Not too long ago, the Big Ten conference could call itself one of the nation’s strongest in women’s basketball. The league went 29-17 in the NCAA tournament from 2003 to 2005 and each year the conference was represented by no fewer than five teams, three of which advanced to at least the Sweet 16. Michigan State made it all the way to the national title game one season, and Minnesota reached the Final Four another.
But the past three years have not come close to matching the success of the previous three. The Big Ten has gone just 10-12 in the tourney
