The 1982 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament was the first Women's Basketball Tournament held under the auspices of the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

. From 1972 to 1982, there were national tournaments for Division I schools held under the auspices of the

AIAW The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) was a college athletics organization in the United States, founded in 1971 to govern women's college competitions in the country and to administer national championships (see AIAW Cham ...

. The inaugural NCAA Tournament included 32 teams.

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

Louisiana Tech Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – Hig ...

, Cheyney State, and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

met in the Final Four, held at the

Norfolk Scope Norfolk Scope is a multi-function complex in Norfolk, Virginia, comprising the 11,000-seat Scope Arena, a 2,500-seat theater known as Chrysler Hall, a modular exhibition hall, and a 600-car parking garage. The arena was designed by Italian arch ...

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

and hosted by

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (ODU) is a Public university, public research university in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. Established in 1930 as the two-year Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary, it began by educating people with fewer ...

, with Louisiana Tech defeating Cheyney for the title, 76-62. Louisiana Tech's

Janice Lawrence Janice Faye Lawrence Braxton ( Lawrence, born June 7, 1962) is an American former professional women's basketball player. Born in Lucedale, Mississippi, she was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Louisiana Sports H ...

was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament. Her teammate

Kim Mulkey Kimberly Duane Mulkey (born May 17, 1962) is an American college basketball coach and former player. Since 2021, she has been the head coach for Louisiana State University's LSU Tigers women's basketball, women's basketball team. A Pan-American ...

went on to become the first (and to date only) woman to win NCAA Division I basketball titles as a player and coach, winning the

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

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titles as head coach at Baylor and the

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title at

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

. (Mulkey was also an assistant coach on Louisiana Tech's

1988 1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...

championship team).

Notable events

While the 1982 tournament was the first tournament under the NCAA, many of the participating teams had a long history of tournament experience. The Louisiana Tech team made it to the Final Four of the 1979, 1980 and 1981 AIAW Tournaments, winning the National Championship with a perfect 34–0 record in 1981. The Lady Techsters were favorites to repeat, as their team entered the 1982 NCAA tournaments with only a single loss on the season. The team included two Kodak All-Americans, Pam Kelly and Angela Turner. Pam Kelly would win the

Wade Trophy The Wade Trophy is an award presented annually to the best upperclass women's basketball player in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I competition. It is named after three–time national champion Delta State ...

, awarded to the nation's best Division I women's basketball player. Her teammates included

and

, both of whom would play on the gold-medal-winning Olympic team in 1984. The team had two head coaches.

Sonja Hogg Sonja Hogg (born December 20, 1945) is the former women's basketball program head coach at Louisiana Tech University and Baylor University. She posted an overall record of 307–55 at Louisiana Tech. Her record at Baylor in the Southwest Confere ...

had been head coach of the team since its formation in 1974. Hogg brought

Leon Barmore William Leon Barmore (born June 3, 1944) is a college women's basketball coach best known for his 35-year association with the Louisiana Tech University Lady Techsters. After five years as an assistant coach, he served as head coach from 1982 t ...

on to the coaching staff in 1977. In 1982, Barmore shared head coaching duties with Hogg, which he would do until 1985, when Hogg stepped down. The Louisiana Tech team won their first game easily, beating

Tennessee Tech Tennessee Technological University (commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech) is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie, the name unde ...

114–52. They easily won their next two games against Arizona State and Kentucky, to advance to the Final Four, the only number one seed to make it to the finals. The Lady Techsters faced the Lady Vols from

in the semi-finals, and won 69–46. In the National Championship game, they faced Cheyney State, coached by future Hall of Fame coach C. Vivian Stringer. The Cheyney State team entered the match-up on a 23-game winning streak. The Louisiana Tech team hit 56% of their field goals attempts to win easily, 76–62, and win the first National Championship in the NCAA era. The winners are awarded national championship rings, but this team did not receive theirs until January 13, 2017.

Records

In the semifinal game between Louisiana Tech and Tennessee, Louisiana Tech's

Pam Kelly Pamela Kelly-Flowers, a native of Columbia, Louisiana is an American former women's basketball player at Louisiana Tech University. She won two national championships for the Lady Techsters. She was named to the All-American team in 1980, 1981, ...

made twelve of fourteen free throw attempts. Twelve made free throws, equaled twice since, remains the Women's Final Four Game Record for "Most Free Throws" through the 2015 tournament. In the west regional final between Drake and Maryland,

Lorri Bauman Lorri A. Bauman is an American former basketball player for the Drake Bulldogs. She was the first woman in NCAA history to score 3,000 points and at one time held the record for NCAA Division 1 women's basketball points scored in a career; the r ...

scored 50 points in a losing effort. Her scoring mark is still the single game record for an NCAA Tournament game. Her 21 made field goals, out of 35 attempts, both of which remain as single game tournament records. In the first-round game against Ohio State, Bauman hit all 16 of her free throws. While several players have subsequently made all of their attempted free throws, no one has a perfect record with more than 16. In the three games of her tournament, Bauman scored a total of 110 points, for an average of 36.7 points per game. No player has surpassed that per game scoring mark, through 2012. Bauman's 50 point performance qualified as one of the top 25 moments of NCAA Tournament history as chronicled by ESPN and the NCAA.com as part of the 25th anniversary celebration of NCAA women's basketball.

Qualifying teams - automatic

Thirty-two teams were selected to participate in the 1982 NCAA Tournament. Twelve conferences were eligible for an automatic bid to the 1982 NCAA tournament. (Not all conference records are available for 1982)

Qualifying teams - at-large

Twenty additional teams were selected to complete the thirty-two invitations. (Not all conference records are available for 1982)

Bids by conference

First round

The thirty-two teams were seeded, and assigned to sixteen locations. In each case, the higher seed was given the opportunity to host the first-round game, and all sixteen teams hosted. The following table lists the region, host school, venue and location, while a map of the locations is shown to the right:

Regionals and Final Four

The Regionals, named for the general location, were held from March 18 to March 21 at these sites: * East Regional

Reynolds Coliseum William Neal Reynolds Coliseum is a multi-purpose arena located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States, on the campus of North Carolina State University. The arena was built to host a variety of events, including agricultural expositions and N ...

Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

(Host:

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

) * Mideast Regional

Stokely Athletic Center Stokely Athletics Center was an on-campus arena located at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States which was demolished in 2014. It was home to the men's and women's basketball teams from 1958 until the opening of Thom ...

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

(Host:

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

) * Midwest Regional Memorial Gym, Ruston,

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

(Host:

Louisiana Tech University Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public university, public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and Carnegie Classification of Institu ...

) * West Regional

Maples Pavilion Maples Pavilion is a 7,233-seat multi-purpose arena on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California. Opened in 1969, Maples underwent a $30 million renovation in March 2004 and reopened ahead of schedule, in time for conference pla ...

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

(Host:

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

) Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four, held March 26 and 28 in

at the

was the host institution.

Bids by state

The thirty-two teams came from twenty-one states, plus Washington, D.C. California and Tennessee had the most teams with three each. Twenty-nine states did not have any teams receiving bids.

Brackets

Mideast Regional - University of Tennessee - Knoxville, TN (
Stokely Athletic Center Stokely Athletics Center was an on-campus arena located at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States which was demolished in 2014. It was home to the men's and women's basketball teams from 1958 until the opening of Thom ...
)

Midwest Regional - Louisiana Tech - Ruston, LA ( Memorial Gymnasium)

East Regional - N.C. State - Raleigh, NC (
Reynolds Coliseum William Neal Reynolds Coliseum is a multi-purpose arena located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States, on the campus of North Carolina State University. The arena was built to host a variety of events, including agricultural expositions and N ...
)

West Regional - Stanford University - Palo Alto, CA (
Maples Pavilion Maples Pavilion is a 7,233-seat multi-purpose arena on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California. Opened in 1969, Maples underwent a $30 million renovation in March 2004 and reopened ahead of schedule, in time for conference pla ...
)

Final Four - Old Dominion - Norfolk, VA

Record by conference

Eight conferences had more than one bid, or at least one win in NCAA Tournament play: Six conferences went 0-1: MAAC,

MAC Mac or MAC may refer to: Common meanings * Mac (computer), a line of personal computers made by Apple Inc. * Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth * Mac, a prefix to surnames derived from Gaelic languages * McIntosh (apple), a Canadi ...

MEAC 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 Nation ...

, Northern California,

Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with ...

, and SWAC

All-Tournament Team

, Louisiana Tech *

, Louisiana Tech * Yolanda Laney, Cheyney * Valerie Walker, Cheyney

Game officials

* David Sell (semifinal) * Pete Stewart (semifinal) * Marcy Weston (Semi-Final, Final) * Dan Woolridge (Semi-Final, Final)

References

{{1981–82 NCAA Division I championships navbox

NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament The NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, sometimes referred to as Women's March Madness, is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 women's college basketball teams from the Div ...

NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament Women's sports in Virginia

Notable events

Records

Qualifying teams - automatic

Qualifying teams - at-large

Bids by conference

First round

Regionals and Final Four

Bids by state

Brackets

Midwest Regional - Louisiana Tech - Ruston, LA ( Memorial Gymnasium)

Final Four - Old Dominion - Norfolk, VA

Record by conference

All-Tournament Team

Game officials

See also

References