TicketsOct. 27, 2006
New York, N.Y. - The University of Cincinnati was picked to finish 12th in the 2006-07 BIG EAST women's basketball preseason poll. The Bearcats, who finished in 11th place and earned a berth to the BIG EAST Championships in their inaugural season in one of the nation's toughest conferences, received 82 votes. The poll is determined by a vote of the league's 16 head coaches who are not permitted to select their own teams. The Bearcats are led by senior Treasure Humphries who was tabbed a 2006-07 Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention selection. Humphries made an immediate impact in the BIG EAST, and was tabbed a second team performer, the Bearcats' first athlete to earn such an honor.
The University of Connecticut was picked to win the 2006-07 BIG EAST women's basketball regular season title. In the 25 years of BIG EAST women's basketball, Connecticut has been crowned regular-season champs 14 times, while winning 13 tournament titles.
Connecticut garnered 11 of 16 possible first-place votes to total 221 points in the poll. UConn finished second last season in the regular-season standings. Rutgers is the defending BIG EAST regular season champion after becoming the seventh team to go undefeated in conference play. The Scarlet Knights earned five first-place votes and a total of 215 points. RU advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinal for the second straight year, before falling to second-seeded Tennessee in Cleveland, Ohio, the site of this year's Final Four.
DePaul grabbed 179 points to finish third in the preseason poll. Last season, the Blue Demons posted a record of 32-5 overall, 11-5 in the league. DePaul is coming off its best postseason effort in school history, advancing to its first-ever Sweet 16, before falling to LSU at the San Antonio Regional.
Louisville was selected fourth with 176 points. The Cardinals are returning four of their top scorers and three of their five starters from last season's 19-10 team. U of L finished fifth in the regular-season standings with a 10-6 league mark.
The 2007 BIG EAST Women's Basketball Championship Presented by Aéropostale will return to the Hartford Civic Center for the fourth straight year, as the conference celebrates its 25th championship. After a successful tournament in 2005, the four-day event returns March 3-6. The BIG EAST's top 12 teams will battle for the conference title and will earn the league's automatic bid to the 64-team NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship.
2006-07 Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Connecticut (11) 221
2. Rutgers (5) 215
3. DePaul 179
4. Louisville 176
5. Pittsburgh 152
6. St. John's 148
7. USF 136
8. Marquette 123
9. West Virginia 117
10. Villanova 110
11. Notre Dame 108
12. Cincinnati 82
13. Georgetown 57
14. Providence 45
15. Syracuse 30
16. Seton Hall 21