FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- The Missouri State women's basketball team will be returning to the postseason for the second consecutive year after receiving an at-large bid to the 2011 Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) Monday evening. To kick off the 17th post-season tournament trip in school history, the Lady Bears will host a first-round game against Rice, Thursday (March 17) at JQH Arena.
Game times are being finalized and will be announced by the WNIT on Tuesday.
Missouri State (23-10) saw its bid to capture the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament title fall short with Sunday's loss to UNI in the championship game. Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Nyla Milleson, the Lady Bears concluded the regular season in a three-way tie for second place in the MVC standings.
Rice (18-13) enters the WNIT after finishing third in Conference USA during the regular season. Thursday's game will be the first-ever meeting between the Lady Bears and Owls.
Tickets to Thursday's first-round game will go on sale Tuesday (March 15) at 10 a.m. through the Missouri State Athletics Box Office. Current season ticket holders will have until Noon Wednesday (March 16) to claim their seats before they are made available for public purchase.
The Lady Bears, who went 2-1 in last year's Postseason WNIT, will be making their fourth appearance in the tournament with an all-time record of 7-2 in the event. MSU dropped an overtime decision to Eastern Kentucky in the opening round of the 2002 meet, then swept the WNIT field with five straight victories in 2005 to claim their first national tournament title. Last season, the Lady Bears knocked off Oral Roberts and Samford before falling to Illinois in the third round at JQH Arena.
The 64-team, single-elimination WNIT will consist of 31 automatic berths and 33 at-large selections, with all games played at host school sites. An automatic bid was offered to each established Division I conference to the team that finished highest during the regular season and did not receive a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The 33 at-large bids were filled by the top remaining teams available, as decided by a series of factors. All Division I teams with overall records of .500 or better are considered for the at-large berths.
The Postseason WNIT will open with first-round games Wednesday through Friday, March 16-18. The event culminates Saturday, April 3 with the championship. For more information, including a complete listing of game times and dates for the 2010 WNIT, visit the official tournament web site at www.womensnit.com.
Additional information pertaining to Thursday's game will be posted as it becomes available on the Missouri State Basketball Postseason Information Page online at www.MissouriStateBears.com
The MSU Athletics Box Office is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, at JQH Arena and can be reached by phone at (417) 836-7678. Season ticket holders may also notify the Box Office of their intent to hold their seats for the postseason by email at MissouriStateTix@MissouriState.edu.
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