WACO, Texas -- Baylor coach Kim Mulkey has been playing the role of gracious host to Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico and her family this weekend at the NCAA Women's Tournament first- and second-round site.

On Saturday, Mulkey presented Barnes Arico's daughters Emma and Cecelia with gifts and both coaches talked about their friendship formed around coaching women's college basketball and raising families.

"Then she went and got these guys some Easter baskets this morning," Barnes Arico said. "I'm like, 'You can't cheer for them tomorrow. I let you wear green one day of the year. You got your green on today.' Tomorrow they will be back in the maize and blue of Michigan."

 

Mulkey and Baylor figure to be considerably less hospitable when the ball goes up for second-round action between the Lady Bears and Wolverines on Sunday evening.

 

Baylor (32-1), the No. 2 seed in the Lexington Region, is trying to advance to the Sweet 16 for the 10th consecutive season. Tenth-seeded Michigan (23-9), conversely, is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013 when they lost in the second round to No. 1 seed Stanford.

 

But the Wolverines have the experience of winning the WNIT a year ago and making long runs in that tournament in each of the last four seasons.

 

Mulkey, who guided her team to the WNIT final in 2003, knows it can be a building block for NCAA Tournament success.

"It is a carryover, particularly if you have a lot of underclassmen," Mulkey said on the value of a WNIT run. "If you're losing a lot of seniors, it may not be as effective. But if you've got a lot of returning players that play a lot of minutes for you, the more you play, the better you get."

 

Michigan senior point guard Katelynn Flaherty, the Wolverines' career scoring record-holder with more than 2,700 points, definitely benefited from the 16 extra games the Wolverines have played in the WNIT in the past three seasons.

Barnes Arico became slightly emotional when discussing Flaherty's impact on the Michigan program.

"It's just been tremendous how much she's grown, how much our program has grown," Barnes Arico said. "She's humble. She's not that kid that wants to be up here. I brought her to talk to (daughter) Cici's elementary school this year. She was more nervous than Cici to get up in front of the kids and talk. But when she does, she just lights up a room because she's so articulate, she has a smile, she's so down-to-earth."

 

On Sunday, the 5--foot-7 Flaherty, 5-11 senior forward Jillian Dunston and 6-5 center Hallie Thome will lead the Wolverines into a game in which they have to slow down the likes of Baylor 6-7 center Kalani Brown, 6-2 swing player Dekeiya Cohen and 6-4 forward Lauren Cox.

 

Baylor's frontcourt trio combined for 69 points and 41 rebounds as they crushed Grambling 96-46 on Friday.

"That's why they're so good," Barnes Arico said. "I mean, they are incredible. Kalani's a monster inside, but Lauren is a monster inside, point guard mentality outside where she's such a great passer, shoots the jumper so well. Incredibly difficult matchup."