2008 Women's Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals, Wed., Feb. 27, 7pm #8 Benedictine @ #1 CUW #7 Aurora @ #2 WLC #6 Rockford @ #3 CUC #5 Lakeland @ #4 Edgewood Semifinals, Fri., Feb 29, 7pm Final, Sat., Mar. 1,  7pm

Northern Athletics Conference women's basketball tournament preview
VERONA, Wis. -- The 2008 Northern Athletics Conference Women's Basketball Tournament begins this Wednesday with quarterfinal games tipping off at 7:00 p.m. The conference tournament features the top eight teams from the NAC, expanded from only six teams last year.

#8 Benedictine University at #1 Concordia University Wisconsin
This quarterfinal is a rematch of last season's tournament final where the host Falcons won 65-50. CUW also won this season's only game, 74-56, on February 2.

The Falcons (19-6, 17-1 NAC) have won their last seven games, and have won 17 consecutive conference games on their way to their second-consecutive NAC title. Benedictine (13-12, 10-8) is also on a streak, winning their last five games.

#7 Aurora University at #2 Wisconsin Lutheran College
The Warriors (15-10, 14-4 NAC) host the Spartans (13-12, 11-7) in Milwaukee. The Spartans lost to Benedictine in the tournament semifinals last season, while WLC lost in the first round as the #5 seed.

Wisconsin Lutheran got the best of the Spartans in the teams' only meeting this season. WLC won 79-67 at Aurora on January 24. The Warriors have won eight of their last 10, while Aurora has won 6 of their last 10, including 2 overtime victories.

#6 Rockford College at #3 Concordia University Chicago
The Regents (15-9, 11-7) will travel to Concordia University Chicago (16-9, 13-5) in the #3 vs. #6 matchup. The teams split their two games versus each other this season, each winning on the road.

Both teams are making their first trip to the second-year tournament. The Cougars have won seven of their last nine games, while the Regents have won only four of their last nine.

#5 Lakeland College at #4 Edgewood College
The Eagles (15-10, 12-6 NAC) host the Muskies (15-10, 12-6) in Madison. Edgewood made the tournament semifinals last season before falling to CUW by three, while Lakeland lost in the first round to Benedictine a year ago.

Edgewood, which has won four of their last five, swept the series versus the Muskies this season. Edgewood won 59-43 at Lakeland in November and 56-52 at home last month. Since the loss to the Eagles on January 22, the Muskies have rattled off eight consecutive wins.

The tournament uses a standard bracket format with #1/8 taking on #4/5, and #2/7 playing #3/6 in the semifinals. The semifinals are scheduled for this Friday, February 29 at 7:00 p.m.

The tournament final will take place on Saturday, March 1 at 7:00 p.m. The higher seed of each game will host each matchup for all rounds of the tournament. Each host institution can be contacted for ticketing information.

Northern Athletics Conference, Sports Information Department, February 24, 2008.