When the first round of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament begins Friday, the UCLA Bruins will be its top overall seed.
It is the highest seed in the UCLA’s history, but whether it can remain on top of the 68-team field will be determined over the next three weeks leading to the national semifinals on April 4 and the championship game on April 6 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
The top challengers for UCLA (30-2) include fellow No. 1 seeds South Carolina (30-3), Texas (31-3), and USC (28-3). Behind JuJu Watkins, the Big Ten Player of the Year and the nation’s second-leading scorer at 24.6 points per game, the Trojans handed UCLA its only two losses. But UCLA earned revenge this week, beating its crosstown rival in the Big Ten tournament championship game by overcoming a 13-point deficit.
South Carolina’s streak of four consecutive tournaments as the top overall seed was snapped. Derita Dawkins, the chair of the tournament’s selection committee, told ESPN on Sunday that UCLA’s head-to-head win over South Carolina by 15 points on Nov. 24 was a factor in the Bruins’ earning the top seed.
The other factor, Dawkins said, “was one of our criteria which was competitive in losses, and South Carolina suffered a 29-point loss to UConn.”
Connecticut, the nation’s best-shooting team at 50.8% this season, is a traditional powerhouse that has advanced to three consecutive Final Fours, but it is seeking its first national title since 2016. The Huskies, the No. 2 seed in USC’s region, are led by Paige Bueckers, who is projected as a potential No. 1 pick in next month’s WNBA draft.
The other No. 2 seeds are Duke, North Carolina State and TCU. TCU is an intriguing entrant — playing in a region headlined by in-state rival Texas — after it made its first tournament since 2010. Just 8-23 two seasons ago, the Horned Frogs are 31-3 in coach Mark Campbell’s second season.
Texas tied South Carolina atop the SEC standings in the regular season and is paced by SEC Player of the Year Madison Booker.
Fifth-seeded Tennessee extended its streak of appearing in all 43 women’s basketball tournaments since the NCAA hosted its first edition in 1982.
Matchups in the First Four, which will determine the four opponents who will draw UCLA, USC, South Carolina and Texas, will take place Wednesday and Thursday. The rounds of 64 and 32 will take place Friday-Monday, with the Sweet 16 and the Elite Eight running March 28-31.
The Ivy League produced three tournament berths, for Harvard, Columbia and Princeton.
Grand Canyon, Arkansas State, Fairleigh Dickinson, UC San Diego, George Mason and William & Mary are first-time tournament entrants.
Andrew Greif
