This weekend, for the first time ever, there will be NCAA tournament basketball played at Tufts. The women's team received an at−large bid yesterday, marking the program's fourth NCAA berth in the past five years. The Jumbos have already had a sparkling season, reaching the NESCAC tournament finals and compiling a record of 21−6 overall and 8−2 in the conference.
A four−team pod will compete at Cousens Gymnasium in first− and second−round action this weekend. On Friday, Tufts will take on Misericordia and Johns Hopkins will face the University of New England. The games are tentatively scheduled for 6 and 8 p.m., respectively. The winners will then square off in the Round of 32 at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
The Jumbos appear to be the favorites against the Misericordia Cougars. In last week's regional rankings, Tufts was fourth in the Northeast while Misericordia did not crack the Mid−Atlantic ranks. Still, the 17−10 Cougars — who will be making their first tourney appearance — should be riding high after beating Mid−Atlantic No. 3 King's in the Freedom Conference title game this past weekend to earn an automatic NCAA bid.
The University of New England and Johns Hopkins may pose bigger threats to the Jumbos' tourney hopes. The Nor'easters, who are 22−5 overall and reached the semifinals of the Commonwealth Coast Conference tournament, were second in the most recent Northeast rankings, and have scored wins over Rhode Island College, Southern Maine and Colby. The Blue Jays are 23−4 and earned an at−large bid out of the Centennial Conference. They were ranked fourth in the Mid−Atlantic region last week.
The Jumbos are 5−3 in their previous three NCAA efforts, reaching the Elite Eight in 2008. But none of the team's current players have made the Sweet 16, with only three members of the team having any NCAA experience.
