The women's Final Four could have a cast of regulars, a cast of newcomers or a combination of the two.
Four regional championship games Monday night will determine which it will be.The three No. 1 seeds still standing all have Final Four experience, with Tennessee, of course, leading the pack.
The Lady Vols (31-2), seeking their fourth consecutive national championship, would qualify for their 12th Final Four if they beat third-seeded Duke (27-6) in the East Regional at Greensboro, N.C.
Louisiana Tech (29-2), which has made nine Final Four appearances, plays No. 3 seed UCLA (26-7) in the West Regional at Los Angeles, and Purdue (31-1), a Final Four team in 1994, takes on third-seeded Rutgers in the Midwest at Normal, Ill.
Georgia (26-6), the No. 3 seed in the Mideast, will try to get to the national semifinals for the fifth time when it plays fourth-seeded Iowa State (25-7) in Cincinnati.
Iowa State, Duke, Rutgers and UCLA have never been to the Final Four.
Even though it's so close, thinking about the Final Four now can be dangerous when there's still a game to play -- a point Georgia coach Andy Landers has been trying to impress upon his players.
"I'm upset with my basketball team because their mind has wandered away from here," Landers said. "Instead of thinking about the tremendous challenges that Iowa State presents to us, they're starting to think that we're one step away from the Final Four."
Iowa State, one of the nation's best 3-point shooting teams, certainly commands respect after stunning top-seeded Connecticut 64-58 in the regional semifinals. That victory gave instant credibility to the Cyclones, who before this year had won only one NCAA tournament game.
"We're realizing we are a good team and we do belong here," Iowa State's Monica Huelman said. "It's not a fluke or anything. It's the right thing."
Purdue understands the dangers of looking too far ahead. Last year the Boilermakers led Louisiana Tech at halftime in the Midwest Regional finals and coach Carolyn Peck told her players they were only 20 minutes from the Final Four. Louisiana Tech ended up winning 72-65.
The Boilermakers, who have won 29 straight, say they won't make that mistake again.
"We're not going to worry about getting to the Final Four," Purdue's Stephanie White-McCarty said. "We're just going to worry about winning this game. Then if we win the game, we'll go to the Final Four."
To win, White-McCarty and her teammates will have to crack a tough Rutgers defense that held second-seeded Texas Tech to 11 first-half points in the regional semifinals.
Relying mostly on the matchup zone that coach Vivian Stringer has refined over the years, Rutgers has held nine opponents to fewer than 50 points this season. Opponents are shooting just 37 percent against the Scarlet Knights.
"Some people play defense out of responsibility, because they're supposed to," Stringer said. "We embrace it."
Duke faces the tall task of getting by a Tennessee team that's on its usual March roll. The Lady Vols have won 21 straight NCAA tournament games and are 64-11 overall in the tournament. A lot of it has to do with their mindset, coach Pat Summitt said.
"We have maintained the commitment to going out and being the best team in March with more or less talent," Summitt said. "You've got to look at your team and look at your opposition and think about how you have to influence them.
"At this time of year it's a lot about being mentally strong and disciplined," she said.
Having Chamique Holdsclaw helps, too. The All-America forward has scored 23, 39 and 27 points in the first three rounds.
UCLA will have to be disciplined enough to handle Louisiana Tech's pressure defense without its floor leader. Point guard Erica Gomez sprained her right ankle 25 seconds into the Bruins' semifinal victory over Colorado State and probably won't play Monday night.
Freshman Michelle Greco, who filled in against Colorado State, will start in place of Gomez. Her teammates are confident she can handle the job.
"I don't see her as a freshman," forward Maylana Martin said. "That's the beauty of our team, we're not going to put it all on Michelle. When she needs us, we're going to be there."