The Montana State University women’s basketball team advanced to the Great 8 round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament after defeating the Portland Pilots 72-54, according to a March 27 announcement. The Bobcats will face the University of South Dakota on Sunday at noon in Vermillion, with the game streamed on ESPN+.
This advancement marks only the second postseason win in program history for Montana State. The team automatically qualified for the WNIT following their loss to Idaho in the Big Sky Conference Tournament final and received a first-round bye before defeating San Francisco and then Portland at home.
South Dakota, which also had a first-round bye, earned its spot as No. 3 seed in the Summit League during regular season play. A total of 48 NCAA Division I teams are competing in this year’s WNIT. After this round, semifinal games will be played from March 31 to April 1, with the championship set for April 4 at a location yet to be determined.
Live stats and radio coverage for Sunday’s game will be available through Bobcat Athletics’ website and networks. Updates can also be found on Instagram at @MSUbobcatsWBB.
Montana State University leads research funding efforts statewide with annual expenditures exceeding $288 million, according to the official website. The university contributes broadly through volunteerism, outreach programs, and research focused on improving lives and environmental conditions according to its official site.
Ranked among the top five percent of global universities by Center for World University Rankings—and leading within Montana—Montana State enrolls about 17,165 students evenly split between residents and nonresidents according to university data. As Montana’s land-grant institution based in Bozeman, it emphasizes research, education and public service while providing access to outdoor recreation amid extensive wilderness areas according to its overview.