UCLA, South Carolina, Texas, and Notre Dame Earn No. 1 Seeds in Initial NCAA Tournament Reveal

Live Update: The NCAA women’s basketball selection committee has revealed its first top 16 seeds ahead of the NCAA Tournament, with UCLA, South Carolina, Texas, and Notre Dame currently sitting as the No. 1 seeds. This early reveal provides teams with a snapshot of their positioning with just a few weeks to go before the official tournament bracket is finalized.

In a phone interview with The Associated Press, Derita Dawkins, the chair of the NCAA women’s basketball selection committee, expressed confidence in the top four choices, saying, “We were pretty certain as a group that we had the right four on the one line.”

However, just on the cusp of the top four are Southern California and LSU. The Trojans were responsible for handing UCLA their first loss of the season just a few days ago, adding an interesting dynamic to the ranking.

These top 16 seeds will host the first- and second-round games, with regional play once again set for two neutral sites. This year’s Sweet 16 will be divided between Spokane, Washington and Birmingham, Alabama, which will host half of the teams each.

In the projected bracket, UCLA and Notre Dame are expected to be the top seeds in the Spokane Regional, while South Carolina and Texas are positioned in Birmingham. The Bruins, currently the overall No. 1 seed, are in line for potential Friday-Sunday games, providing them with an additional day of rest heading into the Final Four.

UCLA coach Cori Close shared her thoughts after her team secured a 75-69 victory over Michigan State on Sunday: “That’s always where you want to be when you have a team like this is try to earn a No. 1 seed, and to be the overall number one seed would be great, but that’s a ways away,” she said, adding, “I do think there’s more in us. I am thrilled to have a team that can put themselves in that position and I hope they earn it the rest of the way.”

The UCLA bracket also includes the LSU Tigers as the No. 2 seed, along with Duke at No. 3 and Tennessee at No. 4. Some teams, including LSU, were shifted between regions to adhere to the selection committee’s principle of keeping teams from the same conference apart, a challenge this year due to the reduced number of power conferences after the demise of the Pac-12.

The Fighting Irish are projected to face USC (No. 2), Kansas State, and Kentucky, potentially setting up an Elite Eight showdown between two of the country’s top players, JuJu Watkins of USC and Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo.

In South Carolina’s region, N.C. State, TCU, and Oklahoma are all expected to be among the top teams. Texas, meanwhile, would compete with UConn, North Carolina, and Ohio State.

Dawkins explained that Texas earned the third overall No. 1 seed over Notre Dame due to their superior performance in Quadrant 1 victories—10 wins against top teams, compared to Notre Dame’s six.

Several teams just outside the top 16 include Alabama, Baylor, Michigan State, Mississippi, and West Virginia, all still in the mix for a spot as the season progresses.

Looking ahead, the NCAA Final Four will be held in Tampa, Florida, on April 4, with the championship game set for April 6.

Dawkins also noted that the selection committee is always keeping an eye on surprises: “We always look for who busts our bracket first,” she joked, acknowledging the unpredictable nature of the tournament, especially after major matchups played later on Sunday, which weren’t factored into the reveal.

The committee will have one more seed reveal on Feb. 27, with the official bracket to be unveiled on March 16. Stay tuned for more updates as the tournament approaches!