No Place Like Home in Women’s Tournament

Gonzaga's victories in the N.C.A.A. tournament have come in front of many of their fans.Elaine Thompson/Associated Press Gonzaga’s victories in the N.C.A.A. tournament have come in front of many of their fans.

A lot of factors need to come to together to win the women’s N.C.A.A. basketball title. Luck, good play and decent officiating all help.

Eight teams in this year’s Round of 16 had an additional factor going for them: being able to play at home or very nearby. That situation doesn’t happen as clearly in the men’s side of the tournament, where teams may play close to home but are not allowed to play on their home floor.

Tennessee, Duke, Connecticut, Ohio State, Stanford, Gonzaga, Xavier, Baylor, all had an inherent home crowd to support them.

But only one team will get to continue the home-cooking roll: No. 11 Gonzaga, who will play No. 7 Louisville Saturday at Spokane’s Veterans Memorial Arena.

Even the hometown Spokane Spokesman-Review noted the advantage handed to the Zags. Gonzaga has not needed to leave home during the N.C.A.A. tournament, playing their first two games the McCarthey Athletic Center.

“Just this: The women’s committee has set the table for a No. 11 seed having what amounts to four home games en route to the Final Four,” columnist John Blanchette wrote. “Imagine your 8-year-old’s lemonade stand getting the only vendor spot on Spokane Falls Boulevard on a sizzling Hoopfest Saturday. It’s that kind of windfall.

“If such a thing had come up on the men’s bracket, Jay Bilas’ head would have exploded on national TV last week. Which might have been the One Shining Moment to end all shining moments.”

Still, not everybody is happy with the advantage of getting to play at home. Connecticut didn’t sell out its early round games, leading Coach Geno Auriemma to blast the Huskies normally-loyal fanbase. The No. 1 Huskies will play No. 5 Georgetown in Philadelphia on Sunday.

“We have a spoiled group of fans who assume we are going to win, who assumed we would be in Philadelphia and be at the Final Four,” Auriemma told the Hartford Courant. “We had the season, the Big East in Hartford and now the NCAA tournament. You are asking them to do a lot.”

Auriemma continued his remarks, saying he didn’t think Connecticut would bid on hosting early round games for the next five years.

“Of course, you’re never really happy unless every ticket is sold,” Mike Enright, Connecticut’s associate athletic director for communications, said. “We’ve said all along that no matter what sport you are talking about, times are changing, the economy is different, television coverage is more comprehensive.

“That’s not a problem affecting only UConn. I think what we may be struggling with here is an oversaturation of the market.”

Correction: March 25, 2011
An earlier version of this blog post erroneously included Georgetown in a list of Round of 16 women's teams who had a hometown advantage in the N.C.A.A. tournament in earlier games.