1996 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

American college basketball tournament August 2023 March 2026 Women's 1996 1996WomensFinalFourLogo.jpg 150px 64 Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, North Carolina Tennessee Volunteers 4th 6th 9th Georgia Bulldogs 2nd 4th Connecticut Huskies 3rd Stanford Cardinal 5th Pat Summitt 4th Michelle Marciniak Tennessee The 1996 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament took place from March 15–31, 1996. The Final Four consisted of Connecticut, Georgia, Stanford, and Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Georgia 83–65 in the championship game.1996 Tournament Gregory Cooper http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/1244/1996-bracket.html https://web.archive.org/web/20091020050331/http://geocities.com/Colosseum/1244/1996-bracket.html 2009-10-20 dead 2008-03-30 Tournament records Three-point field goal percentage – Nykesha Sales, Connecticut, hit four of five three-point field goal attempts (80%) in the semi-final game against Tennessee, tying a record for three-point field goal percentage in a Final Four game, held by four other players. Three-point field goal percentage – Abby Conklin, Tennessee hit four of five three-point field goal attempts (80%) in the championship game against Georgia, tying a record for three-point field goal percentage in a Final Four game, held by four other players. Three-point field goals – Harvard hit 16 three-point field goals in a Mideast first-round game, setting the record for most three-point field goals in an NCAA tournament game, subsequently tied by two other teams. Qualifying teams – automatic Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the 1996 NCAA Tournament. Thirty-one conferences were eligible for an automatic bid. Automatic bids     Record   Qualifying School Conference Regular Season Conference Seed Appalachian State University Southern Conference 0.828 24–5 1.014 14–0 13 Austin Peay State University Ohio Valley Conference 0.75 21–7 0.813 13–3 14 Butler University Midwestern Collegiate 0.724 21–8 0.813 13–3 15 Clemson University ACC 0.759 22–7 0.563 9–7 3 University of Colorado at Boulder Big Eight 0.758 25–8 0.643 9–5 3 Colorado State University WAC 0.862 25–4 0.857 12–2 8 University of Connecticut Big East 0.909 30–3 0.944 17–1 1 The George Washington University Atlantic 10 0.806 25–6 0.875 14–2 6 Grambling State University SWAC 0.778 21–6 0.929 13–1 16 Harvard University Ivy League 0.769 20–6 0.929 13–1 14 University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Big West Conference 0.821 23–5 0.833 15–3 11 College of the Holy Cross Patriot League 0.719 23–9 0.75 9–3 15 Howard University MEAC 0.69 20–9 0.813 13–3 16 Louisiana Tech University Sun Belt Conference 0.966 28–1 1.014 14–0 1 University of Maine North Atlantic Conference 0.871 27–4 1.018 18–0 11 Manhattan College MAAC 0.655 19–10 0.786 11–3 14 University of Memphis Conference USA 0.667 20–10 0.714 10–4 8 Missouri State University Missouri Valley Conference 0.862 25–4 0.889 16–2 12 University of Montana Big Sky Conference 0.857 24–4 0.929 13–1 12 Old Dominion University Colonial 0.931 27–2 1.016 16–0 2 Pennsylvania State University Big Ten 0.806 25–6 0.813 13–3 2 Radford University Big South Conference 0.607 17–11 0.714 10–4 16 University of San Francisco West Coast Conference 0.759 22–7 0.857 12–2 12 St. Francis (PA) Northeast Conference 0.655 19–10 0.722 13–5 15 Stanford University Pac-10 0.926 25–2 1.018 18–0 1 Stephen F. Austin State University Southland 0.893 25–3 1.018 18–0 11 University of Tennessee SEC 0.867 26–4 0.818 9–2 1 Texas A&M University Southwest 0.645 20–11 0.571 8–6 7 University of Toledo MAC 0.828 24–5 0.833 15–3 10 University of Central Florida Trans America 0.536 15–13 0.467 7–8 16 Youngstown State University Mid-Continent 0.714 20–8 0.778 14–4 15 Qualifying teams – at-large Thirty-three 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 0.759 22–7 0.636 7–4 4 Auburn University Southeastern 0.714 20–8 0.545 6–5 6 DePaul University Conference USA 0.69 20–9 0.929 13–1 7 Duke University Atlantic Coast 0.806 25–6 0.75 12–4 4 University of Florida Southeastern 0.724 21–8 0.545 6–5 5 University of Georgia Southeastern 0.852 23–4 0.909 10–1 2 University of Iowa Big Ten 0.893 25–3 0.938 15–1 2 James Madison University Colonial 0.724 21–8 0.75 12–4 13 University of Kansas Big Eight 0.69 20–9 0.786 11–3 4 Kent State University Mid-American 0.793 23–6 0.889 16–2 10 University of Massachusetts Atlantic 10 0.69 20–9 0.688 11–5 8 Michigan State University Big Ten 0.63 17–10 0.563 9–7 9 Middle Tennessee State University Ohio Valley 0.828 24–5 0.813 13–3 13 University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) Southeastern 0.643 18–10 0.545 6–5 7 University of Nebraska–Lincoln Big Eight 0.679 19–9 0.571 8–6 9 North Carolina State University Atlantic Coast 0.679 19–9 0.625 10–6 5 University of Notre Dame Big East 0.759 22–7 0.833 15–3 12 Ohio State University Big Ten 0.625 20–12 0.5 8–8 9 Oklahoma State University–Stillwater Big Eight 0.679 19–9 0.571 8–6 7 University of Oregon Pacific-10 0.643 18–10 0.556 10–8 11 Oregon State University Pacific-10 0.655 19–10 0.611 11–7 6 University of Portland West Coast 0.793 23–6 0.857 12–2 13 Purdue University Big Ten 0.667 20–10 0.688 11–5 5 University of Rhode Island Atlantic 10 0.75 21–7 0.813 13–3 10 Southern Methodist University Southwest 0.655 19–10 0.643 9–5 10 University of Southern Mississippi Conference USA 0.75 21–7 0.786 11–3 9 University of Texas at Austin Southwest 0.714 20–8 0.929 13–1 5 Texas Tech University Southwest 0.862 25–4 0.929 13–1 4 Tulane University Conference USA 0.7 21–9 0.643 9–5 14 University of Utah Western Athletic 0.75 21–7 0.857 12–2 8 Vanderbilt University Southeastern 0.741 20–7 0.636 7–4 3 University of Virginia Atlantic Coast 0.793 23–6 0.813 13–3 3 University of Wisconsin–Madison Big Ten 0.75 20–7 0.75 12–4 6 Bids by conference Thirty-one conferences earned an automatic bid. In seventeen cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference. Thirty-three additional at-large teams were selected from fourteen of the conferences. Bids Conference Teams 7 Southeastern Tennessee, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt 6 Big Ten Penn St., Iowa, Michigan St., Ohio St., Purdue, Wisconsin 4 Atlantic Coast Clemson, Duke, North Carolina St., Virginia 4 Big Eight Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma St. 4 Conference USA Memphis, DePaul, Southern Miss., Tulane 4 Southwest Texas A&M, SMU, Texas, Texas Tech 3 Atlantic 10 George Washington, Massachusetts, Rhode Island 3 Pacific-10 Stanford, Oregon, Oregon St. 2 Big East Connecticut, Notre Dame 2 Colonial Old Dominion, James Madison 2 Mid-American Toledo, Kent St. 2 Ohio Valley Austin Peay, Middle Tenn. 2 West Coast San Francisco, Portland 2 Western Athletic Colorado St., Utah 1 Big Sky Montana 1 Big South Radford 1 Big West Hawaii 1 Ivy Harvard 1 Metro Atlantic Manhattan 1 Mid-Continent Youngstown St. 1 Mid-Eastern Howard 1 Midwestern Collegiate Butler 1 Missouri Valley Missouri St. 1 North Atlantic Maine 1 Northeast St. Francis (PA) 1 Patriot Holy Cross 1 Southern Appalachian St. 1 Southland Stephen F. Austin 1 Southwestern Grambling State 1 Sun Belt Louisiana Tech 1 Trans-America UCF First and second rounds USA 500 right 1996 NCAA NCAA first and second round venues USA green pog.svg 36.885959 -76.311494 right Norfolk USA green pog.svg 38.044611 -78.508961 top Charlottesville USA green pog.svg 35.951167 -83.925028 top Knoxville USA green pog.svg 38.954306 -95.252394 left Lawrence USA green pog.svg 41.663611 -91.554444 top Iowa City USA green pog.svg 41.805292 -72.254194 right Storrs USA green pog.svg 36.144611 -86.80742 left Nashville USA green pog.svg 35.997528 -78.942306 top Durham USA green pog.svg 33.9428 -83.378 bottom Athens USA green pog.svg 32.5321 -92.6584 bottom Ruston USA green pog.svg 34.680278 -82.846389 right Clemson USA green pog.svg 33.59 -101.8775 right Lubbock USA green pog.svg 40.79578 -77.869399 top University Park USA green pog.svg 40.004639 -105.260583 left Boulder USA green pog.svg 37.429646 -122.160528 right Stanford USA green pog.svg 33.202939 -87.539706 top Tuscaloosa In 1996, 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 all cases, the higher seed accepted the opportunity. The following table lists the region, host school, venue and the sixteen first and second round locations: Region RndHostVenue City State East 1&2 Old Dominion University Old Dominion University Fieldhouse Norfolk Virginia East 1&2 University of Virginia University Hall (University of Virginia) Charlottesville Virginia East 1&2 University of Tennessee Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville Tennessee East 1&2 University of Kansas Allen Field House Lawrence Kansas Mideast 1&2 University of Iowa Carver–Hawkeye Arena Iowa City Iowa Mideast 1&2 University of Connecticut Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Storrs Connecticut Mideast 1&2 Vanderbilt University Memorial Gymnasium (Vanderbilt University) Nashville Tennessee Mideast 1&2 Duke University Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham North Carolina Midwest 1&2 University of Georgia Georgia Coliseum (Stegeman Coliseum) Athens Georgia Midwest 1&2 Louisiana Tech University Thomas Assembly Center Ruston Louisiana Midwest 1&2 Clemson University Littlejohn Coliseum Clemson South Carolina Midwest 1&2 Texas Tech University Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Lubbock Texas West 1&2 Pennsylvania State University Recreation Building (Rec Hall) University Park Pennsylvania West 1&2 University of Colorado CU Events Center (Coors Events Center) Boulder Colorado West 1&2 Stanford University Maples Pavilion Stanford California West 1&2 University of Alabama Coleman Coliseum Tuscaloosa Alabama Regionals and Final Four USA 500 right 1996 NCAA regionals and Final Four USA blue pog.svg 38.044611 -78.508961 bottom Charlottesville USA blue pog.svg 31.622222 -94.640833 left Nacogdoches USA blue pog.svg 47.65212 -122.30223 right Seattle USA blue pog.svg 42.005278 -87.887778 top Rosemont USA red pog.svg 35.186389 -80.912778 left Charlotte The Regionals, named for the general location, were held from March 23 to March 25 at these sites: East Regional University Hall (University of Virginia), Charlottesville, Virginia (Host: University of Virginia) Midwest Regional William R. Johnson Coliseum, Nacogdoches, Texas (Host: Stephen F. Austin University) West Regional Hec Edmundson Pavilion, Seattle, Washington (Host: University of Washington) Mideast Regional Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Illinois (Host: DePaul University) Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four held on March 29 and March 31 in Charlotte, North Carolina at the Charlotte Coliseum, (co-hosted by Davidson College and UNC Charlotte). Bids by state The sixty-four teams came from thirty-two states, plus Washington, D.C. Texas and Tennessee 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 1996 Bids State Teams 5 Tennessee Austin Peay, Memphis, Tennessee, Middle Tenn., Vanderbilt 5 Texas Stephen F. Austin, Texas A&M, SMU, Texas, Texas Tech 4 Ohio Toledo, Youngstown St., Kent St., Ohio St. 4 Virginia Old Dominion, Radford, James Madison, Virginia 3 Indiana Butler, Notre Dame, Purdue 3 Louisiana Grambling State, Louisiana Tech, Tulane 3 Massachusetts Harvard, Holy Cross, Massachusetts 3 North Carolina Appalachian St., Duke, North Carolina St. 3 Oregon Oregon, Oregon St., Portland 2 Alabama Alabama, Auburn 2 California San Francisco, Stanford 2 Colorado Colorado, Colorado St. 2 District of Columbia George Washington, Howard 2 Florida UCF, Florida 2 Mississippi Ole Miss, Southern Miss. 1 New York Manhattan 1 Connecticut Connecticut 1 Georgia Georgia 1 Hawaii Hawaii 1 Illinois DePaul 1 Iowa Iowa 1 Kansas Kansas 1 Maine Maine 1 Michigan Michigan St. 1 Missouri Missouri St. 1 Montana Montana 1 Nebraska Nebraska 1 Oklahoma Oklahoma St. 2 Pennsylvania Penn St., St Francis 1 Rhode Island Rhode Island 1 South Carolina Clemson 1 Utah Utah 1 Wisconsin Wisconsin Brackets East Region – Charlottesville, Virginia First roundMarch 15 and 16 Second roundMarch 17 and 18 Regional semifinalsMarch 23 Regional finalsMarch 25 Knoxville, TN – Sat/Mon Lawrence, KS – Sat/Mon Charlottesville, VA – Fri/Sun Norfolk, VA – Sat/Mon Tennessee Radford 97 56 1 16 Memphis Ohio State 75 97 8 9 Texas Southwest Missouri State 73 55 Kansas Middle Tennessee State 72 57 George Washington Maine 83 67 Virginia Manhattan 100 55 Ole Miss Toledo 53 65 Old Dominion Holy Cross 83 56 1 Tennessee 9 Ohio State 97 65 5 Texas 4 Kansas 70 77 6 George Washington 3 Virginia 43 62 10 Toledo 2 Old Dominion 66 72 1 Tennessee 4 Kansas 92 71 3 Virginia 2 Old Dominion 72 60 1 Tennessee 3 Virginia 52 46 Mideast Region – Rosemont, Illinois First roundMarch 15 and 16 Second roundMarch 17 and 18 Regional semifinalsMarch 23 Regional finalsMarch 25 Storrs, CT – Sat/Mon Durham, NC – Sat/Mon Nashville, TN – Fri/Sun Iowa City, IA – Fri/Sun Connecticut Howard 94 63 Massachusetts Michigan State 57 60OT Florida San Francisco 61 68 Duke James Madison 85 53 Wisconsin Oregon 74 60 Vanderbilt Harvard 100 83 DePaul SMU 96 82 Iowa Butler 72 67 1 Connecticut 9 Michigan State 88 68 12 San Francisco 4 Duke 64 60 6 Wisconsin 3 Vanderbilt 82 96 7 DePaul 2 Iowa 71 72 1 Connecticut 12 San Francisco 72 44 3 Vanderbilt 2 Iowa 74 63 1 Connecticut 3 Vanderbilt 67 57 Midwest Region – Nacogdoches, Texas First roundMarch 15 and 16 Second roundMarch 17 and 18 Regional semifinalsMarch 23 Regional finalsMarch 25 Ruston, LA – Sat/Mon Lubbock, TX – Fri/Sun Clemson, SC – Sat/Mon Athens, GA – Fri/Sun Louisiana Tech UCF 98 41 Utah Southern Miss 66 74 Purdue Notre Dame 60 73 Texas Tech Portland 78 61 Oregon State Stephen F. Austin 65 67 Clemson Austin Peay 79 52 Oklahoma State Rhode Island 90 82 Georgia Saint Francis 98 66 1 Louisiana Tech 9 Southern Miss 84 46 12 Notre Dame 4 Texas Tech 67 82 11 Stephen F. Austin 3 Clemson 93OT 88 7 Oklahoma State 2 Georgia 55 83 1 Louisiana Tech 4 Texas Tech 66 55 11 Stephen F. Austin 2 Georgia 64 78 1 Louisiana Tech 2 Georgia 76 90 West Region – Seattle, Washington First roundMarch 15 and 16 Second roundMarch 17 and 18 Regional semifinalsMarch 23 Regional finalsMarch 25 Stanford, CA – Sat/Mon Tuscaloosa, AL – Fri/Sun Boulder, CO – Fri/Sun University Park, PA – Fri/Sun Stanford Grambling State 82 43 Colorado State Nebraska 66 62 NC State Montana 77 68 Alabama Appalachian State 95 66 Auburn Hawaii 73 53 Colorado Tulane 83 75 Texas A&M Kent State 68 72 Penn State Youngstown State 94 71 1 Stanford 8 Colorado State 94 63 5 NC State 4 Alabama 68 88 6 Auburn 3 Colorado 68OT 61 10 Kent State 2 Penn State 59 86 1 Stanford 4 Alabama 78OT 76 6 Auburn 2 Penn State 75 69 1 Stanford 6 Auburn 71 57 Final Four – Charlotte, North Carolina National semifinalsMarch 29 National championshipMarch 31 E1 Tennessee 88OT ME1 Connecticut 83 MW2 Georgia 86 W1 Stanford 76 E1 Tennessee 83 MW2 Georgia 65 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 0.76 19–6 .760 5 5 4 2 2 Big Ten 6 0.538 7–6 .538 5 2 – – – Atlantic Coast 4 0.6 6–4 .600 4 1 1 – – Big Eight 4 0.5 4–4 .500 3 1 – – – Southwest 4 0.429 3–4 .429 2 1 – – – Conference USA 4 0.333 2–4 .333 2 – – – – Pacific-10 3 0.571 4–3 .571 1 1 1 1 – Atlantic 10 3 0.25 1–3 .250 1 – – – – Big East 2 0.714 5–2 .714 2 1 1 1 – Colonial 2 0.5 2–2 .500 1 1 – – – Mid-American 2 0.5 2–2 .500 2 – – – – West Coast 2 0.5 2–2 .500 1 1 – – – Western Athletic 2 0.333 1–2 .333 1 – – – – Ohio Valley 2 0 0–2 – – – – – – Sun Belt 1 0.75 3–1 .750 1 1 1 – – Southland 1 0.667 2–1 .667 1 1 – – – Fifteen conferences went 0-1: Big Sky Conference, Big South Conference, Big West Conference, Ivy League, MAAC, Mid-Continent, MEAC, Midwestern Collegiate, Missouri Valley Conference, North Atlantic Conference, Northeast Conference, Patriot League, Southern Conference, SWAC, and Trans America All-Tournament team Michelle M. Marciniak, Tennessee Chamique Holdsclaw, Tennessee Tiffani Johnson, Tennessee La'Keshia Frett, Georgia Saudia Roundtree, Georgia Game officials Art Bomegen (semifinal) Doug Cloud (semifinal) Wes Dean (semifinal) John Morningstar (semifinal) Bob Trammell (semifinal) Scott Yarborough (semifinal) Sally Bell (final) Dee Kantner (final) Violet Palmer (final) This was the first year the NCAA used three officials in tournament games, which was the standard for men's games since the 1978-79 season. Several conferences, including the SEC, assigned three officials to its regular season and conference tournament games for several seasons before the NCAA changed its rules. See also 1996 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament 1996 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament 1996 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament 1996 NAIA Division I women's basketball tournament 1996 NAIA Division II women's basketball tournament References Attendance and Sites http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_final4/2012/Attend.pdf NCAA 19 March 2012 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 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament Category:Basketball competitions in Lubbock, Texas