March is always an exciting time of year for sports fans because the annual NCAA March Madness tournaments begin. The first Men’s NCAA March Madness tournament was held in 1939 and the first Women’s NCAA March Madness tournament was held in 1982. March Madness is one of the biggest events in the sports world and this tournament dominates media coverage during the month of March. The men’s tournament has always received the most media coverage, but fortunately, in recent years, the women’s tournament has received a lot more attention. The NCAA Division I women’s basketball tournament is one of the many exciting events in the world of women’s sports.
The 43rd edition of the women’s tournament began on March 19, 2025 starting with a total of 68 teams. Unlike the men’s tournament that is split into four sites, the women’s tournament only has two. The women’s tournament used to have four, but due to low attendance, the NCAA consolidated the women’s tournament into two sites which this year are Birmingham, Alabama and Spokane, Washington. The tournament has progressed over the past couple of weeks, and as of when this article was written, the tournament has advanced on to the Sweet 16. The Sweet 16 games take place Friday, March 28th, and Saturday, March 29th. The teams that are in the Sweet 16 in the Spokane site are UCLA, Ole Miss, LSU, NC State, Southern California, Kansas St., Oklahoma, and UConn. The teams playing in the Sweet 16 games at the Birmingham site are South Carolina, Maryland, North Carolina, Duke, Texas, Tennessee, Notre Dame, and TCU.
At the Birmingham site, after beating Maryland on Friday, March 28 in a close game 71-67, South Carolina will be moving on to play Duke in the Elite 8. Duke beat North Carolina 47-38 so Duke and South Carolina will face off on Sunday, March 30th at 1:00pm. South Carolina will be working to defend their 2024 title.
Also at Birmingham on Saturday, March 29th, Notre Dame and TCU will be playing each other at 1:00pm and later that day Texas and Tennessee will be playing one another at 3:30 pm. The winners of these two games will be moving on to play each other on March 31st in the Elite 8.
At the Spokane site, LSU beat NC State 80-73, entering the Elite 8 for the third season in a row. UCLA will be battling Ole Miss on March 28 at 10:00pm. It will be interesting to see whether UCLA or Ole Miss will be competing against LSU in the Elite 8.
Also in Spokane, Washington, Oklahoma will compete against UConn on March 29th at 5:30pm and later that night Southern California will play Kansas St. at 8:00pm. The winners of these two games will determine the final teams in the Elite 8. HHS freshman and UConn fan Abby Anderson remarks, “I hope that UConn wins and will make it to the next round!” HHS Freshman Paige Hutchison shares, “Personally I’m a big USC fan and I’m super sad about Juju Watkins injury but after their performance against Mississippi I think they definitely have a shot to go far!”
After the Elite 8, the winners will move on to compete in the Final Four on April 4th at 7:00pm in Tampa Florida at the Amalie Arena. The winners will advance to the NCAA championship game which will be held on Sunday, April 6th at 3:00pm, also hosted at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Stay tuned to see who will take home the 2025 title!
