Oklahoma State women's basketball will face South Dakota State to open March Madness

STILLWATER — Heading back to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in coach Jacie Hoyt’s tenure, the Oklahoma State women’s basketball team will be a No. 7 seed, taking on 10th-seeded South Dakota State in the first round Saturday on the UConn campus in Storrs, Connecticut.

Though the Cowgirls knew they’d be in the field, they still felt the drama of the NCAA Tournament Selection Show, with their game being the last one announced.

Likewise, third-seeded OU was among the last to be announced and had the Cowgirls jumped up to a No. 6 seed, they could’ve been playing their first-round game in Norman with the potential for a Bedlam meeting in the round of 32. 

“I was convinced we were going elsewhere,” Hoyt said. “But it was worth the wait. We’re excited. Ready to get out to the East Coast.”

Should the Cowgirls pick up their first NCAA Tournament win since 2021, they'd likely be in line to face host Connecticut, the No. 2 seed which opens the Tournament against No. 15 Arkansas State.

The Cowgirls concluded the regular season with a 25-6 record and a 14-4 mark in Big 12 play, setting the program record for conference wins in a season. The 25 wins are the third-most in a season in program history.

OSU had a 9-3 record against Quad 1 and Quad 2 teams this season, including a 30-point win over No. 12 Kansas State, and a win over Big 12 champion TCU, which was the program’s first win over a top-10 program since 2017.

Multiple Big 12 teams OSU beat were seeded higher than the Cowgirls, including TCU (No. 2), Baylor (No. 4) and K-State (No. 5). West Virginia, which split with OSU, is seeded sixth. 

Despite their impressive wins, the Cowgirls were also stung by some bad losses, including a defeat at Houston, which was the Cougars’ only Big 12 win of the season. 

OSU last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2023, Hoyt’s first season at OSU. The Cowgirls were a No. 8 seed and lost 62-61 to ninth-seeded Miami in a game OSU led by 17 at halftime.

Senior guard Anna Gret Asi is one of just three players on that team still with the Cowgirls this season, and the memory from the Miami loss hasn’t disappeared.

“Anything is possible, because we learned the really, really hard way that the game isn’t over until the buzzer sounds,” Asi said. “We gotta take it really seriously. We don’t know much about South Dakota State, but even if we get up early, we can’t let loose. We gotta fight through to the end.”

OSU vs. South Dakota State

TIPOFF: 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn., in the first round of the NCAA women's basketball tournament (ESPN2)