Minnesota's win over USC provides first marquee win on NCAA Tournament resume

The Gophers' win over the Trojans will loom large when selecting teams for this year's NCAA Tournament.

Jan 20, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Dawn Plitzuweit looks on during the second half against the Michigan State Spartans at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

The Gophers' win over No. 21 USC on Sunday afternoon was their first over a ranked opponent since Nov. 19, 2019. It gave third-year head coach Dawn Plitzuweit her first marquee win, as she looks to lead Minnesota to the NCAA Tournament for the first time as a program since 2017-18. Let's take a look at their resume through 16 games.

Impressive NET rankings

The NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings are the number one metric used to determine at-large resumes for the NCAA Tournament. Minnesota is currently No. 14 in the country, which implies a strong resume. A large reason for their ranking is 11 wins by 20 or more points.

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No Quad 1 wins

The quadrant system is different for women's basketball compared to men's. Quad 1 is home 1-25, neutral 1-35 and away 1-45; Quad 2 is home 26-55, neutral 36-65 and away 46-80; Quad 3 is home 56-90, neutral 66-105 and away 81-130 and Quad 4 is home 91-plus, neutral 106-plus and away 131-plus.

The Gophers are the highest-ranked team in the NET with zero Quad 1 wins. Their three opportunities so far, resulted in losses to Maryland at home, Michigan on the road, and Alabama in the Bahamas. They're 3-1 in Quad 2 with wins over Indiana, USC and Marquette with a loss to Kansas. They're 9-0 in Quads 3 and 4.

AP Poll outlook

After Sunday's win over the Trojans, Minnesota jumped back into the top-25 discussion with 12 votes in this week's AP Poll. That is the fourth most in the "others receiving votes" category, which is technically 29th in the country. USC was notably removed from the poll after losing to the Gophers.

NCAA Tournament outlook

The latest Bracketology from ESPN was released on Friday, Jan. 9, and the Gophers were projected as a nine-seed. They were one of 12 Big Ten teams projected in the field. A win over a ranked opponent could improve that seed projection.

Minnesota has another ginormous resume-building opportunity on Wednesday night against No. 3 UCLA at the Barn. A win over the Trojans take a lot of pressure off that game before a West Coast road trip to Oregon and Washington next week.