A Manitoba-born basketball player has qualified for the NCAA Women’s March Madness Tournament for the first time ever. Tanah Becker and the University of Kentucky Wildcats have been selected as a No. 4 seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Becker, a 6’1” freshman guard with the Wildcats, holds a strong 22-7 record heading into the tournament, where they will face No. 13 Liberty in the first round on Friday, March 21, at 11:00 a.m. Central time.
Her basketball roots began at Lindenwoods Community Centre of the Winnipeg Minor Basketball Association, Linden Meadows School and Shaftesbury High School in Winnipeg. She expanded her development by playing prep basketball in Ontario and Tennessee. Becker has gained recognition as one of Canada’s top basketball prospects. She was named to the prestigious All-Canadian Game (Biosteel) in both 2023 and 2024, an honour awarded to the top 24 female basketball players in Canada.
Becker’s rise in basketball reflects her years of experience with elite programs, including the Manitoba Provincial Team and the Basketball Manitoba Targeted Athlete Program (TAP). She represented Team Manitoba at the 2022 Canada Games and was also a Canadian National 16U team member that secured a silver medal at the FIBA Americas in 2020.
Her high-level experience includes competing with the Kia Nurse Elite team on the EYBL circuit for three seasons. Additionally, Becker earned All-Star honours at the WNBA Basketball Without Borders Girls Camp in Las Vegas and the Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix in 2023.
Becker’s commitment to excellence on and off the court led her to the University of Kentucky, where she joined the Wildcats in the highly competitive Southeastern Conference (SEC) for the 2024–25 season. Kentucky’s return to March Madness this year marks their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2022, and Becker’s presence on the roster reflects the program’s growing strength.
Her achievement as the first Manitoba-born woman to qualify for the NCAA Tournament underscores the growing impact of Manitoba basketball on the national and international stage.
Becker and the Wildcats will look to advance through the tournament when they take the floor against Liberty on Friday, March 21.
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Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/DHSQuzpKsiI/?igsh=MXR3bzVucnI0dXFvaw==