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Maryland women’s basketball would be the No. 9 overall seed if the season ended today, according to the selection committee’s first reveal of the top 16 seeds on Monday.
The Terps are currently 19-1 and 7-0 in the Big Ten, but are just a 3-seed right now in the eyes of the committee. This may come as a surprise to some, as the Terps are currently ranked No. 3 in the AP Poll. ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme hasn’t had them lower than a 2-seed.
The Terps had non-conference wins against fellow top-16 teams Louisville (No. 13) and Arizona State (No. 16), but that didn’t appear to be enough to overcome an otherwise weak non-conference schedule and a down year in the Big Ten.
Maryland has the 85th-best strength of schedule, while the weakest SOS in the top eight is No. 2 Baylor at 47th.
The Terps are currently 19th in RPI, which is the best in the Big Ten, but every other Power 5 conference has at least four teams ranked higher than Maryland.
These rankings are subject to change, but it shows that a 2-seed is definitely a possibility, and a 1-seed is a long shot.
No other Big Ten team was in the top 16, and UConn, Baylor, South Carolina, and Mississippi State were the No. 1 seeds in the committee’s first rankings. The top 16 seeds will be updated again on Feb. 6.
Committee Rankings
Rank | School | Record |
---|---|---|
Rank | School | Record |
1 | Connecticut | 18-0 |
2 | Baylor | 19-1 |
3 | South Carolina | 17-1 |
4 | Mississippi State | 20-1 |
5 | Florida State | 19-2 |
6 | Washington | 19-2 |
7 | Notre Dame | 18-3 |
8 | Oregon State | 18-2 |
9 | Maryland | 19-1 |
10 | Texas | 14-4 |
11 | Duke | 17-3 |
12 | Stanford | 17-3 |
13 | Louisville | 18-4 |
14 | UCLA | 15-4 |
15 | Kentucky | 14-6 |
16 | Arizona State | 14-5 |