The Michigan women’s basketball team (25-6 overall, 15-3 Big Ten) earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament in the Fort Worth 3 Region. As a top-16 overall seed for the second time in program history, the Wolverines will host the first and second rounds of March Madness at Crisler Center.
Michigan will face No. 15 seed Holy Cross (23-9, 14-4 Patriot League) in the first round. If they advance to the second round, the Wolverines would face the winner of No. 7 seed North Carolina State and No. 10 seed Tennessee.
“I’m excited for somebody else that hasn’t seen Michigan to have an opportunity to play against Michigan because, like I said, I think we have an unbelievable team,” head coach Kim Barnes Arico said March 7 after the Big Ten Tournament semifinal. “I think our schedule, whether that’s our conference or non-conference schedule, has prepared us for March. And I’m excited for whatever that is.”
At No. 6 in the NET and No. 9 in the AP poll, the Wolverines boast a strong resume with the fifth-most Quad 1 wins nationally (nine, the same as UConn), unblemished by Quad 2-4 losses. Featuring ranked wins against Notre Dame, Illinois, Michigan State, Ohio State and Maryland, plus wins against No. 18 Minnesota and Oregon, Michigan is battle-tested. The Wolverines competed tightly in losses to three top-five teams by a combined nine points, and are largely putting the pieces together at the season’s most crucial point.
Michigan is 14-1 at home, one of the best home finishes in program history behind the 16-0 home record in 2021-22, the last time the Wolverines hosted the NCAA Tournament. Next weekend, Michigan is looking to tie that home wins mark with first- and second-round victories to advance to the program’s third Sweet Sixteen.
“Just having a great fan base, I mean it’s nothing like the Block M and Maize Rage coming out,” senior guard Brooke Quarles Daniels said of the Wolverines’ home success on Jan. 25. “… It just makes a complete difference when you have almost a packed house. It really just changes the momentum. When we were hitting those big shots, it was just such a crazy feeling.”
“Shout out to Maize Rage, keep that going,” sophomore guard Syla Swords added, with Barnes Arico echoing the sentiment.
With the home crowd in effect, the Wolverines are excited for another opportunity to “protect the Block M,” this time in the Big Dance.
