INDIANAPOLIS — Following a 78-62 loss to Indiana in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, the Oregon women’s basketball team remains firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble heading into Selection Sunday.
The Ducks (19-11, 10-8 Big Ten) will have to wait 10 days before hearing their postseason fate, with the selection show set to air March 16, long after conference tournaments have ended.
Oregon, which has been ranked inside the top 40 of the NCAA’s NET rankings for most of the season, slipped to No. 40 heading into the conference tournament and lost to a fellow bubble team in the Hoosiers, not helping its case to make it to the Big Dance.
Here’s where the Ducks stand in the latest bracketology, updated Friday morning following Thursday’s action in the Big Ten Tournament.
Oregon women’s basketball NCAA Tournament projections
Oregon women’s basketball NCAA Tournament history under Kelly Graves
Before Oregon coach Kelly Graves was hired in 2014, the Ducks hadn’t made the Big Dance in nine seasons. The former Gonzaga coach took the Ducks to the tournament in his third year, beginning an unprecedented golden run in Oregon women’s basketball history. The Ducks made the Elite Eight in back-to-back seasons starting in 2017 and made a run to their first ever Final Four in 2019.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament in 2020, with Oregon the presumptive national title favorite with Sabrina Ionescu, Ruthy Hebard and Satou Sabally at the helm. The Ducks made the tournament in 2021 and 2022 but have missed each of the last two tournaments.
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football, volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com and you can follow him on X @AlecDietz.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon Ducks March Madness predictions: Big Ten tournament impact
