San Antonio Region to host 2021 Women’s Basketball Championship for Women

San Antonio and the surrounding region will host the 2021 NCAA Division I women’s basketball championship.

The tournament will feature 64 teams competing from March 21 to April 4 to earn the right to hoist the national championship trophy at the Alamodome, the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee announced on Friday.

“We appreciate the historical significance of moving the entire championship to a region and we want to acknowledge the work of the Women’s Basketball Committee and the team, our hosts, local organizers and ESPN that allowed us to make plans for a successful championship in 2021,” said Lynn Holzman, vice president of women’s basketball at the NCAA.

“We are fortunate to work with San Antonio, who has one of the most experienced local organizing committees in the country, and our number one priority is to focus on creating and implementing security controls in an environment for student-athletes, coaches, administrators, officers and all others associated with the championship. “

“San Antonio was already prepared to successfully host the NCAA Women’s Final Four this year, but bringing all 64 teams in this prestigious championship tournament to our city is a remarkable opportunity for our events and hospitality sector,” added the mayor of San Antonio, Ron Nirenberg. “I can assure the NCAA and the teams that we will deliver the best, safest and most memorable experience possible.”

Six championship rounds with 63 games will be played at five locations and six courts in San Antonio, Austin and San Marcos, Texas, with the Alamodome hosting two of those courts. The NCAA is currently in discussions for games to be played at the following locations and times: The first round game will take place from March 21 to 22 at Alamodome, Bill Greehey Arena on the campus of St. Mary’s (Texas), Frank Erwin Center (Texas) ), University Events Center (Texas State) and the UTSA Convocation Center. The second round game will shift entirely to locations in San Antonio, with the Alamodome, Bill Greehey Arena and the UTSA Convocation Center hosting from March 23-24. The championship will switch to Alamodome in all remaining rounds, with Sweet 16 games played from March 27 to 28, Elite Eight games from March 29 to 30 and the Women’s Final Four on April 2 and 4.

MALE TOURNAMENT: NCAA Announces Men’s Basketball Championship 2021, Division I, to be held in Indiana

Diamond Health will serve as a testing provider for the 2021 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship and will be responsible for testing within a controlled environment for players, technical teams, administrators and officials. The NCAA will continue to work closely with the San Antonio Metropolitan Sanitary District on approved medical protocols shared by the NCAA and will continue to collaborate before and during the championship. No decision was made on the frequency of fans at this time. If service to the general public is considered appropriate, the service policy will follow established local guidelines.

The committee will announce the 64-team championship key at 7 pm Eastern time on Monday, March 15, on ESPN. The team’s official trips with a maximum of 34 people will arrive on Tuesday, March 16, and Wednesday, March 17, in San Antonio. All teams will be staying in hotels in San Antonio and other areas of Bexar County. The hotels will be used exclusively for teams and other Tier 1 tested individuals. The practices will take place in nine courts that will be installed at the Henry B. González Convention Center in the city center, in addition to the two in the neighboring Alamodome.

“As in the 2020-21 season, we know that the championship will have its challenges, but we feel that we have the structure and safeguards necessary to ensure a quality student-athlete championship experience,” said Nina King, senior vice director of athletics and Duke chief of staff and chairman of Division I Women’s Basketball Committee. “We appreciate all the work of San Antonio and the NCAA team to get to this point. We are sure that a geographical region allows us to focus on the potential benefits of conducting certain security measures in a controlled environment with places of competition and practice, medical resources and accommodation for teams and officials, all close by ”.

For the 19th consecutive year, an ESPN channel will broadcast all 63 games in the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship. Although specific game schedules and channels will be announced later for all games in the preliminary round, viewers can expect games to be played in the traditional championship broadcast windows, with each game from all rounds broadcast nationally on ESPN networks. This year will mark the 26th consecutive year (since 1996) in which ESPN served as the championship’s exclusive television broadcaster. All games will be available online through the ESPN app.

“We are extremely honored that the NCAA chose San Antonio and the surrounding region for this incredible and unique opportunity to host the entire NCAA Division I women’s basketball championship,” said Jenny Carnes, senior vice president of sports of San Antonio and director of operations. “The confidence they have in San Antonio speaks volumes about our team, experience and what we can offer the event to ensure a safe and successful tournament.”

* scroll to see the full table

2021 NCAA DIVISION I DATES OF THE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP AND ANTICIPATED SITES

SÃO ANTONIO REGION