Tie-breaker lands Tufts as fourth seed

After four months and 22 games, the women's basketball team's postseason seeding came down to a tiebreaker.

Tufts' hopes for a second seed in this weekend's NESCAC championship tournament were dashed when coin toss to break up a three-way logjam for second place between Tufts, Wesleyan and Bates didn't go the Jumbos' way.

Tufts came out on the bottom end of the three deadlocked teams' seedings, earning the fourth seed in the tournament and a home game against number five Williams on Saturday. Wesleyan won the toss and was awarded the second seed and a home game against number seven Middlebury. Bates was given the third seed because it won the head to head match up with Tufts on the season, and will play at home against Amherst.

The decision came down to a coin flip because all three teams had 7-2 league records and there was no head-to-head game outcome that favored one team over another. According to the NESCAC web site, if three or more teams are tied after all basketball related tiebreaking scenarios, a coin flip "or similar random action involving all tied teams" will be used.

Though the Jumbos came out on the short side of the tie breaker, they still are eagerly awaiting the playoffs.

"At first we were a little disappointed," senior tri-captain Maritsa Christoudias said. "But we got what we wanted which was a home seed."

With this seeding, the women's team will play at home in the playoffs for the first time in school history.

Bowdoin earned the first seed with its 23-0 perfect record. The Polar Bears now stand atop the WBCA/ESPN/USA Today national polls as the number one Division III women's basketball team in the country. They will face off against eighth seeded Colby (9-15, 2-7 NESCAC) at home on Saturday, beginning their quest for a fourth consecutive NESCAC tournament win.

Christoudias believes, however, that Bowdoin is not completely unbeatable despite its daunting statistics.

"Any team is beatable," Christoudias said. "We would definitely love to play them again. We'd have to play our best, but I absolutely think we could beat them."

Before Tufts can even think about facing Bowdoin later in the tournament, it has to deal with Williams on Saturday in the quarterfinals. The Jumbos came out on the winning side of last Saturday's final NESCAC game of the year at Williams, 59-37. That win should be a confidence booster going into the playoffs, but another important advantage will be the crowd in Cousens Gym come Saturday.

"Our 'super fans' are a huge advantage," Christoudias said. "[They] will help a lot, so it will be tough [for Williams] to play us here."

The Jumbos however, are not getting overconfident about the game just yet.

"On the other hand, we can't assume that we'll just walk in and march right over them," Christoudias added. "They're playing for the same thing we are."

Should all of the top four seeds win their respective games on Saturday, the remainder of the tournament would be played on Bowdoin's home court with Tufts matched up against Bowdoin and Bates facing Wesleyan in the semifinals. The winners of those two games would move on and duke it out head to head for the league championship and an automatic bid to the Division III National Championship tournament.

The Jumbos will continue with their normal practice regimen as this weekend approaches.

"We'll just focus on taking care of the little things," Christoudias said. "Turnovers are still a problem and we'll keep [working] against the zone."

This playoff game will be the last women's basketball game played in Cousens Gym this season. For the seniors, the game holds even more meaning as it signifies the end of not only a basketball season, but of their four year careers.

"All three seniors want to leave the court having played the best game they can,"

Christoudias said.