April 18, 2005

FINAL 2004-05 BIG TEN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL RELEASE
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The 2004-05 Big Ten women's basketball campaign was a season marked with many firsts for both the Conference and its member schools.

Not only did Michigan State win its first-ever Big Ten Tournament title and Final Four berth, but the Spartans also recorded a school-record 33 wins. MSU (33-4) also shared the League's regular-season title with Ohio State (30-5). The two schools' success marked the first time in Conference history that a pair of schools won 30 or more games in a season.

The attention quickly turned to the Spartans in early April as Michigan State became the sixth Conference school to ever make a Final Four.

In 2005-06, the Big Ten will look to produce at least its sixth Final Four squad in the past eight years and its second-ever national champion.

COMBINED BIG TEN MEN'S & WOMEN'S NOTES
• Led all conferences this year with most combined NCAA Tournament wins (22, 12 men-10 women)

• Most combined NCAA Tournament wins (22) in Big Ten history

• First official time in Conference history that a men's and women's basketball program in the same year reached the national championship game

• Fourth occasion in League history that a men's and women's team reached the Final Four in same year

• First time in Big Ten history a school has sent both its men's and women's teams to the Final Four in the same year (Michigan State)


BIG TEN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TIDBITS
• In 2005, Michigan State became the third Big Ten team to ever reach the national championship game

• Back-to-back Final Four participants

• Five Final Four teams in last seven years

• Second highest number of NCAA Tournament wins (10) in League history

• Most successful back-to-back NCAA Tournaments in Big Ten history (21 wins, 2004 - 11 wins, 2005 - 10 wins)

For more information on the 2004-05 Big Ten Women's Basketball season, download the final release in PDF format.