INDIANAPOLIS - Making an America East record fifth-straight trip to the NCAA tournament, the University at Albany Great Danes earned a No. 12 seed and will face No. 5 seed Florida in the 2016 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship on Friday at noon on ESPN2 in Syracuse, N.Y. The 64-team field was unveiled during ESPN's Selection Show Special on Monday night.
The Great Danes, who won an America East record fifth-straight conference title to grab the league's automatic bid, earned their highest seed in program history and will play a first round game on a neutral floor for the third time in five years. Fourth-seed and host for the first and second round, Syracuse, will play No. 13 seed Army following Albany-Florida.
As the No. 12 seed, Albany (27-4), has earned the league's highest seed since 2010 when both Vermont and Hartford were No. 10 seeds. The Great Danes fell by just 2 points to Duke in last year's tournament at Cameron Indoor Stadium. America East teams are 4-26 all-time in the NCAA tournament with the last win coming in 2010.
Thirty-two conferences were granted automatic bids for the championship and the remaining 32 teams were selected at-large.
First- and second-round games will be played at 16 home sites Friday, March 18 through Monday, March 21, with the 16 second-round winners moving on to the four regional sites. The Lexington Regional (Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky) and the Sioux Falls Regional (Denny Sanford Premier Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota) will be played on Friday, March 25 and Sunday, March 27, while the Bridgeport Regional (Webster Bank Arena, Bridgeport, Connecticut) and the Dallas Regional (American Airlines Center, Dallas) will be held Saturday, March 26 and Monday, March 28. The four regional winners will advance to the 2016 NCAA Women’s Final Four, April 3 and 5 in Indianapolis (Bankers Life Fieldhouse).