Gophers women's basketball projected to be firmly in NCAA Tournament field

The experts are taking notice of Minnesota's hot start to the season.

Jan 3, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Dawn Plitzuweit looks on during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images / Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

The Gophers women's basketball team has started the 2024-25 season a perfect 6-0, beating teams by an average of 31.8 points per game. The national media is beginning to take notice.

The regular season tipped off just over two weeks ago, but it's never too early to start talking about the NCAA Tournament. ESPN's Charlie Creme released an updated Bracketology on Tuesday, and Minnesota was among the "last four byes" as a No. 11 seed in the tournament.

NOTE: #Gophers WBB is listed among the "Last Four Byes" as an 11 seed in ESPN's @CharlieCreme's latest Bracketology (updated on Nov. 19).

Minnesota is looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017-18. https://t.co/Jgp6hvKEHe pic.twitter.com/yOufwF7bXN

— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) November 21, 2024

The Gophers have not played in the NCAA Tournament since the 2017-18 season. In only her second year on the job, head coach Dawn Plitzuweit has the team in a real position to make some noise this postseason.

It's worth noting that this bracket projection was released prior to the news of star guard Mara Braun dealing with a foot injury. She was sidelined for the first time this season in Minnesota's win over Eastern Illinois on Wednesday. There has been no official diagnosis of whether it's a long-term issue, but it's something that the Gophers are monitoring closely.

Whether or not Braun is on the court, it's clear that this Gophers team is much deeper than last year's squad. The addition of Michigan transfer Taylor Woodson, Nebraska transfer Annika Stewart and true freshman Minnetonka native Tori McKinney provides the U a legitimate eight- or nine-player rotation, and maybe even 10 when Braun is healthy.

While it might be fun to look ahead, the Gophers have not played a single team that is projected in the tournament field, and they will not until Dec. 9 when they play at Nebraska, which is currently ranked No. 21 in the country. This team has proven that it has a lot of talent, but we might not know its full potential until conference play gets underway.