VANCOUVER, B.C. – Top-ranked Notre dame will be joined by two other Top-10 teams in the inaugural Vancouver Showcase women’s tournament on Nov. 22-24 at the Vancouver Convention Centre. The Fighting Irish earned all 31 first-place votes in the preseason Associated Press poll and will start the season as the unanimous No. 1 team in the nation. Notre Dame will be joined in Vancouver by No. 8 Oregon State and No. 10 South Carolina in what many believe is the best in-season tournament ever assembled in women’s college basketball.
Notre Dame returns four starters from last year’s team that overcame several season-ending knee injuries to capture the school’s second national championship under coach Muffet McGraw. The Irish open play in Vancouver against West Coast Conference favorite and defending league champion Gonzaga at 12 p.m. PT on Thursday, Nov. 22.
“We talked about our goals and what we wanted to do and nothing was based on last year,” Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said to The Associated Press. The Fighting Irish return four starters from last year’s championship squad and they have their sights set on returning to the Final Four in Tampa in March. “I see a team that really wants to prove something again.”
Oregon State and South Carolina could meet in a semifinal match-up if both teams advance out of first-round play. The Beavers open with defending Conference USA champion Western Kentucky while South Carolina will play East Tennessee State. Both first-round games will be part of the evening session on Nov. 22.
The Vancouver Showcase will tip on Sunday, Nov. 18 with a men’s round-robin event featuring Washington, Santa Clara, Minnesota and Texas A&M. Last week, Washington earned Top-25 status in the preseason AP poll earning enough votes to occupy 24th place.
Ticket Information
Tickets for both the men’s and women’s sessions are on-sale now at TicketsTonight.ca or order by phone at 877.840.0457 (additional $5 per order via phone).
Full tournament info can be found at VanShowcase.com and on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @VanShowcase.