – Seven conferences went 0-1: Gateway, High Country, Metro, MAAC, MAC, Southland, and WAC All-Tournament team Clarissa Davis, University of Texas at Austin Fran Harris, University of Texas at Austin Cheryl Miller, University of Southern California Cynthia Cooper, University of Southern California Clemette Haskins, Western Kentucky University Game officials Kit Robinson (semifinal) June Courteau (semifinal) Bob Olsen (semifinal) Bill Stokes (semifinal) See also 1986 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament 1986 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament 1986 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament 1986 NAIA women's basketball tournament References 2012-13 JMU Women's Basketball Guide http://issuu.com/jmusports.com/docs/12-13_jmu_women_s_basketball_guide-issuu#download James Madison University October 18, 2012 24 May 2013 2009-10 JMU Women's Basketball Guide http://issuu.com/jmusports.com/docs/jmu_womens_basketball-issuu#download James Madison University September 16, 2010 110 24 May 2013 National Championship moments: 1986 Women's Basketball http://www.texassports.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/021907aaa.html Texas Longhorns Women's Basketball 28 April 2012 3 June 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120603172021/http://www.texassports.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/021907aaa.html dead CART JULIE USC Women Win, and It's Without a Fight https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-03-29-sp-1386-story.html 28 April 2012 LA Times March 29, 1986 Celebrating perfection: 1986 Texas Women's Basketball http://www.texassports.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/012711aaa.html Texas Longhorns Women's Basketball 28 April 2012 15 August 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120815093858/http://www.texassports.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/012711aaa.html dead CART JULIE Texas Longhorns Women's Basketball https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-03-31-sp-2161-story.html 28 April 2012 LA Times March 31, 1986 Jackson Melanie With a freshman leading the way, Texas runs the table https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/news/story?id=2382968 ESPN March 31, 2006 Attendance and Sites http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_final4/2012/Attend.pdf NCAA 19 March 2012 Nixon Rick Official 2102 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 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament Category:Basketball in Austin, Texas Category:Women's sports in Kentucky