Colorado Set to Host WBIT as No. 1 Seed
The Buffaloes will host first-round action on Thursday
By: Seth Pringle, Athletic Communications
BOULDER – On Sunday, the Colorado women's basketball team secured its fifth consecutive postseason appearance, earning a No. 1 seed in the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT). The Buffaloes will host Southeastern Louisiana in first-round action at the CU Events Center.
The postseason run is the second-longest streak in CU history. The streak started with the Buffs' WNIT run in 2021, which evolved to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances from 2022 to 2024. Colorado is 6-4 in the postseason in the last four trips.
"We've worked really hard," head coach JR Payne said about continuing to play in March. "Our players that have been here have worked hard to build our program into a team that should expect to play in March every year. That was the expectation going into this season, and will continue to be the expectation that we want to play as deep into March as we can."
The WBIT is in its second year of existence. The 32-team postseason event will be played March 20 (first-round), March 23 (second-round) and March 27(quarterfinals), with the highest-seeded teams hosting games at campus sites. The WBIT semifinal and final games will be conducted at Butler University's historic Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on March 31 and April 2. The "first four out" of the NCAA Tournament automatically earn the top four seeds.
Virginia Tech, James Madison and Saint Joseph's were selected as the other three No. 1 seeds. Arizona and Texas Tech were also chosen out of the Big 12.
"I love the new format of the WBIT and that there's a centralized or sort of a destination location for the final four," Payne noted of the new tournament. "I think it's really exciting. By the end of this weekend, there will be 40-50 teams still playing. That's incredible. We just have to make sure that we're one of those teams.
"The opportunity to host is really awesome," Payne continued. "Last year, we thought we were going to host in the other [NCAA] tournament, but that didn't work out. This one has worked out for us to do so."
Colorado (20-12) finished ninth in the Big 12. It picked up tournament wins over Houston and Arizona in Kansas City and played top-seeded and eventual Big 12 champs TCU down to the wire in last week's Big 12 Championship in Kansas City. The Buffs finished 57 in the NET rankings with two quad one wins over then No. 14 West Virginia and No. 10 Kansas State. Colorado also had four wins over NCAA Tournament teams: Southern, Tennessee Tech, Kansas State and West Virginia.
Columbia, Princeton and Washington were three of the "last four in" in the NCAA Tournament. Colorado was the only team out of the group with wins against AP Top 25 teams this season. Colorado also boasted a better NET strength of schedule (53) than Columbia (85) and Princeton (86).
Frida Formann and Jade Masogayo, CU's Big 12 honorable mention selections, lead the Buffs into the tournament. Colorado has played 16 games, including the last 12 –outside of a ceremonial three seconds on Senior Day—without Formann this season. CU has gone 9-7 this season without its sharp-shooting guard from Denmark. Formann and Masogayo lead the Buffs this season in scoring, averaging 12.5 points per game. Masogayo averaged 13.7 points and 4.3 rebounds in CU's three Big 12 Championship games, while Lior Garzon was second on the team with 12.3 points per game. Kennedy Sanders (9.7) and Tabitha Betson (8.0) also had strong showings in Kansas City.
Colorado started 10 different starting lineups in 2024-25 and had a combined 41 missed games due to injury from its eight rotational players. Johanna Teder was the only Buff to play in every game this season.
The Buffs, with 10 newcomers to the team this season, posted their fourth straight season with 20 wins.
"If you really dissected all the injuries, different lineups, new players and just all of it – it's actually pretty remarkable what this group has done to put themselves in a position to be maybe just one win away [from the NCAA Tournament] in games that actually were actually in our control. It's not like we had to beat South Carolina in the preseason in order to make the tournament. We just had to win one or two more games that we should have won. But considering, again, just the 10 new players, you know, only two or three players that have really played significant minutes [at CU], all the injuries, I think it's incredible."
Southeastern Louisiana (26-5) went 19-1 in the Southland Conference and won the regular-season title. The Lady Lions advanced to the SLC Championship but were upset by No. 3 seed Stephen F. Austin, 65-57. SLU posted a 19-game winning streak throughout the season but has won two of its last three games. The SLC Player of the Year, Alexius Horne, averaged 14.3 points per game this season.
Thursday's winner will match up against the winner of No. 4 seed Gonzaga or UTSA.
Game times will be finalized no later than 10 a.m. MT on Monday.
Tickets will go on sale Sunday night at 10 p.m. MT. Season-ticket holders must sign into their accounts to secure their season ticket location. Tickets range from $15 to $40. The deadline for season-ticket holders to secure their seats is 5 p.m. MT on Monday. Student tickets are $10. Tickets can be purchased here.
All first, second and quarterfinal games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
