March Madness: Spokane 1 region bracket Cinderella, players to watch, schedule, odds and more

Yahoo

17-03-2025

[More region breakdowns: Birmingham 2 | Birmingham 3 | Spokane 4]
The 2025 NCAA women's tournament is just days away. Here's everything you need to know about the Spokane 1 region.
No. 1: UCLA (+500 to win the national title at BetMGM)
No. 2: NC State (+4,000)
No. 3: LSU (+4,000)
Though they earned the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament, the Bruins aren't the betting favorite entering the tournament. Both South Carolina (+260) and UConn (+290) have shorter odds.
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Only one team has been able to beat UCLA this season, and it isn't in this region. The Bruins have been incredibly dominant all year long while claiming the top seed in the tournament. Outside of games against USC, very few teams have even come close to beating them. Iowa came closest last month with a two-point battle in Iowa City.
Lauren Betts is perhaps the best center in the country, averaging 19.6 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. Paired with guard KiKi Rice, who is shooting a clean 50% from the field, the Bruins may be untouchable until Tampa.
Keep an eye on Harvard here, which earned one of the historic three bids from the Ivy League this spring. The Crimson went 24-4 on the season and won both of the Quad 1 games that it played, which is huge considering the quality of the league that they play in. Everything runs through star guard Harmoni Turner, who finished in the top 10 nationally in scoring.
Harvard plays much slower than Michigan State likes to as well, which could be a big advantage for the Crimson. Don't be surprised if the Spartans fall early. If that happens, and Turner stays hot, the Crimson could find themselves on their deepest tournament run ever. This is their first tournament appearance since 2007, and they've only made it out of the first round once.
Don't be surprised if George Mason stuns Florida State early. The Patriots are in the tournament for the first time in school history after rolling through the Atlantic-10 tournament. Zahirah Walton has averaged more than 15 points per game, and she got them to a 27-5 finish while winning 15 of their last 17 games.
UCLA C Lauren Betts
The 6-foot-7 center has been huge for UCLA all season. She's averaged 19.6 points and 9.7 rebounds per game while averaging a Big Ten-best 2.9 blocks per contest. Though the Bruins have more than just Betts at their disposal, everything runs through her.
Harvard G Harmoni Turner
Turner erupted this season at Harvard, and she's a huge reason why the team is in the tournament in the first place. The senior put up 22.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.8 steals per game this season, all of which led the team. If she takes off, the Crimson can make a big run.
Baylor G Darianna Littlepage-Buggs
Littlepage-Buggs averaged a double-double for the Bears this season with 14.3 points and a Big 12-best 10.5 rebounds per game. She hasn't played since Feb. 15 while dealing with a knee injury, but she's expected to return for the tournament this week — which should be a huge boost for the Bears.
No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 16 UC San Diego/No. 16 Southern (Los Angeles, Friday, 10 p.m. PT, ESPN)No. 8 Richmond vs. No. 9 Georgia Tech (Los Angeles, Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPNEWS)No. 5 Ole Miss vs. No. 12 Ball State (Waco, Friday, 6 p.m. ET, ESPNU)No. 4 Baylor vs. No. 13 Grand Canyon (Waco, Friday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU)No. 6 Florida State vs. No. 11 George Mason (Baton Rouge, Saturday, 7:45 p.m,ET, ESPN2)No. 3 LSU vs. No. 14 San Diego State (Baton Rouge, Saturday, 10:15 p.m. ET, ESPN)No. 7 Michigan State vs. No. 10 Harvard (Raleigh, Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET, ESPNEWS)No. 2 NC State vs. No. 15 Vermont (Raleigh, Saturday, 2 p.m. ET, ESPN)
This one is simple. UCLA should absolutely win the region and punch its first-ever ticket to a Final Four. The Bruins have been running the show in the Big Ten all year long, and they knocked off South Carolina months ago. Why would that stop now?