South Carolina is dominating, LSU battles, Ohio State busts brackets
The NCAA Women’s tournament has been heating up, and Tony Anderson chats about some of the biggest games of Sunday’s slate.
Sports Seriously
The women’s NCAA tournament continued Sunday with eight second-round games.
No. 1 overall seed and undefeated South Carolina defeated the No. 8 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels. And defending champion LSU, whose coach Kim Mulkey threatened a Washington Post reporter over what she called an upcoming “hit piece,” rallied to beat No. 11 Middle Tennessee State.
In the first of the eight games, No. 2 Ohio State was upset by No. 7 Duke, but No. 1 Texas handled No. 8 Alabama in the evening game. No. 2 Stanford needed overtime to put away No. 7 Iowa State in the late game.
STREAM: March Madness on ESPN+ and Fubo
Here is the full women’s NCAA tournament schedule for Sunday.
You can find the complete women’s March Madness bracket here.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews and ABC carry games in the first and second rounds, the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. ESPN will air Final Four games. ABC will air the national championship game. You can stream all the games in the ESPN app by logging in with your TV provider. Here’s how to watch women’s March Madness like a pro.
This game had everything.
The game of her life by Kiki Iriafen and an equal effort by Emily Ryan. Two star players fouling out. And then the two clutchest plays Brooke Demetre has ever made.
Demetre made a 3-pointer with 18 seconds left in overtime to give Stanford the lead for good, then sealed the win with a pair of free throws. A year after losing in the second round, as a No. 1 seed, second-seeded Stanford escaped this time with an 87-81 win over Iowa State.
Stanford also avoided being the second No. 2 seed of the day to lose, after Ohio State exited in the first game of the day.
The Cardinal will now play either N.C. State or Tennessee next weekend in the Portland 4 Regional.
Iriafen finished with a career-high 41 points, including a perfect 9 of 9 at the free-throw line, and also had 16 rebounds and four assists. And Stanford needed every bit of her monster effort, especially with Cameron Brink fouling out in the fourth quarter.
Iriafen also was key in shutting down Cyclones center Audi Crooks, who was held to 10 points two days after dropping 40 on Maryland.
But Stanford had no answer for Iowa State’s outside game. Ryan had a career-high 36 points and was 6 of 9 from 3-point range. Addy Brown added 15, including a 3 that gave Iowa State its last lead, with 31 seconds left.
Brown missed a layup on Iowa State’s next possession, and Demetre was hacked as she grabbed the rebound. She made the free throws, bringing an end to the most entertaining and wild game of the day.
Iowa State center Audi Crooks will have to watch the rest of this one from the bench after picking up her fifth foul. She finishes the night with 10 points and eight rebounds.
Free basketball!
We’re going to overtime in Iowa State-Stanford after Cyclones center Audi Crooks and Stanford forward Kiki Iriafen both missed shots in the last 15 seconds.
Stanford will have to play OT without Cameron Brink, who fouled out late in the fourth quarter. Crooks is playing with four fouls and Iriafen has three.
Iriafen has carried Stanford, scoring 30 and grabbing 15 boards. Crooks hasn’t had the monster night she did against Maryland, when she dropped 40, but Emily Ryan is playing out of her mind. She’s got a career-high 31 and is 5 of 8 from 3-point range.
Cameron Brink’s last game at Stanford’s Maples Pavilion ended early.
The All-American fouled out late in the fourth quarter after knocking Iowa State center Audi Crooks over under the basket. She’d been playing with four since late in the third quarter.
Brink exited with eight points and eight rebounds.
And you get a foul! And you get a foul!
Iowa State center Audi Crooks picked up her fourth foul with 4:25 left to play. Stanford’s bigs have also been negotiating foul trouble. Cameron Brink has been playing with four and Kiki Iriafen with three since late in the third quarter.
Buckle up, folks.
Stanford and Iowa State are tied up, 50-all, heading into the fourth quarter. But Stanford All-American Cameron Brink, playing her last game at Maples Pavilion, has four fouls. Kiki Iriafen, who has carried the Cardinal with 24 points and 10 rebounds, has three. No other Stanford player is in double-figures besides Iriafen.
Iriafen has also made Audi Crooks a non-factor. Two days after Crooks dropped 40 on Maryland, she has just eight and is 2 of 14 from the floor. Instead, it’s been Emily Ryan, who has 21 points and is 3 of 5 from 3-point range, who is carrying the Cyclones.
It’s a nervy times for the Cardinal, who as a No. 1 seed last year also lost in the second round, to Ole Miss.
Iowa State’s Arianna Jackson got a face full of floor at the end of the third quarter, and it looked like all sorts of unpleasant.
Jackson, who has three points, drove from the right wing and wiped out under the basket — likely from a slippery floor — and when she lost her footing landed face-first, slamming her nose on the ground. There was a lot of blood, and she was rushed to the Cyclones’ locker room.
Not great Bob! With Cameron Brink already sitting on fouls, Kiki Iriafen picked up her third, too, late in the quarter. Brink came in to replace Iriafen, and almost immediately picked up a fourth foul.
Brink hasn’t been a huge factor for Stanford, but Iriafen has carried the Cardinal. She’s got 24 points and 10 rebounds, and has been able to keep Audi Crooks from doing the kind of damage she did the other night against Maryland.
All-American Cam Brink has barely been a factor in this one and now she’s going to be getting some quality time on the bench.
Brink picked up her third foul with 4:54 still to play in the third quarter. She has six points and seven boards with Stanford trailing Iowa State in the second round.
Free throws give Iowa State lead on Stanford at halftime
Emily Ryan must like having the last word.
Just as she did in the first quarter, Ryan scored the final points before halftime, a pair of free throws that gave Iowa State a 33-31 lead. Ryan has 15 points, and is 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
The battle of the bigs, between Audi Crooks and Kiki Iriafen, hasn’t really materialized – mostly because Iriafen has made it a one-sided show. She’s got a game-high 16 points and seven rebounds, and her work on the boards has set up several of Stanford’s buckets.
Crooks, meanwhile, has just five points on 2-of-11 shooting. Time and again, she’s been frustrated in front of the basket, with Iriafen in her face or putting a hand up to disrupt her shot.
But remember, Crooks had a monster second half against Maryland as Iowa State erased a 20-point deficit in the first round. So stay tuned.
STANFORD, Calif. – Iowa State got a big boost to its cheering section Sunday.
Former Cyclones quarterback Brock Purdy was on hand watch them take on Stanford at Maples Pavilion.
Purdy is a star quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, who play less than an hour from Stanford’s campus. He and his wife Jenna were seated courtside for the game.
“We bleed Iowa State through and through,” Purdy said Sunday. “It’s all about Iowa State, representing the university, and for me to come and support the women’s basketball team, it means a lot to me,” Purdy said. – Des Moines Register
Going deep pays off early for Iowa State in first quarter
Iowa State has an outside game, too.
Two days after center Audi Crooks dropped 40 points to lead the Cyclones’ furious comeback over Maryland, Emily Ryan, Addy Brown and Hannah Belanger were perfect from 3-point range to propel Iowa State to an early lead over second-seeded Stanford.
Brown made a pair of 3s and Ryan added another in a 45-second span that was part of a 12-0 run that gave Iowa State the lead late in the first quarter. A three-point play by Nunu Agara pared the Cyclones’ lead to 20-16 with 29 seconds left, but Ryan answered back with – what else? – another 3 to give Iowa State a 23-16 lead after the first quarter.
Sometimes, it’s just not your night.
That was the case for Virginia Tech’s Georgia Amoore, the All-American point guard who has long been one of the top perimeter players in the country. But without her partner in the paint — three-time ACC player of the year Liz Kitley is out for the season after tearing her ACL — Amoore could never get going Sunday night against Baylor. As a result, the Bears pulled off the 75-72 upset in Blacksburg Sunday, earning a trip to the Sweet 16 for the 15th time in program history.
As much as Amoore struggled — she scored 18 but was 7-of-22 from the field, including a miserable 3-of-11 from 3 — Baylor’s guards were stellar. Jada Walker, who sat most of the first half with foul trouble, scored a career-high 28, 23 of them after the break. Sarah Andrews chipped in with 16.
Virginia Tech had the ball with 1.3 left, but couldn’t get a good look, forcing Amoore to heave the ball over the back of her head. The Hokies are the first 2023 Final Four participant to be knocked out of the postseason.
In a game this close, every score matters — which is why Virginia Tech’s Georgia Amoore blowing a layup isn’t just very weird, but potentially damaging.
And it’s why the crazy, half-court shot from Baylor’s Jada Walker that was good at the third quarter buzzer might be a back breaker for the Hokies, even though they’re playing at home. That shot gave Baylor a 55-52 lead heading into the final period.
It seems that Virginia Tech has plenty of answers, but can’t get any sort of run going to get any sort of separation. The Hookies to their first lead with 1:32 to play in the third on a free throw, but Baylor took it back with an easy rebound and putback on the other end. That’s not how you get back to the Final Four if you’re Virginia Tech. But second chance points like that are how Baylor can advance to the Sweet 16.
Matilda Eke leads Virginia Tech with 14 points, and Amoore has 12, but she’s a miserable 5-of-17 from the field, and 1-of-8 from 3. Sarah Andrew leads Baylor with 16, while Walker has 14.
Take a bow, Sarah Andrews.
The Baylor point guard is very much outplaying her Virginia Tech counterpart, outplaying Virginia Tech’s Georgia Amoore, having already hit 3-of-4 from 3. Andrew is up to 14 points, while Amoore, has 10 but on 12 shots. All of that has led to a 34-28 Baylor lead at halftime.
But Andrews isn’t the only Bear who came to play. Baylor is out rebounding Virginia Tech, 21-18, and has outscored the Hokies bench 9-2.
Can Virginia Tech, which made the Final Four last year, rally? If so, they’re going to have to start hitting from outside, where they’re currently just 2-of-16.
So far, this is going how pretty much everyone thought it would. Virginia Tech is really missing three-time ACC player of the year Liz Kitley, and Baylor is taking advantage of that absence, up 21-18 at the end of the first.
The Hokies already have four turnovers, which Baylor has turned into four points. Sarah Andrews is doing a little bit of everything for the Bears in their upset bid, and already has seven points, two assists and two rebounds.
The biggest positive for Virginia Tech: The Strack Attack. The freshman center, who averages 4.1 points and 3.9 rebounds but will have to step up big without Kitley, already has eight points and is 3-of-4 from the field, and has drawn multiple fouls against Baylor.
It was a battle to the end, but No. 1 Texas came out on top, defeating No. 8 Alabama 65-54 in second-round play to advance to the Sweet 16. The Longhorns led the entire game, in front of former forward Kevin Durant, but the Crimson Tide hung around, sneaking to a single digit margin in the second half.
Texas junior forward Aaliyah Moore dominated the second half and finished with a 21 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman Madison Booker added 21 points of her own.
Aaliyah Nye brought the game within eight with a jumper at the top of the fourth quarter and finished the game with 14 points, four rebounds, four assists and four fouls. Sarah Ashlee Barker led the Crimson Tide with 17 points and six rebounds.
Alabama committed 17 fouls and Texas made 16-of-21 free throws.
Texas will face the winner between No. 4 Gonzaga and No. 5 Utah in the Sweet 16.
No. 8 Alabama has not led yet in the second-round matchup against No. 1 Texas, but the Crimson Tide aren’t letting the Longhorns run away with the game, either.
The Longhorns are up 48-38 after three quarters. Texas has eight steals and eight blocks, but only scored three more points than their opponent in the quarter.
Aaliyah Nye found another opportunity to boost her team as she nailed a three-point bucket late in the period. She and Sarah Ashlee Barker each have 12 points for the Crimson Tide.
Freshman Madison Booker is shining with 17 points for Texas and senior Taylor Jones is dominating defensively with four blocks and eight rebounds.
The No. 8 Alabama Crimson Tide threatened to take the lead, but the No. 1 Texas Longhorns are holding on going into the half up 31-24.
With 6:30 on the clock in the second quarter, Aaliyah Nye made a layup to bring Alabama within one, but Texas responded with two quick buckets to maintain its lead.
Alabama has committed 10 fouls and Texas has made nine of 12 free throws.
Freshman Madison Booker has 12 points, two rebounds and two steals for the Longhorns while Nye leads the Crimson Tide with seven points and three assists.
The No. 1 Texas Longhorns are clinging onto a 17-14 lead over the No. 8 Alabama Crimson Tide after the first quarter. The Longhorns had a lead as large as eight, but Alabama has been clawing to stay in the game.
Crimson Tide senior Aaliyah Nye hit a three-point bucket toward the end of the period to give her team momentum and bring the score within one play. It was her first points of the night. Freshman Madison Booker is leading the Longhorns with eight points. Texas is outrebounding Alabama 12-4.
Kim Mulkey is still angry with a Washington Post reporter, calling him “sleazy” Sunday.
The LSU coach was asked if the attention over her tirade was a factor in the defending champion’s slow start against Middle Tennessee State. The Tigers trailed the No. 11 seed by four points at halftime before rallying in the second half for an 83-56 win.
“No. Listen, we’re not going to let one sleazy reporter distract us from what we’re trying to do. Absolutely not,” Mulkey said.
She added that her team hadn’t even known she’d said anything until they read about her comments last night.
Mulkey gave a fiery statement Saturday in which she confirmed she’s the subject of an investigative story by Washington Post reporter Kent Babb and threatened to sue over it. No story has been published as of Sunday evening.
As Sunday winds down, No. 1 Texas has tipped off against No. 8 Alabama.
The Longhorns have an early 8-5 lead in second-round action. Freshman forward Madison Booker has six points. Former Texas standout and current Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant is in attendance at the Moody Center. The game is on ESPN.
CORVALLIS — And just like that, Oregon State’s offense is cooking — and the Beavers are headed back to the Sweet 16.
OSU hit five 3s in the final period — the same number the Beavers had connected on the first three quarters combined — on its way to a 61-51 win over sixth-seeded Nebraska.
Junior guard Talia von Oelhoffen led all scorers with 19 points, also dishing out eight assists and grabbing five rebounds, while sophomore forward Timea Gardiner added 17 points and seven boards. Oregon State held Nebraska to 31% from the field and 20% from 3, and blocked 10 shots. Jaz Shelley led the Huskers with 10 points and seven rebounds.
This is quite the run for Oregon State, which was picked in the preseason to finish 10th in the Pac-12.
The Beavers, the No. 3 seed in the Albany 1 region, advance to play the winner of Notre Dame-Ole Miss, which tips Monday at 2 p.m. ET.
CORVALLIS — Well, then. Oregon State has opened the fourth by hitting three 3s in the first 2:08 of the period, stretching its lead to 44-29 and forcing Nebraska to call a timeout with 7:15 to play.
This game just got a lot more interesting, because everyone wants to see scoring.
CORVALLIS — Did Oregon State leave its offense in the locker room?
The Beavers have just seven points over the last 16:25 of play. They have a 35-29 lead going into the fourth quarter, but it’s anything but pretty — and their leading scorer, Raegan Beers (10 points, six rebounds) is heading to the bench with four fouls.
Nebraska’s offense hasn’t been much better, having missed six of its last seven looks. In the third quarter, the teams combined for a whopping 15 points. They’re also a combined 6-of-37 from 3.
Is Virginia coach Tony Bennett controlling this game?
It’s always a physical game when No. 3 LSU is playing. Their second-round matchup where they beat the No. 11 Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders 83-56 was no different.
Last year’s SEC freshman of the year, Flau’jae Johnson, shined from every inch of the court with 21 points and four rebounds. She was also a vocal leader keeping her team energized at Pete Maravich Assembly Center, LSU’s home court.
“I’m not going home, bro. I put in so much work, our team put in so much work,” Johnson said on the ABC broadcast after the matchup of what kept her motivated even when the Tigers were down by nine.
Angel Reese came alive in the second half. She checked out of the game with 1:55 on the clock and finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and a block. Aneesah Morrow added 19 points and 13 boards. Head coach Kim Mulkey, who donned a sparkly rainbow-striped suit, gave each player a tight hug as they checked out.
Two Middle Tennessee State players fouled out and the Tigers made 26-of-37 free throws. Senior Savannah Wheeler had 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the effort.
Next up for LSU is the winner between No. 2 UCLA and No. 7 Creighton. This is the Tigers’ 16th Sweet 16 appearance in program history.
The No. 3 LSU Tigers are up by 20 points with a score of 71-51 over No. 11 Middle Tennessee State with 6:08 left in the game. The Blue Rebels have had two starters foul out and the Tigers have made 23 of 30 free throw attempts. Hailey Van Lith finally scored at 7:16 in the fourth quarter, and it was two free throws.
CORVALLIS — The good news for Oregon State, which has a 28-21 halftime lead over sixth-seeded Nebraska: The Beavers have 12 assists on 12 made baskets, a stat any coach would love.
The bad news: The Beavers didn’t score for the final 6:25 of the half, missing their last seven looks and turning the ball over four times. Yikes.
Part of that is surely because Timea Gardiner, the Pac-12 sixth player of the year, was stuck on the bench in foul trouble after scoring eight quick points in the first quarter. But if Oregon State is going to book a trip to the Sweet 16, its first since 2019, the Beavers will have to find offense sooner rather than later.
Meanwhile, Nebraska has hit just one 3, and is 1-for-9 (11%) from deep. That has to change if the Huskers want to take control of the game.
No. 3 LSU woke up in the second half and now leads No. 11 Middle Tennessee State 59-49 after three quarters, outscoring their opponent 27-13 in the period.
Flau’jae Johnson has 19 points as she’s powered the Tigers back in front. Angel Reese found her groove and has 14 points, including eight this quarter, and 10 rebounds. They have 18 points off turnovers.
For MTSU, fifth year senior Savannah Wheeler has 17 points and seven rebounds.
No. 3 LSU clawed its way back to the lead over No. 11 Middle Tennessee State.
In a physical game, Mikaylah Williams made a free throw to tie the score at 41. Then, Flau’jae Johnson put the Tigers up by one with a shot from the charity stripe of her own with 5:24 left in the third quarter.
CORVALLIS — It’s another packed house in Gill Coliseum as the third-seeded Oregon State Beavers take on sixth-seeded Nebraska. Both these teams can get hot from beyond the arc — does this turn into a perimeter shooting contest? Or is it a battle of the bigs in OSU sophomore All-American Raegan Beers (17.8 points, 10.4 rebounds) and Nebraska junior Alexis Markowski (15.9 points, 10.6 rebounds)?
If it’s option two, Beers has the early advantage with six points in seven minutes, giving Oregon State a 19-11 lead at the end of the first quarter. – Lindsay Schnell
The No. 5 Colorado Buffaloes women did something the men couldn’t do. The team beat the No. 4 Kansas State Wildcats 63-50 in the second round to advance to the Sweet 16.
Their 13-point lead in the end was the Buffaloes’ largest margin of the matchup. They had 17 steals and 19 points off of turnovers. Senior guard Maddie Nolan had 11 points and senior forward Quay Miller added 10, with her father, former Washington State star Eddie Ja’Quay Miller, in attendance.
Wildcats senior guard Gabby Gregory was crying as she checked out of the game with 17.8 seconds left on the clock and hugged each teammate and coach on the bench. She led Kansas State with 12 points and had five rebounds in her college finale.
The Buffaloes will either face Caitlin Clark and No. 1 Iowa or No. 8 West Virginia in their second straight Sweet 16 appearance.
The No. 11 MTSU Blue Raiders sustained their lead through the end of the second quarter. They go into the halftime break up 36-32 over the No. 3 LSU Tigers.
Freshman guard Mikaylah Williams gave the Tigers a glimpse of momentum before the buzzer with a jumper. Star forward Angel Reese only has six points and missed three consecutive shots in the final two minutes of the period.
More: If LSU keeps playing like this, the Tigers will be toast, not a title team
LSU’s 12 points is the fewest amount in the second quarter they’ve scored this season. They have three players with two fouls, including starter Aneesah Morrow.
For MTSU, fifth-year senior Savannah Wheeler has 10 points, five assists and five rebounds. She’s held LSU’s graduate student guard Hailey Van Lith scoreless. The Louisville transfer averages 12.1 points per game.
The No. 11 MTSU Blue Raiders have pounced on the No. 3 LSU Tigers and own their first lead of the second-round matchup. Senior point guard Savannah Wheeler made a layup with 4:54 left in the second quarter to go up 27-26. She has 10 points in the game so far as the Blue Raiders have gone on a 14-2 run.
Savannah Wheeler is a fifth-year senior guard for Middle Tennessee State. She had 22 points in the Blue Raiders’ first-round upset over Louisville. During this second-round matchup against LSU, she’s guarding Hailey Van Lith and has held her scoreless through a quarter and a half. Wheeler averages 17.4 points per game this season as Middle Tennessee State finished first in Conference USA. She started her basketball career at Marshall and joined the Blue Raiders ahead of last season.
Everyone knows LSU stands for Louisiana State University, but some may not be as familiar with the acronym for its second-round March Madness opponent. We’ve got you covered.
MTSU stands for Middle Tennessee State University.
We don’t have the “scathing” Washington Post story yet, and No. 3 LSU tipped off against No. 11 Middle Tennessee State on Sunday afternoon in a second-round game.
The Tigers jumped out to a 12-7 lead early as head coach Kim Mulkey directed from the sidelines in a rainbow striped suit. Flau’jae Johnson has four points early. The game is on ABC.
After the first quarter, the score was 20-15 LSU. Aneesah Morrow has seven points, Flau’jae has six and Angel Reese has two.
Yes, that’s legal.
Kansas State junior guard Serena Sundell put her team up with a wacky play in the final seconds of the first half against Colorado. On an inbound, she bounced the ball off Colorado’s Brianna McLeod’s back, stepped onto the court, grabbed the ball and tossed it in for a layup.
The shot put the No. 4 Wildcats up 35-33 over the No. 5 Buffaloes at the half.
Sundell leads Kansas State with 11 points while graduate guard Maddie Nolan has nine for Colorado in the back-and-forth second round matchup.
Dominated. Ousted. Bulldozed. Smoked. Thrashed. Bullied. Smacked. Take your pick.
That’s what No. 1 South Carolina did to No. 8 North Carolina when they won 88-41 in a second round matchup. After 59 straight wins at Colonial Life Arena, South Carolina captured their 10th straight Sweet 16 appearance.
MiLaysia Fulwiley notched 20 points and nine rebounds. The freshman led the Gamecocks bench, which scored a total of 51 points.
Senior center Kamilla Cardoso returned from her one-game suspension for fighting in the SEC championship and led the starting lineup with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
North Carolina was led with 12 points from senior guard Alyssa Ustby. All-ACC senior guard Deja Kelly had seven points in the finale of her college career. The Tar Heels shot a lowly 15-of-63 (23.8 percent) from the field.
Dawn Staley’s squad will face the winner between No. 4 Indiana and No. 5 Oklahoma in the Sweet 16.
MiLaysia Fulwiley has 16 points and is 4 of 5 in three-point shots as No. 1 South Carolina is up 70-34 over the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels after the third quarter. Her lone miss came with two minutes left in the period.
There are four players in double figures with one quarter to go — three of them off the bench.
North Carolina is shooting a lowly 13-of-50 (.26) from the field and has only made five of 10 free throws.
Tammy Brown is busy this weekend.
She is watching both of her daughters play in the NCAA tournament. On Sunday, she was at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia to cheer on North Carolina’s sophomore guard/forward Teonni Key in her second round matchup against South Carolina. She was shown on the ABC broadcast wearing a blue jersey.
Her other daughter is Tamari Key, a sixth-year senior center for the Tennessee Lady Vols. Brown was in attendance at Tamari’s game on Saturday in Raleigh.
Although North Carolina is down by 35 points to the Gamecocks and Teonni’s season is likely over, Brown still has reason to cheer. Tamari faces NC State in a second round game on Monday.
We finally have another upset in the women’s NCAA tournament.
The No. 7 Duke Blue Devils outlasted the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes to capture the 75-63 win. They advance to their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2018.
More: Duke upsets Ohio State in women’s March Madness, advances to NCAA Tournament Sweet 16
Head coach Kara Lawson’s team overcame a 16-point lead in the first half. Junior guard Reigan Richardson finished with 28 points and seven rebounds
Ohio State’s Jacy Sheldon finishes her college career with 13 points and four assists. Sophomore forward Cotie McMahon led the Buckeyes with 27 points.
Duke overpowered the Buckeyes at the rim, outrebounding them 38 to 20 and only allowing Ohio State one of 11 three-point shots. Duke will play the winner of No. 3 Connecticut vs. No. 6 Syracuse in the Sweet 16.
There’s no mercy rule in college basketball, but if there was, it would appear in a game like this.
The No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks are thrashing the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels 56-19 at halftime in their second round matchup. The 37-point lead is their second largest margin at the break in the school’s tournament history, per the ABC broadcast.
The Gamecocks have 32 points from bench, have made eight of 10 three-point buckets and are outrebounding the Tar Heels 24-14. Freshmen Tessa Johnson and Milaysia Fulwiley each have 11 points and sophomore Chloe Kitts has added 10, all from off the bench.
This game is so lopsided that even South Carolina’s bench players are outscoring UNC. The Gamecocks’ bench has scored 22 points with minutes left in the first half, and the Tar Heels have 14 points total. North Carolina’s bench accounts for none of those points. The score is 56-14.
Te-Hina Paopao has arrived.
The senior guard got her first points of the game, a three-point shot with 4:50 on the clock in the second quarter. The bucket put South Carolina up 41-10 over North Carolina in a second round matchup She also has three assists so far.
The Samoan guard transferred from Oregon last offseason and has helped boost the Gamecocks to another undefeated season. Read more.
The No. 7 Duke Blue Devils have their first lead of the game after the third quarter and are up 51-50 over the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes. Junior guard Reigan Richardson is keeping her team alive with 18 points and made a layup that tied the game at 47. Duke is outrebounding Ohio State 28 to 15.
The No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks have a double-digit lead over the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels and are up 28-8 after the first quarter.
Tessa Johnson made back-to-back threes to give South Carolina a 10-point and then a 13-point lead around the two-minute mark. It was the freshman’s first career points in the NCAA tournament.
The Gamecocks went on a 15-0 run to end the period and it’s the 33rd time this season they have held an opponent to single digits in the first period.
Besides Johnson’s six points, senior center Kamilla Cardoso also has six points after missing the first-round game. Milaysia Fulwiley added five points and two steals to keep the momentum all on South Carolina’s side.
Kamilla Cardoso has six of South Carolina’s seven points as the No. 1 Gamecocks have an early 7-4 lead over the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels.
Ashlyn Watkins made a free throw for the first point of the game and then the senior center, who missed the first round game for fighting in the SEC championship, took over.
The game is on ABC.
Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina’s best player, is back and in the starting lineup for the top-seeded Gamecocks’ second-round game against North Carolina.
More: Kamilla Cardoso returns for South Carolina in March Madness against North Carolina
Cardoso missed South Carolina’s first-round game after being ejected for fighting near the end of the SEC Conference tournament championship against LSU. That carried an automatic one-game suspension.
Cardoso’s absence didn’t hurt the Gamecocks, who rolled over Presbyterian 91-39.
No. 2 Ohio State was up by as many as 16 points, but No. 7 Duke went on a 12-2 run to bring the game within two plays.
Duke junior guard Reigan Richardson has 12 points while sophomore forward Cotie Mcmahon has 14 points for Ohio State.
The Blue Devils are outrebounding the Buckeyes 18 to 11.
Ohio State grad student guard Jacy Sheldon is off to a hot start again, with seven points, three assists and two boards through the first half against Duke. This will be the final home game for the Ohio native, whose little sister Emmy has inspired the team during her time there.
During Friday’s first-round win over Maine, Sheldon surpassed 2,000 points for her career with a layup she converted into a three-point play. She is the eighth Ohio State player to reach that milestone.
No one in the gym was more excited about it than Emmy.
Two powerhouses are battling in the second round. The No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes lead the No. 7 Duke Blue Devils 14-8 with 4:41 on the clock in the first quarter. Sophomore forward Cotie McMahon has six points early for the Buckeyes. Watch the game on ESPN.
The selection committee isn’t above stirring the pot.
While that second-round reunion between Hailey Van Lith and Louisville won’t happen, there is another player facing her old school Sunday. Celeste Taylor spent the last two seasons at Duke spent the last two seasons at Duke before transferring to Ohio State for her fifth, COVID year.
And who are the second-seeded Buckeyes playing Sunday? You got it, the Blue Devils.
“Obviously Celeste played for Duke, and we’re all very excited to play Celeste and Ohio State,” Duke’s Jadyn Donovan said Saturday. “(But) no one is really Celeste, Celeste, Celeste. It’s more we want to get to the Sweet 16 and beat Ohio State.”
Taylor will have a lot to say about that, given she’s one of the best defensive players in the country. She was the ACC defensive player of the year last year when she was at Duke and she picked up that honor in the Big Ten this season.
“She just competes at a really high level. Practice, games — she takes pride in it and is competitive because she wants to win,” Duke coach Kara Lawson said. “I think that mindset is what allows her to be really good on that end.” – Nancy Armour
Dawn Staley has worn a colorful beaded necklace all season as the South Carolina Gamecocks went undefeated yet again. The jewelry is from when she visited a local children’s hospital last summer. The coach befriended a patient named Blakely and they made matching necklaces.
Staley appeared Saturday on SportsCenter and she shared the story behind the necklace. She then got a special video message from Blakely presenting the coach with another beaded necklace.
“Hey Coach Staley, I made you another necklace,” Blakely said. “I hope you like it. Good luck on your game.”
The Gamecocks face North Carolina in the second round in the tournament on Sunday, tipping off at 1 p.m. ET on ABC.
Here is the women’s schedule:
First round: March 22-23
Second round: March 24-25
Sweet 16: March 29-30
Elite Eight: March 31-April 1
Final Four: Friday, April 5 at 7:30 and 9 p.m. ET on ESPN
NCAA championship game: Sunday, April 7 at 3 p.m. ET on ABC
A quick reminder that like in 2023, the women’s tournament will have two “super” regionals, meaning there will be four Sweet 16 and two Elite Eight games at each site. This change was made in an effort to draw more fans, and worked well last year. Given the star power in the game this season — Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Paige Bueckers — you can expect more of the same.
First round
- Dates: March 22-23
- Venues and locations: Colonial Life Arena (Columbia, S.C.); Moody Center (Austin, Texas); Value City Arena (Columbus, Ohio); Maples Pavilion (Stanford, Calif.); Pete Maravich Assembly Center (Baton Rouge, La.); Gill Coliseum (Corvallis, Ore.); Cassell Coliseum (Blacksburg, Va.); Bramlage Coliseum (Manhattan, Kan).; Carver-Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City, Iowa); Galen Center (Los Angeles, Calif.); Purcell Pavilion (South Bend, Ind.); Pauley Pavilion (Los Angeles, Calif.); Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.), Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, N.C.); Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (Bloomington, Ind.); McCarthey Athletic Center (Spokane, Wash).
Second round
- Dates: March 24-25
- Venues and locations: Colonial Life Arena (Columbia, S.C.); Moody Center (Austin, Texas); Value City Arena (Columbus, Ohio); Maples Pavilion (Stanford, Calif.); Pete Maravich Assembly Center (Baton Rouge, La.); Gill Coliseum (Corvallis, Ore.); Cassell Coliseum (Blacksburg, Va.); Bramlage Coliseum (Manhattan, Kan).; Carver-Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City, Iowa); Galen Center (Los Angeles, Calif.); Purcell Pavilion (South Bend, Ind.); Pauley Pavilion (Los Angeles, Calif.); Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.), Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, N.C.); Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (Bloomington, Ind.); McCarthey Athletic Center (Spokane, Wash).
| Round | Locations | Venues | Dates |
| 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 |
So, you’re going to watch women’s March Madness. Is this your first time? If so, welcome. The women’s game is growing at a rapid rate, and we’re happy to have you here. You’ve picked a great time to join the party, given the star power of players like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, who are playing in their last March Madness. But don’t worry, there’s plenty of young superstars in the game too, from JuJu Watkins (Southern Cal) to Hannah Hidalgo (Notre Dame)to Madison Booker (Texas) and a whole host of others.
Filling out men’s brackets has always been par for the course but this year, nearly every bracket competition has seen a significant uptick in people filling out women’s brackets. There’s no question the women’s tournament is going to shine this year — maybe even outshine the men’s — and we’re here to help you enjoy it. So let’s talk semantics, so you can have the best women’s tournament viewing experience possible. — Lindsay Schnell
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.
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.
Freshman guard Hannah Hidalgo led the Fighting Irish to a 55-51 win over the North Carolina State Wolfpack in the ACC championship game to secure Notre Dame an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. Hidalgo, who scored 22 points, six rebounds, six assist and two steals in the win, was named the 2024 ACC Tournament MVP and named to the All-Tournament First Team.
The ACC tournament accolades are just the tip of the iceberg for Hidalgo, whose stellar freshman campaign has also earned her national recognition. Here’s everything to know about the freshman standout.
Stanford has crossed the brink of history this year. The Cardinal was the runner-up in the Pac-12 championship after a season during which head coach Tara VanDerveer passed Mike Krzyzewski for most wins in college basketball.
The team captured their fourth consecutive regular-season conference title with a boost from Cameron Brink. The senior forward, who’s listed as 6-4, is averaging a double-double and is a player to watch as Stanford seeks to make a run in the NCAA tournament. Brink, who won the 2021 national championship with the Cardinal, was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year after dominating on both ends of the court all season.
Besides her prowess on the hardwood, Brink, known for her physical play and signature blond braids, has a solid NIL portfolio and family ties to NBA star Stephen Curry. Here is what you need to know about Stanford star Cameron Brink.
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