LAWRENCE — Kansas women’s basketball is back in the NCAA tournament, the Jayhawks learned Sunday.

Kansas (19-12), an at-large selection from the Big 12 Conference, will tip off as a No. 8 seed in 2024 in its first appearance since 2022. It will go up against No. 9-seed Michigan (20-13), an at-large selection from the Big Ten Conference, in the round of 64 in Los Angeles. And whichever team wins will advance to face either No. 1-seed USC or No. 16-seed Texas A&M Corpus-Christi in the round of 32.

"Last year was devastating, because I think all indications were that we were going to get in, so it was really shocking and tough to be snubbed," KU coach Brandon Schneider said. "I thought we handled it the right way, though, and obviously this year I think we were much more comfortable. And it was more of just an anticipation of who might our opponent be and where might we be going to play the game. I think it's different, too, just with the long break, with the conference tournament moving back — that's been I think challenging for our players and for our coaches ... how should we be operating? Because you're in the middle of our routine of playing games, and then there's potentially a two-week break."

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There was a time earlier this season when it looked as if the Jayhawks wouldn’t come close to living up to preseason expectations, and likely miss the NCAA tournament for a second-straight season. But Schneider’s squad recovered with a 10-3 mark across its last 13 games heading into the NCAA tournament. Despite an exit in the Big 12 quarterfinals, Schneider and company don’t lack momentum at the moment.

Kansas is led by a super-senior trio of guard Holly Kersgieter, center Taiyanna Jackson and guard Zakiyah Franklin. Senior guard Wyvette Mayberry and freshman guard S’Mya Nichols help make up a formidable starting five, with Nichols recognized as one of the best freshmen in the Big 12 this season. The depth might not be at the level that some envisioned before the season began, but the Jayhawks have shown this season that they can be a dangerous opponent to draw in March.

Last year, when Kansas barely missed the NCAA tournament, it went on to win the 2023 Postseason WNIT championship. The season before that, when it made the NCAA tournament, it won its round of 64 matchup before losing in the round of 32. Time will tell how far this run goes.

"I'm excited to obviously get the seed that we did," Schneider said. "I'm excited to be in the tournament. I think often times seven-through-10, there can be a lot of shuffling just within those seeds because I know the committee tries to avoid rematches that might have happened during the year. So — but, no, just excited for the opportunity to play in the tournament. And obviously two years ago we went out to California, just a little bit different destination."

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Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas women’s basketball’s 2024 NCAA tournament opponent is Michigan