Ohio State was the only Big Ten women’s team consistently ranked in the national polls this season, one clear sign that this league of late has been lagging behind the country’s other power conferences.

The strength of the middle of the pack, however, made enough of an impression on the NCAA Tournament selection committee to warrant five teams chosen for the field.

So how good, or bad, is the Big Ten these days?

“The tournament is a litmus test,” said Buckeyes coach Jim Foster, whose team was 10th in the most recent Associated Press rankings. “We’re about to find out.”

Ohio State (27-5) is the No. 3 seed in the Berkeley region and gets to open at home, though in a different arena than it’s used to, in Columbus today against Sacred Heart. But Stanford, the second-ranked team in the latest AP poll, looms in a potential third-round game a few miles from the Cardinal’s campus.

Nobody else from the Big Ten is seeded to survive the second round, and No. 10 Minnesota (19-11) must play at Notre Dame on Sunday in the Trenton region. Purdue (22-10) is the No. 6 team in the Oklahoma City region, and Iowa is No. 8. The Hawkeyes (21-10) start at home, but top seed Oklahoma will probably await in round two if Iowa beats Georgia Tech. Michigan State (20-10) is No. 9 in the Berkeley region.

The Southeastern and Big East conferences each have seven teams in this year’s tournament, and the Big 12 and Atlantic Coast conferences have six. The Pac-10, with three, is the only major league with fewer schools in than the Big Ten this year. The Pac-10, though, has at least put a team in the Final Four over the previous three seasons. The Big Ten has not, with only one in a regional final during that span.

Since 2000, the Big Ten is 57-44 in the NCAA Tournament. The SEC (118-53), Big East (103-51), ACC (79-48) and Big 12 (79-55) have all fared considerably better. Purdue, in 1999, has the only national title by a Big Ten team in the sport.

Much like on the men’s side, this one of the most rugged conferences in the country. When it comes to toughness, however, perhaps enough is enough.

“I’m not convinced until I see otherwise that the physicality in the league is a good thing for us,” Foster said, alluding to the 18-game regular-season schedule that has each team facing all but two of the other members twice. The SEC, Big East, ACC and Big 12 each play fewer conference games.

There are benefits, though.

“The Big Ten used to be thought of as a power and pounding, walk-it-up league, but now our styles are so varied,” Michigan State coach Suzy Merchant said. “There are teams like Minnesota that still play a physical brand of basketball, but there are teams such as Ohio State that play up tempo, and there are some teams that shoot a bunch of threes. So regardless of the type of team you play in the tournament, Big Ten coaches can tell their players, ‘We’ve seen that.’ That can only help in the NCAA Tournament.”

The crowds at most places are pretty good, too, which can provide useful tests for postseason play.

“I think winning in the Big Ten is very difficult on the road, because especially at Purdue you’re playing in front of 10,000 to 12,000 fans,” Gophers coach Pam Borton said. “That’s pretty much what we’re going to see when we go to Notre Dame. It’s going to be an unbelievable environment.”