2017–18 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Season
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The 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season began on November 10, 2017 and ended with the Final Four title game at
Nationwide Arena Nationwide Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Columbus, Ohio, United States. Since completion in 2000, the arena has served as the home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is one of two facilities in Columbus, alon ...
in
Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
on April 1, 2018. Practices officially began in September 29, 2017.


Season headlines


Milestones and records

* November 13 and 16 – Chastadie Barrs of Lamar recorded triple-doubles in consecutive games, making her the eighth Division I women's player to do so. First, she recorded 14 points, 10 assists, and 10 steals in a 93–62 win over
Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...
Louisiana College Louisiana Christian University (LCU) is a private Baptist university in Pineville, Louisiana. It enrolls 1,100 to 1,200 students. It is affiliated with the Louisiana Baptist Convention (Southern Baptist Convention). Louisiana Christ ...
. Barrs fell one rebound short of a quadruple-double in this game. She then recorded 24 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 steals in the Cardinals' 92–49 blowout of NAIA school Southwestern Assemblies of God. * November 13 and 17 – On the night after Barrs recorded her second straight triple-double,
Sabrina Ionescu Sabrina Elaine Ionescu (born December 6, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks. She is the NCAA all- ...
of
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
matched the feat, becoming the ninth Division I women's player to do so. In the preseason WNIT, Ionescu recorded 29 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in Oregon's quarterfinal against
Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...
, followed by 16 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds against
Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
in the semifinals. This gave the sophomore six triple-doubles in her career, one shy of what was then the Division I women's record of seven. * November 25 – Kelsey Mitchell of
Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
became the all-time Division I women's leader in made
three-pointers A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or trey) is a Field goal (basketball), field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, i ...
. Mitchell's seven three-pointers in the Buckeyes' 104–62 romp over Florida Gulf Coast gave her 402 for her career, surpassing the previous record of 398 by Connecticut's
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis Kaleena Jordan Mosqueda-Lewis (born Kaleena Jordan Lewis, November 3, 1993) is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. Prior to enrolling at the University of Connecticut she played for Mater Dei High School in S ...
. * December 17 – Ionescu recorded her seventh career triple-double, tying the NCAA women's all-divisions record then held by
Suzie McConnell-Serio Suzie McConnell-Serio (born July 29, 1966) is a former American women's basketball coach and player. She was the head coach for the women's basketball team at the University of Pittsburgh from 2013 to 2018. In 2004, she was named WNBA Coach of th ...
(
Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...
) and Louella Tomlinson ( Saint Mary's). She had 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 14 assists in the Ducks' 90–46 blowout of Ole Miss. * December 19 – Two coaches recorded their 1,000th career wins. First, North Carolina's Sylvia Hatchell reached the milestone when the
Tar Heels Tar Heel is a nickname applied to the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is also the nickname of the University of North Carolina athletic teams, students, alumni, and fans. The origins of the Tar Heel nickname trace back to North Carolina's promi ...
defeated Grambling State 79–63. Later in the evening,
Geno Auriemma Luigi "Geno" Auriemma (born March 23, 1954) is an Italian-born American college basketball coach and, since 1985, the head coach of the University of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team. , he has led UConn to 17 undefeated conference sea ...
reached the milestone when
UConn The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Ha ...
defeated
Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
88–64. Auriemma became the fastest coach in either men's or women's Division I history to reach 1,000 wins, doing so in his 33rd season and 1,135th game. * December 31 – Ionescu took sole possession of the record for career triple-doubles with 24 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists in the Ducks' 94–83 win over
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
. This game was also the 500th career win for Ducks head coach
Kelly Graves Kelly Lee Graves (born January 14, 1963) is the current head women's basketball coach at the University of Oregon. Previously, Graves was the head women's basketball coach at St. Mary's from 1997 to 2000, as well as Gonzaga University from 2000 to ...
. * January 3 – Grambling State's Shakyla Hill became the first player in Division I basketball to record a quadruple-double since
Lester Hudson Lester Hudson III (born August 7, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Shandong Heroes of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). In the 2007–08 season, Hudson recorded the only quadruple-double in NCAA Division I men's ...
in
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
, and the first to do so in D-I women's play since 1993. She had 15 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 steals in the Lady Tigers' 93–71 win over Alabama State. * January 7 – Mercer's KeKe Calloway hit 12 three-pointers in the Bears' 86–64 win at Furman, tying a Division I women's single-game record. * January 13 – Mitchell became the 13th Division I women's player with 3,000 career points, reaching the milestone with her first two points in the Buckeyes' 77–62 win at
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
. * January 27 – Mitchell became the all-time scoring leader in the
Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
, surpassing
Rachel Banham Rachel Banham (born July 15, 1993, in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is an American former professional basketball player. Banham played guard for the Minnesota Golden Gophers women's basketball team, where she set a number of team records. Banham was dr ...
of
Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
during the Buckeyes' 78–62 win over
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
. * February 1 – Chattanooga's Jim Foster became the eighth NCAA women's coach and the seventh in Division I with 900 career wins, reaching the mark with a 58–41 win over
Western Carolina Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...
. * February 3 – In a more ignominious milestone, Chicago State set a new Division I women's record with its 59th consecutive loss, reaching the mark with a 59–43 home loss to Grand Canyon. * February 17 – Oregon's Ruthy Hebard set a new Division I women's record for consecutive field goals made, going 12-for-12 in the Ducks' 80–74 double-overtime win over
USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...
to finish the game with an ongoing streak of 30. The previous record of 28 was set in 1998 by Southern Utah's Myndee Kay Larsen. * February 19 – Hebard made her first three basket attempts in Oregon's 101–94 overtime win over
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
, ending with a streak of 33 consecutive field goals, the NCAA Division I record for a player of either sex. She had entered the game even with Yale's Brandon Sherrod, who had a streak of 30 in 2016. * March 16 – Ionescu recorded her sixth triple-double of the season in Oregon's 88–45 first-round NCAA tournament win over
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists. This matched the single-season Division I triple-double record, previously accomplished by Danielle Carson of
Youngstown State Youngstown State University (YSU or Youngstown State) is a public university in Youngstown, Ohio. It was founded in 1908 and is the easternmost member of the University System of Ohio. The university is composed of six undergraduate colleges an ...
in 1985–86, and also in men's play by BYU's
Kyle Collinsworth Kyle Collinsworth (born October 3, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the San-en NeoPhoenix of the B.League. He played college basketball for Brigham Young University (BYU). During the 2014–15 season, Collinsworth broke th ...
in both 2014–15 and 2015–16. It was also the 16th triple-double in Division I women's tournament history, and the first since Iowa's
Samantha Logic Samantha Logic (born October 22, 1992) is an American basketball player. She also played for the San Antonio Stars of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball at the University of Iowa. A 5'9" point guard ...
in
2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
. * March 17 – UConn crushed Saint Francis (PA) 140–52 in the first round of the NCAA tournament, setting a new scoring record for a Division I women's tournament game. The only team to score more points in a Division I tournament game was the Loyola Marymount men, who scored 149 in a
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
game against
Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
.


Conference membership changes

Three schools joined new conferences for the 2017–18 season. In addition to the schools changing conferences, the 2017–18 season was the last for four schools in their then-current conferences: *
North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
left the
Big Sky Conference The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eigh ...
for the Summit League. *
Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada * Hampton, New Brunswick *Ha ...
and
USC Upstate USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...
respectively left the
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southeastern and the Mid-Atlantic United States. It participates in the National C ...
and
Atlantic Sun Conference The ASUN Conference, formerly the Atlantic Sun Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I level, and began sponsoring football at the Divisi ...
(ASUN) to become members of the
Big South Conference The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I. Originally a non-football conference, the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 as part of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). Th ...
. *
Liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
left the Big South to join the ASUN.


Arenas


New arenas

* DePaul played its first season at
Wintrust Arena Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square, previously referred to as DePaul Arena or McCormick Place Events Center, is a 10,387-seat sports venue in the Near South Side community area of Chicago that opened in 2017. It is the current home court for ...
, which replaced McGrath–Phillips Arena (though the DePaul women's volleyball team continues to use the older venue). *
NJIT {{Infobox university , name = {{nowrap, New Jersey Institute of Technology , image = New Jersey IT seal.svg , image_upright = 0.9 , former_names = Newark College of Engineering (1930–1975)Ne ...
played its first season at the
Wellness and Events Center The Wellness and Events Center (WEC) is 220,000 sq ft. sports and recreation facility that includes a 3,500 seat basketball arena in Newark, New Jersey. It was built at a cost of $102 million by the New Jersey Institute of Technology. The Wellnes ...
, replacing
Fleisher Center The Estelle & Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center is a 1,600-seat multi-purpose arena in Newark, New Jersey, USA. Built in 1967, it was the home of the New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders men's and women's basketball, volleyball, fencing a ...
. *
UMBC The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) is a public research university in Baltimore County, Maryland. It has a fall 2022 enrollment of 13,991 students, 61 undergraduate majors, over 92 graduate programs (38 master, 25 doctoral, ...
began the season at the Retriever Activities Center, the team's home since 1973, but the school opened the new
UMBC Event Center The Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena (formerly the UMBC Event Center) is a basketball arena, concert and multi-purpose event venue on the campus of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) in Catonsville, Maryland. It is the home ...
in February 2018. The new facility opened on February 3 with the UMBC men hosting Vermont; the women's first game there was on February 8 against Binghamton. * Wofford played its first season at
Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium is a college basketball arena located in Spartanburg, South Carolina on the campus of Wofford College. It became home of the Wofford Terriers Wofford Terriers men's basketball, men's and Wofford Terriers women's ba ...
, replacing Benjamin Johnson Arena.


Arenas closing

* Elon played its final season at Alumni Gym, which opened in 1950 for the Elon men's team and had housed the women's team since its first season of 1971–72. The school opened the new Schar Center, with more than three times the capacity of Alumni Gym, for the 2018 women's volleyball season (which precedes the basketball season).


Temporary arenas

Four Division I women's teams played the 2017–18 season in temporary homes due to renovation of their current venues. A fifth played in a temporary home following the demolition of its previous venue to accommodate a new arena. *
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
, which normally plays at the on-campus
Fifth Third Arena Fifth Third Arena is an indoor arena in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. The arena opened in 1989 and is located on the campus of the University of Cincinnati. It primarily serves as the home venue for the Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball, wo ...
, played most of its home games at the gymnasium of nearby Catholic girls' school St. Ursula Academy, also taking some games to the nearby campus of local community college
Cincinnati State College Cincinnati State Technical and Community College (CSTCC or Cincinnati State) is a Public college, public Institute of technology, technical and Community colleges in the United States, community college in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is accredited by t ...
. *
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
renovated Hofheinz Pavilion, which was renamed
Fertitta Center The Fertitta Center, formerly known as Hofheinz Pavilion, is a 7,100-seat multi-purpose arena on the University of Houston campus in Houston. Located at 3875 Holman Street, it is home to the Houston Cougars men's and women's basketball teams and ...
upon its reopening. The renovated venue was expected to open by the start of the 2018–19 season, but construction delays pushed back the reopening to December 2018. The Cougars played at Texas Southern's
Health and Physical Education Arena Health and Physical Education Arena (H&PE Arena) is an 8,100-seat multi-purpose arena in Houston, Texas on the campus of Texas Southern University. It was designed by Houston architect Willie C. Jordan Jr. and built in 1989 and is home to the Tex ...
, and continued to play there until Fertitta Center reopened. * Northwestern played at Beardsley Gym on the campus of
Evanston Township High School Evanston Township High School (ETHS) District 202, is a four-year public high school occupying a campus in Evanston, Illinois, a north suburb of Chicago along the Lake Michigan shore. ETHS was established in 1883 and serves the city of Evanston ...
while
Welsh–Ryan Arena Welsh–Ryan Arena is a 7,039-seat multi-purpose arena in Evanston, Illinois, United States, near the campus of Northwestern University. It is home to four Northwestern Wildcats athletic teams: men's basketball, women's basketball, women's voll ...
was being renovated. * Robert Morris closed the Charles L. Sewall Center, home to the Colonials since 1985, in June 2017. The
UPMC Events Center UPMC Events Center is an indoor arena located in the Pittsburgh suburb of Moon, Pennsylvania as a part of Robert Morris University, replacing the old Charles L. Sewall Center. The UPMC Events Center is the new home of the Robert Morris Colonia ...
, under construction at the Sewall Center site, was scheduled to open in the middle of the 2018–19 basketball season. Until that time, the Colonials played home games at the Student Recreation and Fitness Center, which opened in September 2017 at the university's
North Athletic Complex The North Athletic Complex is a softball and soccer venue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is home to the Robert Morris Colonials softball and soccer teams of the NCAA Division I Northeast Conference The Northeast Conference ( ...
as part of the UPMC Events Center project. (Later construction delays pushed back the opening of the UPMC Events Center to the 2019–20 season.) * Villanova played at its former on-campus home of Jake Nevin Field House during renovations to its normal home of The Pavilion, which was renamed
Finneran Pavilion The William B. Finneran Pavilion is a 6,501-seat multi-purpose arena in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States, about 10 miles northwest of downtown ( Center City) Philadelphia. Built in 1985, the arena is home to the Villanova University Wildca ...
when it reopened for 2018–19.


Preseason polls

The top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches Polls.


Regular season


Early preseason tournament


Tournament upsets

For this list, an "upset" is defined as a win by a team seeded 7 or more spots below its defeated opponent.


Conference winners and tournaments

Each of the 32 Division I
athletic conference An athletic conference is a collection of sports teams, playing competitively against each other in a sports league. In many cases conferences are subdivided into smaller divisions, with the best teams competing at successively higher levels. Confe ...
s ends its
regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...
with a
single-elimination tournament A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
. The team with the best regular-season record in each conference is given the number one seed in each tournament, with tiebreakers used as needed in the case of ties for the top seeding. The winners of these tournaments receive automatic invitations to the 2018 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.


Award winners


All-America teams

The NCAA has never recognized a consensus All-America team in women's basketball. This differs from the practice in men's basketball, in which the NCAA uses a combination of selections by the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
(AP), the
National Association of Basketball Coaches The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, is an American organization of men's college basketball coaches. It was founded in 1927 by Phog Allen, head men's basketball coach at the University o ...
(NABC), the ''
Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
'', and the
United States Basketball Writers Association The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 by National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The USBWA annually awa ...
(USBWA) to determine a consensus All-America team. The selection of a consensus team is possible because all four organizations select at least a first and second team, with only the USBWA not selecting a third team. Of the major selectors in women's basketball, the AP and USBWA divide their selections into separate teams, but the 2017–18 season was the first in which the USBWA did so. The women's counterpart to the NABC, the
Women's Basketball Coaches Association The Women's Basketball Coaches Association is an association of coaches of women's basketball teams at all levels. The organization was formed in 1981, with the goal of addressing the needs of women's basketball coaches. The mission of the WBCA ...
(WBCA), continues the USBWA's former practice of selecting a single 10-member (plus ties) team. The NCAA does not recognize ''Sporting News'' as an All-America selector in women's basketball.


Major player of the year awards

*
Wooden Award The John R. Wooden Award is an award given annually to the most outstanding men's and women's college basketball players. The program consists of the men's and women's Player of the Year awards, the Legends of Coaching award, and recognizing the ...
:
A'ja Wilson A'ja Riyadh Wilson (born August 8, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wilson played for the South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball, South Carolina ...
,
South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...
*
Naismith Award Naismith Award is a basketball award named after James Naismith, and awarded by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Naismith Awards include: * Naismith College Player of the Year (men's and women's; NCAA Division I basketball) * Naismith College Coach of t ...
: A'ja Wilson, South Carolina * Associated Press Player of the Year: A'ja Wilson, South Carolina *
Wade Trophy The Wade Trophy is an award presented annually to the best upperclass women's basketball player in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I competition. It is named after three–time national champion Delta State University coac ...
: A'ja Wilson, South Carolina * Ann Meyers Drysdale Women's Player of the Year (
USBWA The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 by National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The USBWA annually awar ...
): A'ja Wilson, South Carolina *espnW National Player of the Year: A'ja Wilson, South Carolina


Major freshman of the year awards

*
USBWA National Freshman of the Year The USBWA National Freshman of the Year, with the men's and women's versions respectively named the Wayman Tisdale Award and Tamika Catchings Award, is an annual basketball award given to college basketball's most outstanding freshman male player ...
: Chennedy Carter,
Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
* WBCA Freshman of the Year: Chennedy Carter, Texas A&M * espnW Freshman of the Year: Chennedy Carter, Texas A&M


Major coach of the year awards

* Associated Press Coach of the Year:
Muffet McGraw Ann "Muffet" McGraw (born December 5, 1955) is an American former college basketball coach, who served as the head women's basketball coach at Notre Dame from 1987 to 2020, compiling a 848–252 (.771) record over 33 seasons. She led her team to ...
, Notre Dame *
Naismith College Coach of the Year Naismith College Coach of the Year Award is an award given by the Atlanta Tipoff Club to one men's and one women's NCAA Division I collegiate coach each season since 1987. The award was originally given to the two winning coaches of the NCAA Divis ...
:
Vic Schaefer Victor Ernest Schaefer (born March 2, 1961) is an American college basketball coach who is the head women's basketball coach of the University of Texas at Austin (Texas) Longhorns. He previously served as the head coach for Mississippi State, fr ...
,
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
* WBCA National Coach of the Year: Vic Schaefer, Mississippi State * espnW Coach of the Year: Muffet McGraw, Notre Dame


Other major awards

*
Nancy Lieberman Award The Nancy Lieberman Award, named for Basketball Hall of Fame legend Nancy Lieberman, was given annually by the Rotary Club of Detroit in the Award's first 14 years to the nation's top collegiate point guard in women's Division I basketball. Sue Bi ...
(top point guard):
Sabrina Ionescu Sabrina Elaine Ionescu (born December 6, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks. She is the NCAA all- ...
,
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
* Ann Meyers Drysdale Award (top shooting guard; inaugural award): Victoria Vivians,
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
* Cheryl Miller Award (top small forward; inaugural award):
Gabby Williams Gabrielle Lisa Williams (born September 9, 1996) is an American-French professional basketball player. She was drafted 4th overall by the Chicago Sky in the 2018 WNBA draft. In 2022 she was a EuroLeague champion with Sopron and was named the Fi ...
,
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
*
Katrina McClain Award The Katrina McClain Award is an award presented annually to the best women's basketball power forward in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I competition. It is named after Hall of Famer Katrina McClain-Pittman, a two-t ...
(top power forward; inaugural award):
Ruthy Hebard Ruth Cecilia Hebard (born April 28, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Chicago Sky of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks. While at West Valley High Scho ...
, Oregon * Lisa Leslie Award (top center; inaugural award):
A'ja Wilson A'ja Riyadh Wilson (born August 8, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wilson played for the South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball, South Carolina ...
,
South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...
*
WBCA Defensive Player of the Year The WBCA NCAA Division I Defensive Player of the Year is awarded by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association to the best defensive player in NCAA Division I college basketball, women's basketball. The winner is selected from among the winners of ...
:
Kia Nurse Kia Nurse (born February 22, 1996) is a Canadian basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA. She is also a basketball analyst featured on TSN. Nurse has played for the Canada Women's National Basketball team. She was selected to pl ...
, Connecticut * Naismith Women's Defensive Player of the Year (inaugural award):
Teaira McCowan Teaira McCowan (born September 28, 1996; first name pronounced ) is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Wings of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for Galatasaray of the Women's Basketball Super League. ...
, Mississippi State *
Senior CLASS Award The Senior CLASS Award is awarded to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in 10 NCAA Division I sports. An acronym for "Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School," the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete ...
: Gabby Williams, Connecticut *
Maggie Dixon Award The Maggie Dixon Division I Rookie Coach of the Year Award is an award given annually since 2007 to the head coach in women's college basketball in the NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I competition who achieves great success in their first year as ...
(top rookie head coach): Bart Brooks, Belmont * Academic All-American of the Year (top scholar-athlete): Cherise Beynon,
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
*
Elite 90 Award The Elite 90 Award or more formally The Elite 90 Academic Recognition Award Program, originally the Elite 88 Award and later the Elite 89 Award, is an award by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recognizing the student athlete wi ...
(top GPA among upperclass players at Final Four): Jordan Danberry, Mississippi State * Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award: Avery Marz, Saint Joseph's player


Conference standings


Coaching changes

Several teams changed coaches during and after the season.


See also

*
2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 10, 2017. The first tournament was the 2K Sports Classic and the season ended with the Final Four in San Antonio on April 2, 2018. Practices officially began on September 2 ...


Footnotes


References

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