JONESBORO, AR (News release) – The Arkansas State women’s basketball team has accepted an invitation to play in the 2015 Women’s National Invitational Tournament. The Red Wolves will host Western Michigan Wednesday, March 18. Round 1 game times will be announced Tuesday afternoon.
Arkansas State finished the season with a 23-10 overall record and a 16-4 Sun Belt Conference record. The appearance in the postseason tournament will be A-State’s 10th all-time and its sixth under the director of head coach Brian Boyer. This is the Red Wolves’ second consecutive berth into the postseason tournament and the fifth time in school history that A-State has played in the WNIT in back-to-back seasons.
Ticket prices for Wednesday’s game will be $10 for all seating and A-State students will get into the game for free with their student identification cards. Parking for Wednesday’s event will be free. Season ticket holders will have until Tuesday at 5 p.m. to claim their seats or they will be released into the general ticket sale. Tickets and information will be available beginning at 10 a.m. on Tuesday by calling 1-888-ASU-Fans or through AStateRedWolves.com.
The Red Wolves have an overall record of 12-8 all-time in the WNIT and have advanced the championship game twice in the tournament’s history. Arkansas State captured the championship in 1992-93 when it was known as the National Women’s Invitational Tournament.
The A-State-Western Michigan winner will play the winner of Middle Tennessee and Ball State. The site of the Round 2 game will be determined after the conclusion of the first round.
Western Michigan finished the 2014-15 season with a 20-12 overall record and was third in the Mid-American Conference West Standings with an 11-7 mark. The Broncos advanced to the quarterfinals of the MAC Tournament where they fell to Buffalo 63-60.
The Red Wolves and Broncos have met on two previous occasions with A-State posting victories in both games. Each meeting has come on a neutral court with first coming in 2001 with A-State taking a 72-62 victory at the DePaul Moran Realty Classic in Chicago. The second matchup took place in 2004 with Arkansas State earning a 75-43 win at the Duel in the Desert tournament in Las Vegas.
First-round action tips off Wednesday, March 18 and concludes Friday, March 20. Second-round games begin March 21-24, round three March 25-27, quarterfinals March 28-30, and semifinals April 1-2. The championship game will be played Saturday, April 4 and will be televised live and in HD on CBS Sports Network at 3 p.m. ET. All games are hosted by participating schools.
A-State’s first round game against Western Michigan can be heard on 95.3FM The Ticket/970AM KNEA and online at AStateRedWolves.com. For the latest on the A-State women’s basketball follow the team log onto the team’s Facebook page at Facebook.com/RedWolvesWBB, follow them on Twitter @AStateWB and on Instagram at “AStateWBB.”
