2024 Big Ten Women's Basketball Postseason Central

For the 23rd consecutive season (not counting the 2019-20 campaign that ended prematurely due to the COVID-19 pandemic), the Big Ten is sending at least eight of its women’s basketball programs to postseason play. Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska and Ohio State will compete in the NCAA Tournament. Illinois and Penn State will represent the conference in the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT), while Minnesota, Purdue and Wisconsin will take part in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT).

A record-tying seven Big Ten Conference schools received berths into the 2024 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship. For the second consecutive year, seven schools earned their way into the NCAA Tournament, led by No. 1 seed Iowa, No. 2 seed Ohio State and No. 4 seed Indiana.
 
This marks the second time a Big Ten program has garnered a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament in as many years, when Indiana was a top seed a season ago. Iowa has earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament three times in school history – 1988, 1992 and 2024.
 
The seven selections ties the conference record for most teams selected in one season (also set in 2012, 2015, 2021 and 2023). It is the 19th time in the past 23 years and 26th time in Big Ten history that at least six current conference members have been chosen to compete in the NCAA Tournament.

Penn State and Illinois will represent the Big Ten Conference after being selected to participate in the 32-team Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT), which is making its postseason debut. The WBIT is a newly created 32-team postseason single-elimination tournament owned and sponsored by the NCAA. The competition is the second-best women's basketball postseason tournament available (behind the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament) and is in its first year of existence. Created to ensure equity between the NCAA's men's and women's basketball postseason opportunities, the WBIT does not replace any existing event and will instead be held as a separate NCAA-funded entity.

Minnesota, Purdue and Wisconsin were at-large qualifiers for the 26th edition of the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT). Big Ten schools have also enjoyed success in the WNIT, with current conference programs reaching the tournament semifinals 17 times (including six of the past nine tournaments with Rutgers in 2014, Michigan in 2015, 2016 and 2017, Indiana in 2018 and Northwestern in 2019) and winning the WNIT championship six times (Penn State - 1998; Wisconsin - 2000; Ohio State - 2001; Rutgers - 2014; Michigan - 2017; Indiana - 2018).

All NCAA Tournament games will be televised live on the ESPN family of networks and can also be seen on the ESPN app. ESPN will broadcast all WBIT games, with the preliminary rounds held on ESPN+. The semifinals will air on ESPNU and the championship game will air on ESPN2. All WNIT games hosted by Big Ten schools through the semifinals will be broadcast live on B1G+, while road WNIT games through the semifinals will be televised by a variety of outlets as determined by the host school. The WNIT championship game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network.

(NOTES: Regional seeds listed with school names for NCAA Tournament only … all times listed below are Eastern … dates, times and TV coverage subject to change … all games on ESPN familly of networks can also be seen on the ESPN app).