March 11, 2001

MILWAUKEE - The UWM women's basketball team will open its first NCAA Tournament by playing at Duke University Saturday afternoon.

The Panthers, the 16th seed in the West Region, will face the top-seeded Blue Devils in the second game of the first round session in Durham, N.C. Tipoff is set for 30 minutes after conclusion of the first game of the session. Eighth-seeded Baylor and ninth-seeded Arkansas will play in that game, tiping off at 11:07 a.m. EST.

The Panthers (19-10) claimed the automatic bid from the Midwestern Collegiate Conference by beating UW-Green Bay in the championship game, 77-62, Saturday in Chicago. The Panthers enter the tournament having won nine straight games, and 12 of their last 13.

"Why not play the best?" UWM coach Sandy Botham said of her team's matchup with the regular season and tournament champions from the Atlantic Coast Conference. "This is why you play college basketball. We've had a tough non-conference schedule, so we should be prepared."

UWM opened the season just 4-7, but the Panthers won 15 of their last 18 games to claim their first-ever share of the regular season MCC title. UWM then beat Wright State and Loyola in the MCC Tournament before their championship game victory over the three-time defending champion Phoenix.

"It's great to see all of the people and all of the support," Botham said after watching the pairings announcement with her team and a large group of Panther supporters. "It's been kind of surreal, `we're in.' Then you see your name up on the screen and you say, `Wow!'"