The start of the NCAA Division II women's basketball postseason is just three days away, and as has been the case for most of the 2023-24 season, Ashland University is the top-ranked team in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll going into the playoffs.
As announced by the WBCA on Tuesday (March 12) afternoon, the Eagles (30-1) are atop the coaches poll for the eighth time in a row and the 13
th time in 17 polls this season. In the latest poll, Ashland received 20 of 23 first-place votes.
Ashland will start the 2024 D-II Midwest Regional tournament on Friday (March 15) at 2:30 p.m. vs. No. RV Drury (25-6) at Grand Valley State University. The Eagles head into the NCAA postseason with a 22-game winning streak, wins in 67 of the last 68 games, 70 straight victories when leading at half, and a road/neutral-site winning streak of 43 games.
Over the last 13 seasons, the Eagles have gone 389-40 (.907) with three NCAA Division II national titles, two national runner-up finishes, three undefeated seasons, a D-II-record 73-game winning streak, a D-II-record 39-game road winning streak (current), eight 30-win seasons, 12 NCAA postseason qualifications, nine conference regular-season championships, 10 conference tournament titles, and a mark of 210-14 (.938) at home.
Tuesday's poll marks the 68
th time Ashland has been No. 1, a division record. The Eagles are 137-4 (.965) all-time as the No. 1 team in the nation, and 326-19 (.945) as a ranked team in D-II.
Since 1995-96, Ashland has been:
- In the Top 25 of the coaches poll 172 times.
- In the Top 10 of the coaches poll 151 times.
- In the Top 5 of the coaches poll 124 times.
For a complete history of Ashland women's basketball coaches poll rankings prior to 2023-24,
go to page 44 of the program record book.
Going into the NCAA postseason, the Eagles are in the top five in the following D-II team categories:
- First in field-goal percentage (50.5), assists per game (21.5) and rebounding margin per game (tied, plus-11.5).
- Second in scoring margin per game (plus-26.9 ppg.) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.58-to-1).
- Third in points per game (83.5), 3-point field-goal percentage (37.5) and 3-point field goals per game (tied, 9.8).
- Fifth in bench points per game (35.7).
Individually, junior point guard
Morgan Yoder maintains her No. 1 spot in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.42-to-1, while both junior forward
Zoe Miller (fourth, 60.9 percent) and fifth-year forward
Annie Roshak (sixth, 59.9) are in the top six in the nation in field-goal percentage.
2023-24 ASHLAND UNIVERSITY WOMEN'S BASKETBALL WBCA COACHES POLL RANKINGS: No. 1 (preseason, Nov. 21, Nov. 28, Dec. 5 and Dec. 12), No. 2 (Dec. 19, Jan. 2, Jan. 9 and Jan. 16), No. 1 (Jan. 23, Jan. 30, Feb. 6, Feb. 13, Feb. 20, Feb. 27, March 5 and March 12).
NOTE ABOUT STREAMS FOR NCAA TOURNAMENT
NCAA Championships Pass will stream 120 DII men's and women's basketball tournament games (all games from first round through quarterfinals) live on NCAA.com. Games will be available on
NCAA.com, school sites that stream through Hudl and opt to co-distribute the live streams, and the NCAA Championships Pass app available for Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Google TV.
Prices for viewing (first round through quarterfinals)
- $9.95 per game
- $29.95 per championship
- $49.95 for all games
Semifinals and finals viewing
- Semifinals: Wednesday, March 27 on CBS Sports Network (7p ET, 9:30p)
- Championship: Friday, March 29 on CBS Sports Network (8p ET)
