Giving household names such as Xavier, Loyola Chicago, and Notre Dame life into the women’s college basketball scene, the Horizon League Conference is a league with a deep, long-rooted history within the sport. Centered in the heartland of America, the league is nothing short of blood-filled rivalries and a scramble of teams fighting for its one automatic bid into the year’s NCAA March Madness Tournament. Since the tournament’s inception during the 2001-2002 season, multiple teams have clinched the automatic bid to the NCAA March Madness Tournament. While powerhouse Green Bay has held its dominance with 14 tournament championships, in the past 6 years, 5 different schools have been crowned the tournament’s champion. 

The Big Three

Green Bay

The Green Bay Phoenix is what many in the Horizon League Conference call the “Gold Standard” for basketball. Led by 2023-2024 All-League First Team guard Natalie McNeal and All-League Second Team forward Maddy Schreiber, the Phoenix hope to seek revenge for last year’s brutal beatdown by 6-seeded Tennessee. They are the best offensive and defensive team in the league, outscoring opponents by a margin of 12 points and hosting the best assist/turnover ratio. However, this team is extremely reliant on the 3-ball. When the team is not shooting at their average of 35.6%, it can cost the team crucial games. In their only conference loss to Fort Wayne, the team shot 6-23 from three while their opponents shot 15-28. In a one-point contest that ended in favor of the Mastodons, it’s crucial to remain hot.

Purdue-Fort Wayne

Purdue-Fort Wayne, until recently a part of the Summit League, has made a remarkable comeback as a women’s college basketball program since joining the Horizon League Conference in 2021. Under head coach Maria Marchesano, the team is finally considered a favorite to win the tournament for the first team in its 24th season. Before the 2023-2024 season, the last time the Mastodons had an above-.500 season was in 2010, led by then-head coach Chris Paul. Like the Green Bay Phoenix, the Mastodons employ a similar strategy with the 3-ball. Outshooting the three over opponents 155 times, they’ve had an impressive 36.8% three-point percentage over their opponents, who shot 28.6%. This team, led by Michigan State transfer Lauren Ross, is primed to make their first NCAA March Madness Tournament appearance. 

Cleveland State

One of the most underwhelming teams of the season was the Cleveland State Vikings. Being bested by the Green Bay Phoenix in the conference tournament after dominating the conference last year, the Cleveland State Vikings were set to go on a rampage to reclaim their spot back in the NCAA Tournament. Adding Jannah Eissa from NC State’s Final Four team, they were selected as the best team in the preseason poll and had three players selected to the All-League First Team. However, the season would not pan out like many had predicted. Losing star guard Colbi Maples three games into the season forced players such as Destiny Leo into the spotlight to replace the pure offensive firepower Maples had on the team. Cleveland State this season has consistently been a “good team,” beating lower-tiered schools but failing to win crucial games against favorites Green Bay and Purdue Fort Wayne. Despite the harsh criticism, they finished third in conference play and will receive a first-round bye. 

Dark Horse: Robert Morris

My dark horse candidate for the tournament has to be the Robert Morris Colonials. Defying expectations of being selected as the worst team in the preseason poll, the Colonials consistently find success against the low-mid-tier schools such as Youngstown State, Oakland, and Indiana University Indianapolis but fail to win against the power 3 in Green Bay, Purdue Fort Wayne, and Cleveland State. Among the teams that can be considered “dark horses” or Cinderella teams, Robert Morris plays a good defensive game. With their 6-3 forward Mya Murray, Robert Morris averages 36 rebounds a game and 3.6 blocks a game, the league’s fourth and second best averages, respectively. This will be Robert Morris’s first NCAA tournament appearance if they win out during the conference tournament.

A Cinderella fairytale in Kentucky? 

Northern Kentucky University, finishing 5th in conference play, is the only team outside of the Big 3 to hand one of their teams a loss. Sitting right below dark horse candidate Robert Morris, the team is the only non-Big 3 team to hand Cleveland State a loss during February. However, to make the run a reality, the team needs to rely on defensive specialist Mya Meridith to lead the team in rebounds and steals. If NKU can keep their turnovers minimal (as they did against Cleveland State) and their FT’s consistent, they have a serious shot at upsetting one of the “upper-level” teams.

Second Round Exits

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Much can be said about the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers, expected to finish fourth in the league. Still, turnovers plague the team’s ability to enable star guard Kacee Baumhower to score for her team. The team relies on individual playmaking to score, and when that does not happen, they easily get “run” over. Averaging 16.2 turnovers per game and consistently getting scored through points off turnovers, the Panthers finished 11th out of 11 teams in the Horizon League Conference. 

Wright State, Youngstown State, Oakland, Indiana University-Indianapolis, Detroit Mercy

These five teams simply cannot compete against the higher-ranked teams of the conference and consistently find their wins among themselves. While Wright State, Youngstown State, and Indiana University Indianapolis used to be formidable opponents, since losing their star players, Angel Baker, Lily Ritz, and Macee Williams, respectively, they find themselves in an identity crisis as a group. Finding themselves competing in the conference tournament against each other, I expect all teams in this category to fall by the second round.