In honor of the Badgers' trip to the NCAA Tournament and Head Coach Jane Albright's eighth winning season, The Daily Cardinal takes a look at Badgerball's postseason runs throughout Albright's career.
In her first year as head coach of the Badger squad, Albright led her team to its second NCAA Tournament appearance. The team finished third in the Big Ten, going 11-5 in the conference and 20-9 overall. Although they fell to Michigan State in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament, they advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The women continued their success on the court under Albright, again placing third in the Big Ten and advancing to the Tournament. With a 12-4 finish in the Big Ten and 21-8 overall (their best overall record in school history), Badgerball once again made its presence known at the NCAAs, defeating Oregon 74-60 before falling to Vanderbilt two days later.
Albright and the team suffered a drought, similar to this year's, as they went 8-8 in the Big Ten, finishing sixth in the conference and going 16-11 overall. However, unlike the current team, the women failed to advance past the first round of the Big Ten Tournament and were not invited to the Dance.
Wisconsin rebounded from its mediocre 1996-'97 season with a 9-7 conference record and a 21-10 overall record. In the postseason, the team advanced to the second round of the Big Ten before losing to Michigan. However, the team could not produce the same results in the NCAA Tournament, as they lost in the first round.
Albright led guards Tamara Moore and Kyle Black and forward Jessie Stomski, all freshmen at the time, to a 9-7 Big Ten finish and an 18-14 overall record. The postseason brought a less successful run for the team, as they lost to Ohio State in the first round and did not advance to the NCAAs. But the team played its way through to the Women's National Invitation Tournament finals before losing to Arkansas.
Albright again led her team to the WNIT championship game, this time taking home the title after defeating Florida 75-74. But while the team shone in the tournament, their Big Ten record of 8-8 did not have the same shine and the Badgers could not get past the second round of the Big Ten Tournament.
Albright and the team reversed last season's records by finishing second in the Big Ten with a 12-4 conference record. Despite the success in the regular season the Badgers dropped to Illinois in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. Wisconsin continued its losing streak in postseason competition by losing to Missouri in the first round of the Big Dance.
The Badgers had a tumultuous season this year, with a 15-game winning streak immediately followed by six-game losing streak. However, Badgerball's successful run at the Big Ten Tournament put them back into the game, as they advanced to the semifinals before losing to Penn State.
