Cowgirls and Jackrabbits Disrespected Ahead of NCAA Tournament Matchup
Oklahoma State was among the top 25 teams in the country for much of the season, but its NCAA Tournament seeding doesn’t quite reflect that.
On Sunday night, the Cowgirls heard their team called out on Selection Sunday for the second time in three years under Jacie Hoyt. Leading a remarkable bounce-back season, Hoyt has led the Cowgirls to not only the best season under her reign but also one of the best in program history.
Entering the big dance at 25-6, OSU is set to face South Dakota State in the first round. With the Cowgirls as a No. 7 seed and the Jackrabbits as a No. 10 seed, this should be a fun matchup in Connecticut. However, the intriguing matchup shouldn’t distract fans from the fact that both teams are severely underrated.
Considering how the NCAA Tournament works, every seed is effectively ranked in groups of four, with No. 1 seeds being 1-4, No. 2 seeds being 5-8 and so on. Pushing that out to the No. 7 and 10 seeds, OSU is ranked in the 25-28 range, and South Dakota State is in the 37-40 range.
The only problem with those placements is that they don’t match with the AP rankings whatsoever. While there is bound to be some variance between the group of media members that votes and the tournament committee, the differences are staggering.
The NCAA Tournament effectively sees OSU as a borderline top 25 team despite the fact it has been in the top 25 every week dating back to late January. In Monday’s post-selection rankings, the Cowgirls held steady at the No. 17 spot in the AP poll, which would place them as the highest-ranked No. 5 seed if the AP poll was used for tournament rankings.
As for South Dakota State, its No. 10 seed placement would lead many to believe that the Jackrabbits are not only outside of the top 25 but also not even in the receiving votes area. In reality, the Jackrabbits hold the No. 24 spot in the poll, which would place them as a No. 6 seed in the tournament.
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Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.