Preview: Miami takes on West Virginia in NCAA Tournament

The Miami University RedHawks women’s basketball team (28-6, 16-2) will face the West Virginia University Mountaineers (27-6) in the first round of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament at 5 p.m. on March 21. in Morgantown, West Virginia.

This is the RedHawks’ first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2008. Head coach Glenn Box will appear in his first tournament with Miami, but he has a plethora of postseason experience as an assistant coach at Indiana University. The Hoosiers made four consecutive tournament appearances with Box on the staff from 2019 to 2023 (excluding 2020 due to COVID).

Miami last played in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) tournament final against the University of Toledo Rockets. The RedHawks won 68-58 and secured the MAC title and an automatic spot in the national tournament. Miami will enter the matchup having won 20 of its last 22 games.

Previously, The fourth-seeded Mountaineers won the Big 12 tournament championship against Texas Christian University on March 8. West Virginia will have 13 days in between games.

This will be West Virginia’s fourth appearance in the tournament, all under head coach Mark Kellogg. The Mountaineers are led by redshirt junior Gia Cooke who averages 14.7 points per game and senior guard Jordan Harrison who was named the Big 12 defensive player of the year and first-team all-Big 12.

Junior forward Amber Tretter, who was named to the All-MAC first team, will continue to be the focal point for the RedHawks. Senior guard Amber Scalia, who was named MAC tournament MVP, averaged 16.7 points throughout the tournament. She will look to continue her recent performance.

“I think our defense gives us confidence; we feel like we can make things hard for other people," Box said.

The RedHawks’ defense allowed just 58.5 points per game in MAC play. Miami will look to slow the game down through a potent defense, which would take stress off of the offense.

“When you know that you can slow people down, it makes you a lot more relaxed offensively because you feel very good about your ability to get stops,” Box said.

The winner of the matchup between the RedHawks and Mountaineers will play the winner of the five-seed University of Kentucky and 12-seed James Madison University. All three games will be played in Morgantown and the second round will take place on March 23.

The RedHawks are excited for the opportunity to compete on the national stage. They won the MAC regular season and tournament titles but still have larger goals in mind. Miami’s confidence has not wavered.

“We don't need to come out of our element, we just need to do what we do…I feel very confident in our kids, they'll be ready to go,” Box said.