Best women's basketball games in March Madness second round: Schedule, players to watch

USA Today

23-03-2025

Best women's basketball games in March Madness second round: Schedule, players to watch
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Five players to watch during March Madness
USA Today's Meghan Hall breaks down five players in the WNCAA March Madness Tournament we need to be paying more attention to.
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Just like that, the field of 68-teams in the 2025 women's NCAA Tournament has been cut to 32 teams.
Second-round action will tip off on Sunday following a strong showing in the first round, which saw a record six teams score 100-plus points in the opening round of March Madness — No. 1 South Carolina, No. 1 Texas, No. 2 UConn, No. 3 Notre Dame, No. 3 LSU and No. 5 Tennessee. Only four teams upset their higher-seeded opponents and advanced to the second round — No. 9 Mississippi State, No. 9 Indiana, No. 10 Oregon and No. 10 SDSU.
On the menu for the second round is a reunion between Hailey Van Lith and Louisville when the TCU Horned Frogs face off against the Cardinals (6 p.m., ESPN), while a Final Four-caliber matchup between No. 3 LSU and No. 6 Florida State will go down on Monday.
Here's everything you need to know about the 2025 women's NCAA Tournament, including a breakdown of each region, the best second-round games and players to watch. Here's a printable bracket.
SPOKANE REGION 1
All times Eastern.
No. 4 Baylor vs. No. 5 Ole Miss | Sunday, 4 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 8 Richmond | Sunday, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 2 NC State vs. No. 7 Michigan State | Monday, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 3 LSU vs. No. 6 Florida State | Monday, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 1 overall seed UCLA opened the NCAA Tournament by setting a program record for the largest margin of victory in March Madness history and advance to face No. 8 Richmond, who made history in their own right by securing their first NCAA Tournament win. No. 3 LSU set new program record for points scored in an NCAA tournament game with a 103-48 win over No. 14 San Diego State. There were question marks surrounding Flau'Jae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow heading into the tournament as the two were spotted wearing walking boots during the Selection Sunday broadcast, but the stars combined for 34 points in the dominant victory. They will have one of their toughest test of the season against No. 6 Florida State.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: UCLA C Lauren Betts (19.4 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 2.8 apg), who was dominant in the paint with 14 points, six blocks, four assists, three blocks and one steal; NC State G Saniya Rivers (11.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 3.6 apg), who recorded a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds; LSU G Flau'Jae Johnson (18.9 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.6 spg), who didn't appear to miss a step with 22 points in her return; Florida State G Ta'Niya Latson (24.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 4.7 apg), who led the Seminoles to their first tourney win since 2019 with 28 points; and Richmond F Maggie Doogan (16.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 3.7 apg), who had 30 points, 15 rebounds and six assists in the Spiders' first March Madness win. BEST SECOND-ROUND GAME: No. 3 LSU vs. No. 6 Florida State: Two of the highest scoring teams in the nation will meet up for a second-round matchup that could've easily been a Final Four game. Florida State has Ta'Niya Latson, the top scorer in the nation (24.9 ppg), on their side, while LSU has the top rebounder in the nation in Aneesah Morrow (13.8 rpg). Morrow also leads the nation in double-doubles (28).
BIRMINGHAM REGION 2
No. 1 South Carolina made a statement with a 60-point opening round victory over No. 16 Tennessee Tech after being snubbed for the No. 1 overall seed. The Gamecocks' depth was on full display, with its high-scoring bench dropping 66 points in the first round win, the most in NCAA Tournament history. South Carolina wasn't the only team in the region to win big. No. 2 Duke held No. 15 Lehigh to the second-lowest point total in NCAA women's Tournament history in a 86-25 win. Every higher-seed, however, did not walk away unscathed. No. 7 Vanderbilt was sent packing following an upset by No. 10 Oregon. Can the Ducks keep dancing? They last advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2021.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Duke G Oluchi Okananwa (10.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.8 spg), the ACC Tournament MVP had a team-high 15 points; South Carolina F Joyce Edwards (13.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.1 spg), who had 22 points off the bench in her first career NCAA Tournament game; Oregon G Deja Kelly (11.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.4 apg), who had a team-high 20 points in the Ducks' upset win over Vanderbilt in overtime; North Carolina G Lexi Donarski (10.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.4 apg), who scored 17 points and knocked down five 3-pointers in the third quarter; and Alabama G Aaliyah Nye (15.1 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.3 apg), who has the Crimson Tide one win away from its first Sweet 16 appearance since 1998 after dropping 23 points in the first round.
BEST SECOND-ROUND GAME: No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 9 Indiana: Sunday's second-round matchup marks a rematch of the 2024 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16, where the Gamecocks narrowly defeated the Hoosiers 79-75 following Indiana's fourth-quarter surge. It also marks the reunion of Te-Hina Paopao and Sydney Parrish, who played at Oregon before transferring to South Carolina and Indiana, respectively.
BIRMINGHAM REGION 3
No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 6 Michigan | Sunday, 1 p.m. (ABC)
No. 2 TCU vs. No. 7 Louisville | Sunday, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 4 Ohio State vs. No. 5 Tennessee | Sunday, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 1 Texas vs. No. 8 Illinois | Monday, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 1 Texas breezed through the first round following a dominant performance from Madison Booker, the SEC's Player of the Year. No. 2 TCU also cruised to its first NCAA Tournament win in 19 years. No. 3 Notre Dame entered the NCAA Tournament losing three of its last five games, but the Fighting Irish corrected course with a dominant first-round win, marking the second time Notre Dame has scored 100 points in a March Madness game. However, it wasn't all good for Notre Dame. Olivia Miles' night ended early due to an ankle injury and her status is questionable.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: TCU G Hailey Van Lith (17.7 ppg, 5.4 apg, 4.3 rpg), who broke TCU's single-season assist record Friday with her 188th of the season; Notre Dame G Sonia Citron (14.2 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 2.8 apg), who recorded her fourth 20-plus point NCAA Tournament game in her career; Tennessee G Talaysia Cooper (16.8 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 3.0 spg), who had three of the Volunteers' record 16 3-pointers; Michigan G Jordan Hobbs (13.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.6 apg), who tied Michigan's March Madness scoring record with a career-high 28 points; and Texas F Madison Booker (15.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 2.8 apg), who put up a 20-point, 14-rebounds double-double on Saturday.
BEST SECOND-ROUND GAME: No. 2 TCU vs. No. 7 Louisville: Hailey Van Lith is set to face off against her former team, Louisville. Although Van Lith has downplayed the reunion, all eyes will be on the matchup. TCU is 20-0 at home this season and enters Sunday's matchup on an eleven game win streak. The Horned Frog's first Sweet 16 appearance is at stake. Meanwhile, Louisville is trying to keep the good times rolling after losing three of their last five games to end the season.
'IT IS WHAT IT IS': TCU's Hailey Van Lith downplays March Madness reunion with Louisville
SPOKANE REGION 4
No. 4 Kentucky vs. No. 5 Kansas State | Sunday, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 6 Iowa | Monday, 4 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 2 UConn vs. No. 10 SDSU | Monday, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 1 USC vs. No. 9 Mississippi State | Monday, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Down goes another No. 7 seed! No. 10 South Dakota State defeated No. 7 Oklahoma State to set up a second-round showdown with UConn. The Huskies are firing on all cylinders and tied the seventh largest margin of victory in women's March Madness history with a 103-34 win over No. 15 Arkansas State. The scary part is that Paige Bueckers only had 11 points in that win, so look for her to get going against SDSU. No. 1 USC and No. 5 Kansas State also won big, and had a 46 and 44 point margin of victory, respectively. Something to monitor — USC's JuJu Watkins injuries. She rolled her ankle and landed awkwardly on her wrist in the win.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Kansas State C Ayoka Lee (15.6 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 2.1 bpg), who returned to the Wildcats lineup in the first round after being sidelined since Feb. 22 with foot injuries; Kentucky G Georgia Amoore (19.6 ppt, 6.9 apg, 1.0 spg), who tied Kentucky's March Madness scoring record (34 points) in the first round; UConn G Azzi Fudd (12.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.6 apg), who tied her career high in steals (6) and had a career-high seven assists in her first NCAA Tournament game in two years; USC G Kennedy Smith (9.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.1 apg), who will look to bounce back in a major way after going 0-of-5 from the field and 0-of-2 from three in the first round; and Oklahoma F Raegan Beers (17.5 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 1.1 apg), who had 18 of Oklahoma's 72 rebounds, a single game NCAA Tournament record.
BEST SECOND-ROUND GAME: No. 4 Kentucky vs. No. 3 Kansas State: Kentucky narrowly avoided an upset by No. 13 Liberty, despite Georgia Amoore's 34-point performance. Kentucky's path to its first Final Four in program history isn't going to get any easier against a Kansas State team that soundly defeated No. 12 Fairfield following the return of star center Ayoka Lee, who put up a double-double in her first game in nearly a month. May the best Wildcat win.
2025 women's NCAA Tournament schedule
Second round: March 23-24
March 23-24 Sweet 16: March 28-29
March 28-29 Elite Eight: March 30-31
March 30-31 Final Four: Friday, April 4, 7:00 and 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Friday, April 4, 7:00 and 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) NCAA championship game: Sunday, April 6, 3 p.m. ET (ABC)
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