New York University is hosting the Sweet 16 and the Elite 8 of the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship this Friday and Saturday, March 9 and 10, at the Jerome S. Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.
NYU, which reached the Sweet 16 for the 11th time in school history after defeating Ursinus College (84-50) in the first round and Gwynedd-Mercy College (72-60) in the second round last weekend, is the only New York metropolitan area college basketball team, men’s or women’s, to have won a national championship in the past 10 years.
NYU (25-2) will face Simpson College (23-6) in the Sweet 16 on March 9 at 7 pm, a contest that will be preceded by Sweet 16 a match-up between Kean University (26-3) and Randolph-Macon College (26-4) at 5 pm.
The winners of both Sweet 16 games will tip off March 10 at 7 pm in the Elite 8, with the victor earning a trip to the Final Four the following weekend in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Ten years ago, the Violets won their first (and only) NCAA Championship, defeating the University of Wisconsin-Eau Clair 72-70 on March 22, 1997, at Coles.
Since then, head coach Janice Quinn’s Violets have produced an overall 226-48 (.825) record and have qualified for a postseason tournament (NCAA or ECAC) every season.
Here is a look at some of the other prominent area teams during the last decade:
| Women | Men | |
| Hofstra | 126-158 (.443) | 194-115 (.628) |
| Manhattan | 136-157 (.464) | 159-132 (.546) |
| Rutgers | 225-92 (.710) | 148-154 (.490) |
| St. John’s | 109-177 (.381) | 173-135 (.562) |
| NYU | 226-48 (.825) | 169-93 (.645) |
Ticket prices for this weekend’s game are $7 for general admission and $4 for students (with ID), senior citizens and children under 12.
For more information, please visit the NYU Athletics website at www.nyu.edu/athletics.