When Iowa comes up, Meyer will walk out

CEDAR RAPIDS - At some point during the NCAA women's basketball selection process, the committee chair will be forced to leave the room.

The Iowa Hawkeyes certainly will generate discussion from the 10-person committee. The panel's leader is Jane Meyer, Iowa's senior associate director of athletics.

In order to avoid a conflict of interest, Meyer must get up and leave the room.

“I won't be part of any discussion about Iowa,” Meyer said during a conference call Tuesday.

The committee gathers in Indianapolis in Friday and will huddle up until selections are announced Monday. The 64-team field will consist of 31 automatic qualifiers (awarded to conference-tournament champions) and 33 at-large berths.

Being a member of the committee “is a big honor for me,” Meyer said. “It will be a great experience to work with nine other people who share a passion for women's basketball.

“It's also a challenge, because we're going to impact student-athletes' lives and coaches' lives. We recognize that we're not going to please everyone.”

Will they please the Hawkeyes?

Iowa (19-13) finished with 11 wins in its final 14 games, tied for third in the Big Ten and reached the conference tournament final before falling the final seconds to Ohio State, 66-64.

According to www.rpiratings.com, a site that uses the same adjusted RPI that the NCAA committee studies, Iowa's RPI is 43.

For what it's worth, ESPN.com bracketologist Charlie Creme has Iowa as one of the “last four in” the field of his mock bracket.

He's got Iowa listed as a No. 11 seed, playing Vanderbilt in a first-round game at Tallahassee, Fla.

The Hawkeyes will be sweating from now until Monday, to be sure. It's not the case for No. 1 Connecticut, which won an NCAA-record 71st straight game Monday.

A caller asked Meyer whether UConn's dominance is a good thing for women's basketball.

“I think we should celebrate it,” she said. “Our game wouldn't be where it is without the great programs. UConn is the team that is dominating right now, and I believe it's a positive for our game.”

In preparation for this weekend's responsibilities, Meyer said she has watched about 150 games this year.

“I try not to count,” she said