The women’s March Madness bracket was revealed on Sunday.
Undefeated South Carolina earned the top overall seed and is in the first Albany Region. Iowa and Caitlin Clark, poised for another Final Four run after her landmark season where she broke the all-time scoring record, earned the No. 1 seed in the second Albany Region. USC and Texas are the top seeds in the Portland 3 and Portland 4 regions, respectively. LSU's Angel Reese, Stanford's Cameron Brink, Connecticut's Paige Bueckers and South Carolina’s Te-Hina Paopao are hoping to stand in the way of Clark's first national title.
See the complete women's bracket here.
Read USA TODAY Sports' full breakdown and analysis of the women's bracket. Catch up on all the Selection Sunday results, bracket updates and more below.
Undefeated South Carolina earned the tournament's top overall seed. Here's how the first regional in Albany shook out.
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No. 8 is a tough seed for North Carolina, but know that they're dangerous. If Deja Kelly takes over a game, anything could happen. Oklahoma as a 5 seed: A little surprising given Sooners won the Big 12 regular season, but faltering in the conference tournament has consequences. Notre Dame as a No. 2 seed is a surprise as they weren't even on the top 16 seed line the last committee reveal. Read Lindsay Schnell's full breakdown of the region here.
Caitlin Clark and the Hawkeyes will face No. 16 Holy Cross/UT Martin in the first round. Here's how the second regional in Albany turned out.
That is one hell of a path for Caitlin Clark and Iowa to get through. ... I really like Kansas State and could see them surprising some people. And remember, they've already beat Iowa once and lost to Iowa once. Game 3 for all the marbles? ... Also, suffice it to say everyone will be pulling for an Iowa-LSU rematch. Read Lindsay Schnell's full breakdown of the region here.
Here's what you need to know about Iowa's first-round matchup. And here's some advice from UCLA head coach Cori Close.
JuJu Watkins and the Trojans (26-5) will face No. 16 A&M-Corpus Christi (23-8) in the first round. Here's a look at region.
Potential Paige vs. JuJu? Yes, please! But first Paige & Co. will have to exact some revenge on Ohio State. ... This is interesting: The teams closest to their regionals — Oregon State and UConn, with Portland and Albany — are going across the country. Is this a sign of parity? I'm not sure, but it's a bummer for both of their fan bases ... Arizona and Vanderbilt look to be two of the last in, given that they're both playing in First Four games. I thought Arizona could have and should have been safely in. Awesome for Vanderbilt, which started the season hot but struggled a bit in SEC play. The 'Dores haven't been to the NCAA tournament since 2014, and this is a big step forward for them as Shea Ralph continues to rebuild that program. ... Will Virginia Tech's Liz Kitley play in the postseason? The three-time ACC player of the year didn't play in the ACC tournament after injuring her knee in the Hokies' regular season finale, but no one knows her availability. Read Lindsay Schnell's full breakdown of the region here.
The Texas Longhorns (30-4) are the top seed in the Portland 4 Region. They will face No. 16 Drexel (19-14) in the first round. Here's a look at the whole region.
Texas as a No. 1 seed: I can't help but think the committee wasn't as impressed with the Pac-12 as many in the West were, given that Stanford didn't earn a No. 1 seed but the Longhorns did. Still, if things go chalk, we'll still get a Texas-Stanford matchup, which I've been itching to see all season. ... Utah-Gonzaga is a super interesting potential second-round game. They both play fast and run a fun style ... Iowa State-Maryland is a really interesting first-round matchup. Read Lindsay Schnell's full breakdown of the region here.
You can find the complete women's March Madness bracket here.
Friday, March 22
Saturday, March 23
Read Lindsay Schnell's full breakdown of thebracket here.
Here's a look at the First Four contests.
Wednesday, March 20
Thursday, March 21
Here is the women's schedule:
South Carolina had a big crowd on hand watching with the team.
Iowa players watched with their Big Ten tournament trophy on hand.
USC players were all smiles as they heard the news.
Texas players jumped up with excitement to celebrate being a No. 1 seed.
If Caitlin Clark leaves Iowa with a national title, she’ll have earned every bit of it. The NCAA Tournament selection committee did Clark and the Hawkeyes no favors in the bracket that was released Sunday night. Sure, they’re a No. 1 seed, as expected. They’ll host the first and second rounds at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, where they’ve lost all of two games in the past two seasons. They’re in the Albany regional, which is an easier trip for their diehard fans than the other regional in Portland, Oregon.
But the actual games? Woof.
There’s a potential Sweet 16 matchup with Kansas State, which Iowa has already played twice this season, losing at home and winning on a neutral court. A rematch of last year’s national title game against LSU looms in the regional final. If it’s not Angel Reese and the Tigers, then it will likely be second-seeded UCLA, which is battle tested after the bruising Pac-12 season. Read Nancy Armour's full column here.
Here is a printable PDF of the women's bracket. It will update as seeds are revealed.
Like with the 2023 tournament, the 2024 tournament will feature two super regionals, with two 16-team brackets at each regional, which are in Portland, Ore., and Albany, N.Y. Here are all the venues we know are hosting tournament games over the next several weeks. Location and venues for the First Four and first and second rounds will be determined on Selection Sunday.
| Round | Location | Venue | Dates |
| First Four | TBD | TBD | March 20-21 |
| First round | TBD | TBD | March 22-23 |
| Second round | TBD | TBD | March 24-25 |
| Sweet 16 | Portland | Moda Center | March 29-30 |
| Sweet 16 | Albany, N.Y. | Times Union Center | March 29-30 |
| Elite Eight | Portland | Moda Center | March 31-April 1 |
| Elite Eight | Albany, N.Y. | Times Union Center | March 31-April 1 |
| Final Four | Cleveland | Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse | April 5 |
| National championship | Cleveland | Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse | April 7 |
It’s understandable why JuJu Watkins, the front-runner for national freshman of the year, sparks reaction every time she’s on the floor. The 6-foot-2 rookie from the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, has a silky smooth jumper, a veteran’s poise and a combination of skill, power and body control rarely seen. With Caitlin Clark headed to the 2024 WNBA draft, where she’s projected No. 1 overall, Watkins, the nation’s second leading scorer this season behind Clark, is positioned to become the face of women’s basketball. She'll be joined by Notre Dame point guard Hannah Hidalgo, the other favorite for freshman of the year. Not lost on any of the powerbrokers in the game: Both of these players are Black. And in a game built by Black women, it matters that the faces of the future look like the faces of the past. Read Lindsay Schnell’s full feature here.
Find all the available info on tickets for the women's NCAA Tournament here.
Caitlin Clark is must-see TV, JuJu Watkins and Hannah Hidalgo are her heirs apparent, and the big question ahead of Selection Sunday is whether top-seeded South Carolina and LSU might fight, err, face each other again in the Final Four. — Nancy Armour
ESPN will air the Selection Sunday show. ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews and ABC will broadcast games in the first and second rounds, the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. ESPN will show Final Four games. ABC will air the national championship game.
The USA TODAY Sports Bracket Challenge is back. There’s a $1 million grand prize for a perfect bracket. The Challenge is free to enter for those age 21 and over. Terms apply, void where prohibited by law. See official rules and get in the game.
The Hawkeyes' Caitlin Clark is poised for another Final Four run after her landmark season where she broke Pete Maravich's all-time scoring record. LSU's Angel Reese, Stanford's Cameron Brink, Connecticut's Paige Bueckers and South Carolina’s Te-Hina Paopao are hoping to stand in the way of her first national title.
Caitlin Clark is the reigning national player of the year, a sharpshooting supernova with a penchant for launching 3-pointers from the logo, flicking no-look passes through defenders' arms and talking trash to any and all who stand in her way. Iowa is expected to earn a top four seed in the NCAA tournament, and host the first two rounds. A year after leading Iowa to the national championship game, Clark is trying to get back to her second consecutive Final Four, an accomplishment few players have achieved. USA TODAY Sports has been tracking her game closely. In case you need to brush up on your Clark trivia, we’ve got you covered with our complete guide to all things Clark.
It's no longer just Jake from State Farm, it's now Caitlin Clark from State Farm. Iowa basketball star Caitlin Clark signed a name, image, and likeness deal as a spokesperson for the insurance company in late 2023. Clark, the first college athlete to join the Good Neighbor Team in Khakis, said she looks forward to growing the women’s game with the team. — Elizabeth Flores
We asked some hoops legends for their thoughts on the generational talent. Steph Curry, Maya Moore, Kelsey Mitchell and others broke down her game, explaining what makes her so special.
Games for the women's First Four are March 20-21. First-round games for the women are March 22-23.
There are 32 conference tournaments that produce 32 automatic bids for the women's NCAA Tournament. The other 36 at-large teams selected to the field will be announced on Selection Sunday.
South Carolina's MiLaysia Fulwiley was named the Southeastern Conference tournament MVP, as the Gamecocks continued their undefeated campaign. Now she is the first college player to sign with the Curry Brand through Under Armour. The 5-foot-10 freshman from Columbia, South Carolina will wear Curry Brand footwear on the court for the remainder of her Gamecocks playing days, according to the company's announcement. Off the court, she will be a brand ambassador. Fulwiley will have the support of Curry Brand and Under Armour to grow the game of basketball in her hometown and continue the grassroots work she has already started in the community. "It feels incredible to be picked to represent Curry Brand," Fulwiley said in a statement. "Knowing that I can be a role model for other young girls to come out here and do exactly what I did is amazing." — Chris Bumbaca
On Selection Sunday, the full women’s bracket will be revealed on ESPN, along with matchups and locations for every first-round game. A 12-person selection committee decides who will be in the tournament, as well as where each team is seeded and plays. Lisa Peterson, the Pac-12’s senior associate commissioner for sports management, is the chairperson for the women’s committee. She was at the women’s Pac-12 tournament in Las Vegas, where many believe USC secured a No. 1 seed with its upset of Stanford in the tournament championship game. Here’s everything you need to know about how Selection Sunday works.
There will be 68 teams that make the tournament, including the eight teams that will have to play in the First Four games. Here’s everything you need to know about how Selection Sunday works.
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Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes captured a third consecutive Big Ten tournament title in a thrilling, back-and-forth overtime game that ended with Iowa exacting some revenge on the Nebraska Cornhuskers and pulling out a 94-89 win.
Top-ranked South Carolina beat No. 5 LSU 79-72 to win Dawn Staley’s eighth SEC championship in 10 years. It was a tense matchup against Kim Mulkey and the defending national champions. The Gamecocks remain undefeated and improved to 32-0 after a near-brawl interrupted the fourth quarter for 20 minutes.
Where’s Angel Reese? That was the question on everyone’s mind in November, when the Most Outstanding Player from LSU’s national title run last season went missing from the basketball court earlier this season, fueling wild speculation. The Tigers went 4-0 without Reese as LSU coach Kim Mulkey, famously prickly and private, refused to give the scoop on her star player. So where was Reese? Probably talking to Shaq. Yes Shaq as in, Shaquille O’Neal, who at 7-foot-1, 325 pounds, is larger than life in both stature and personality, and who remains the pride of this southeastern Louisiana college town even though he hasn’t played here since 1992. They’re a natural pairing, when you think about it. Read Lindsay Schnell’s full story here.
When Kim Mulkey left the women’s basketball powerhouse at Baylor in April 2021 to take the job at LSU, the fiery Louisiana native earned a new nickname: R-O-I. As in, “return on investment,” what ESPN analyst Debbie Antonelli expected when the Tigers persuaded Mulkey, who’d won three national championships at Baylor, to return to her home state, making her the highest-paid coach in women’s hoops. LSU athletics director Scott Woodward said he knew it would be money well spent, but could anyone have predicted this?
In USA TODAY Sports’ review of compensation for Division I women’s basketball head coaches, Mulkey is the highest paid at $3.26 million this season, edging South Carolina’s Dawn Staley and Connecticut's Geno Auriemma, who both make $3.1 million. She is one of 18 coaches making $1 million or more this year, an uptick from 11 since USA TODAY Sports last did this investigation in 2021-22.
The spike in “million-dollar babies,” as one agent likes to call them, speaks to the exponential rise in both investment in women’s sports and their popularity. And while women’s coaches say there are still significant improvements to be made, the numbers from LSU’s annual financial report back up what many have been arguing for years: It takes money to bring in more money. Read the full story from Lindsay Schnell and Steve Berkowitz.
McKenzie Forbes scored 26 points and No. 8 Southern California beat No. 2 Stanford 74-61 to win the Pac-12 Tournament championship and earn the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Trojans (26-5) played in the championship game for the first time since 2014, when they also defeated Stanford. That was their only other tournament title. USC freshman sensation JuJu Watkins had a frustrating game, finishing with nine points on 2-of-15 shooting. It was the first time she didn’t score in double figures.
Cameron Brink led the Cardinal (28-5) with 19 points, while Kiki Iriafen added 18. — AP
To fully understand and appreciate the pride Utah women’s basketball standout Alissa Pili feels for her Polynesian heritage, one needs only to look at her right leg. Tattooed there, in prominent display from ankle to hip, is a spiral of Polynesian tribal symbols. In ancient times, ink like that — especially full sleeves — was typically associated with warriors. That’s also a fitting description for Pili, the reigning Pac-12 player of the year, a tough, relentless forward who averages 21.0 points and 6.4 rebounds for the No. 22 Utes. But because the senior, who is Samoan and Alaska Native (Inupiaq), also values femininity, she asked her tattoo artist to add flowers, too.
“Women aren’t known for being super feminine in our Polynesian culture, but I think it’s important to not just be stuck in a box that other people (put you in),” Pili told USA TODAY Sports. “For me, I grew up playing football with my brothers and cousins, I was a tomboy. But I also like to be feminine. And if you want to wear the (fake) lashes or put on makeup or do your nails, it’s OK to show that side of you, too.” Read Lindsay Schnell’s full feature here.
Paige Bueckers scored 27 points and had five blocks to help No. 10 UConn beat Georgetown 78-42 to win its 22nd Big East Tournament title. It was the 29th title overall for the Huskies, who haven't lost in a conference championship contest since 2013, when Notre Dame beat them for the Big East title. — Doug Feinberg, AP
Syracuse guard Dyaisha Fair is the fifth all-time leading scorer in women's college basketball history after surpassing former Baylor star Brittney Griner (3,283 points) this season. Fair, 22, only trails Missouri State alum Jackie Stiles (3,393), Ohio State alum Kelsey Mitchell (3,402), Washington alum Kelsey Plum (3,527) and Clark (3,685 and counting) on the NCAA women's basketball all-time scoring list.
"She's different. She's special. She's one of the best players to ever play the game," coach Felisha Legette-Jack told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, part of the USA Today Network, in January when Fair eclipsed 3,000 career points. Here's everything to know about the Syracuse star, who has quietly climbed the all-time scoring list in Clark's shadow. — Cydney Henderson
Freshman Hannah Hidalgo proved plenty old enough, plenty bold enough and plenty gold enough to lead Notre Dame women’s basketball to the ACC tournament title with a 55-51 win over NC State. Hidalgo scored 22 points, dealt six assists, collected six rebounds, grabbed two fourth-quarter steals and — get this, having the rock in her hand more than anybody — finished with no turnovers. — Anthony Anderson, correspondent
Texas defeated Iowa state, 70-53, to capture the Big 12 tournament title. Madison Booker led the Longhorns with 26 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
There are several different resources for the committee to choose the best 36 at-large teams, such as record and strength of schedule. But perhaps the most important one is the NET ranking. The NET ranking looks at a team's record and résumé, which then ranks all teams in Division I. Bubble teams with a high NET (top 25-50) should feel good about their chances, especially if they have a handful of wins over other Top 25 NET teams.
An important note with the women’s tournament: the selection committee does not consider “quad” wins like the men. The women have five categories instead. The committee puts together “team sheets” as they select at-large teams, and the categories the selection committee considers are wins/losses vs:
According to the NCAA website, the committee also considers the following: Bad losses, common opponents, competitive in losses, conference record, early performance versus late performance, head-to-head, NET ranking, non-conference record, observable component, overall record, regional rankings, significant wins and strength of schedule.
Considering the NET ranking and other factors, the committee will then come up with the 36 best at-large teams to be selected. There are no limits on how many teams from a certain conference get selected. Here’s everything you need to know about how Selection Sunday works.
After the committee selects the 68 teams to be in the tournament, it ranks all of them 1 through 68. Once all the teams are ranked, every four teams are evaluated in the same seed line. Example: Nos. 1-4 will be the No. 1 seeds, Nos. 5-8 will be the No. 2 seeds and so on. The four lowest-ranked automatic qualifying teams will play in the First Four games as 16 seeds, while the four lowest at-large teams will compete in the other First Four games, typically as a No. 11 or No. 12 seed. Here’s everything you need to know about how Selection Sunday works.
Last year's NCAA Tournament featured the most-watched Final Four in the sport's history when Iowa handed South Carolina a rare loss and then lost a nail-biter to LSU in the championship.
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