First NCAA bracket reveal: South Carolina WBB a top seed, but not THE top seed
South Carolina women’s basketball was ranked No. 2 overall in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s first Top 16 rankings that were unveiled Sunday.
The Gamecocks (23-2, 11-1 SC) sit behind No. 1 UCLA in the overall rankings but would still be a No. 1 seed in the Birmingham 2 region. In the projected bracket, USC would be in the same region with 2-seed N.C. State (8), 3-seed. TCU (9) and 4-seed Oklahoma (15).
Dawn Staley and the Gamecocks play UConn, who is ranked No. 7 in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s Top 16 rankings, at 1 p.m. on Sunday (ABC).
The selection committee will give one more peek at its projected Top 16 on at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 27 on ESPN2. The preliminary in-season rankings have been released since 2015 and allow fans to see where their teams stand with March Madness a month away.
South Carolina has been a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament eight times in Staley’s tenure, including the last four seasons. The Gamecocks were also a No. 1 seed for four years between the 2013-2014 and 2016-2017 seasons.
The tournament’s Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds will be played at two sites: Birmingham, Alabama and Spokane, Washington. This year’s Final Four and national championship games are at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
When is NCAA selection show?
The full NCAA Tournament bracket will be announced on Selection Sunday on March 16.
NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament Top 16 rankings
Released Sunday, Feb. 16
Spokane 1
- 1. UCLA (1)
- 2. LSU (6)
- 3. Duke (10)
- 4. Tennessee (16)
Birmingham 2
- 1. South Carolina (2)
- 2. NC State (8)
- 3. TCU (9)
- 4. Oklahoma (15)
Birmingham 3
- 1. Texas (3)
- 2. UConn (7)
- 3. North Carolina (11)
- 4. Ohio State (14)
Spokane 4
- 1. Notre Dame (4)
- 2. USC (5)
- 3. Kansas State (12)
- 4. Kentucky (13)
This story was originally published February 16, 2025 at 12:38 PM.
