We finally have a bracket! After much speculation on the No. 1 overall seed, who is in, who is out and who gets to host, the March Madness field is set. It’s officially the most wonderful time of the year, and I cannot wait for the action to get started.
But, we have a couple days before the first-four. So to get ready, here are five things that stood out to me from the bracket reveal.
The committee loves a narrative
There is a list of criteria that the committee adheres to in order to craft the bracket, but one thing they don’t mention is this: The committee loves a little drama. If there is a way to add some spice into the matchups, they make it happen. This season, UConn is in the 1-seed in the same region as Vanderbilt, who earned a 2-seed. That means Geno Auriemma and his former player, Shea Ralph, who helped the Huskies win a title in 2000, are on a crash course to meet in the Elite Eight. UCLA, meanwhile, has played LSU in the last two tournaments. The committee is clearly looking to create a rivalry as they are set up to meet again this year. We also have LSU potentially playing Duke after Flau’jae Johnson made her disdain for Kara Lawson quite clear following her time playing on Team USA and not getting many minutes. That’s plenty of drama, but I am surprised the committee didn’t find a way to pit Olivia Miles and TCU against Notre Dame, her former team.
Mid-major royalty
When I think of the standard for mid-major women’s basketball, three teams come to mind: South Dakota State, Princeton and Green Bay. How lucky are we that for the second year in a row, all three squads are in this year’s field? The Jackrabbits make their fourth appearance in as many years – and 14th since they became a DI program in 2005. Green Bay has sustained excellence under two separate head coaches, securing its 21st tournament bid. And Princeton survived a scare from Harvard in the Ivy League championship game to snag the automatic bid for the sixth time since 2018.
Who has the most difficult path?
Texas seems to have the most challenging region. The Longhorns have three teams that could serve them an upset in Kentucky, Louisville and Michigan. The Wildcats lost to the Longhorns 64-53 when they played earlier this season in the SEC, with sophomore Justice Carleton scoring 17 points in one of her best games of the season. Having a potential rematch, and a conference rematch, so early in the bracket is interesting as well. Typically this is something the committee tries to avoid. But with such a large number of Big 10 and SEC teams in the field, it becomes more challenging.
Star-studded region
Forth Worth 1 is going to be tons of fun. This region has Sarah Strong, Azzi Fudd and UConn, Audi Crooks and Iowa State, Hannah Hidalgo and Notre Dame, Jaloni Cambridge and Ohio State, and Mikayla Blakes and Vanderbilt, plus one super star you may not be familiar with. Western Illinois, who takes on North Carolina in the first round, is home to Mia Nicastro, a senior forward who averages 24.2 points per game. That’s the fourth most in the country, behind Blakes, Crooks and Hidalgo. Looks like this is the region for elite scorers.
Is it gonna be chalk?
One of the main complaints about the women’s tournament is the lack of upsets. And while I love how unhinged the men’s tournament can be, there is also something great about seeing dominant teams stay dominant. I do think there are a few early chances at upsets, like Washington over TCU in the second round, Fairfield over Notre Dame in the first and Nebraska or Richmond over Baylor, also in the first round, just to name a few. But ultimately, I think the Final Four will be the four No. 1 seeds. UConn, UCLA, Texas and South Carolina have been incredible all season long. A No. 2 seed, like Vanderbilt or Michigan could also sneak in, but overall I think this tournament belongs to the big guns.