Syracuse, N.Y. -- The Syracuse women's basketball team's placement as a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament fits precisely where key indicators pointed, the chairperson of the selection committee explained Tuesday afternoon.
The Orange was placed in the Bridgeport Regional and faces No. 9 Iowa State in a first round game in Storrs, Conn., on Saturday. If Syracuse wins that game, it almost certainly will meet four-time defending champion UConn in a second-round game Monday on the Huskies home court of Gampel Pavilion.
"I don't know how they ended up with an eight seed. That's shocking to me,'' said Cyclones coach Bill Fennelly.
The Orange (21-10) were consistently ranked among the top 25 teams in the country during the season and currently sits No. 21 in the media poll and No. 22 among the coaches.
That would peg Syracuse as a sixth seed in one of the four regions, perhaps seventh at the worst. But its status as the No. 8 seed in a region with UConn, naturally the top No. 1 in the field, indicates that the committee viewed the Orange more in the 29-32 range.
Committee chairperson Terry Gawlik said national rankings have no bearing on her group's work. That body is primarily guided by the Ratings Percentage Index, or RPI.
Gawlik said SU's current RPI is 31, a range that pegs Syracuse as a No. 8 seed. She said the Orange's overall strength of schedule is 46th in the country.
Syracuse had just one win over a team in the final top 25 of the RPI (Miami) and just two others in the top 50 (Michigan State, North Carolina State).
When it comes to a factor that SU can control, non-conference scheduling, Gawlik said the Orange played five teams with a RPI of 250 or higher (Stony Brook, Niagara, Coppin State, Rhode Island, Central Connecticut State).
"I think it's always tough when you're trying to slide a piece of paper between people,'' Gawlik said of placing teams in general. "That's what takes so long.''