Former perennial contender Stanford basketball's 36-season NCAA tournament streak are likely over, as the unranked Cardinal fell out of the ACC tournament in the first round on Wednesday.

No. 14-seed Clemson delivered the 63-46 tournament-ending blow to No. 11-seed Stanford, who shot just 31.5% from the field to score their fewest points of the season.

"We’re not going to let this one game define us or who we are," said head coach Kate Paye. "We’re hopeful we get to continue to play, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to be here today."

March Madness chances dim with Stanford loss

While the NCAA basketball committee will have the final say on March 16th's Selection Sunday, the loss is a statistical death knell for Stanford's March Madness hopes, as the Cardinal drops to an underwhelming 16-14 record with Wednesday's loss.

Stanford has featured in every edition of the NCAA tournament since failing to advance in the 1986/87 season, racking up three national championships and 15 Final Four berths in that time.

The Cardinal holds the second-longest streak of appearances in the Big Dance, trailing only eight-time champion Tennessee, who have featured in every one of the NCAA's 42 tournaments.

The dramatic drop-off comes during a season of significant change for the Cardinal, who saw star Cameron Brink graduate into the WNBA, legendary head coach Tara VanDerveer retire after 38 seasons at the helm, and standout forward Kiki Iriafen transfer to USC last spring.

Even more, the dissolution of the Pac-12 had Stanford joining the ACC in last summer's conference realignment fray.

Rebuilds shape NCAA as top teams become 2024/25 underdogs

While the Cardinal experienced arguably the biggest upheaval since last season, they're far from the only top NCAA program enduring a rebuilding era.

After losing a handful of 2023/24 standouts, Stanford’s former Pac-12 foe Oregon State — who now competes in the West Coast Conference — faces slim national prospects after going unranked all season despite last year’s Elite Eight finish.

Similarly, back-to-back Final Four contenders Iowa also finds itself on shaky ground, taking the No. 11 seed in the steep Big Ten tournament as they strive to rebuild in the post-Caitlin Clark era.

All in all, the 2024/25 NCAA bracket will likely look a little different than in years past, as former March Madness shoo-ins struggle to find their footing amid graduating stars, heightened transfer portal activity, and conference realignment growing pains.

Iowa eyes bracket-busting March Madness run

Of all the rebuilding programs, Iowa is potentially the team most poised to make some noise during March Madness, with the Hawkeyes snagging some key ranked wins already this season — including last month’s upset of No. 2 USC.

With Clark’s alma mater aiming to bust brackets in the Big Dance, the Hawkeyes will use Wednesday's big 81-54 win over No. 14-seed Wisconsin to fuel them in Thursday's second round of the Big Ten tournament, where they'll face No. 6-seed Michigan State.

Earlier this season, Iowa fell in a slim 68-66 December loss to MSU, and the teams enter Thursday's matchup with nearly identical season records.

How to watch Thursday's NCAA conference tournament games

The unranked Hawkeyes will tip off against the No. 24-ranked Spartans at 9 PM ET. Live coverage will air on Fox Sports.

The league's top first- and second-year talent takes center stage on Tuesday, when young 2025 WNBA All-Stars battle it out for a spot above the playoff line.

Indianapolis-bound Washington Mystics rookies Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen are currently hosting fellow All-Star reserve and WNBA sophomore Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky, with both teams desperate to ascend the WNBA standings.

"She's just more present and confident, and they're playing through her," Mystics head coach Sydney Johnson said of Reese and her recent record rebounding.

Tuesday's slate features four teams aiming to curb recent skids before the 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend takes over the league:

• No. 12 Chicago Sky vs. No. 9 Washington Mystics, 11:30 AM ET (WNBA League Pass): The Mystics hope to break out of ninth place against a struggling Sky, though Chicago's looking up after going toe-to-toe with the league-leading Minnesota Lynx on Sunday.

• No. 8 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 3 New York Liberty, 8 PM ET (ESPN): Las Vegas follows their up-and-down form into a matchup with recent rivals New York, while the lagging Liberty manage injured starters and a string of tough losses.

All-Stars step up in the biggest moments, and every move matters as the 2025 WNBA season inches closer to its mid-point.

The 2025 All-Star Game draft pool is complete, as the WNBA dropped the 12-player reserves list on Sunday to round out the group of 22 league standouts who'll battle in Indianapolis later this month.

Washington rookie phenoms Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen received their first career nods, making the Mystics the first WNBA team in 26 years to see two league debutants become All-Stars.

The Washington duo aren't the only first-timers to make Sunday's All-Star cut, with both Seattle's Gabby Williams and Golden State's Kayla Thornton earning spots on the 2025 reserves list.

All-Star captains Napheesa Collier (Minnesota) and Caitlin Clark (Indiana) will also now have access to Skylar Diggins (Seattle), Rhyne Howard (Atlanta), Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana), Kelsey Plum (LA), Angel Reese (Chicago), Alyssa Thomas (Phoenix), Courtney Williams (Minnesota), and Jackie Young (Las Vegas) alongside the previously announced starters to build out their teams.

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Coaches catch heat for All-Star decisions

While a mix of fans, players, and media members vote to determine the All-Star Game starters, WNBA head coaches choose the reserves — and some players weren't exactly happy with this year's outcome.

"Whatever about me…. But taking 2, and NOT including the best player from a below 500 team is crazy," LA forward Dearica Hamby posted on Sunday, blasting the coaches for not including Mystics guard Brittney Sykes.

"I don't know why only [Collier] and [Williams] are All-Stars when you have the best team in the league by a few games," Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve, whose Lynx currently lead the WNBA by a large 4.5-game margin, told reporters. "There are teams that are below us in the standings by a lot that have three All-Stars."

Reeve is referencing No. 4 Seattle and No. 7 Indiana, who lead the charge with a trio of All-Stars each.

While six teams, including Minnesota, each boast two players in the pool, four — Chicago, Dallas, Golden State, and LA — will be repped by one player at the 2025 All-Star Game.

With just two wins on the season, the last-place Connecticut Sun is the only WNBA team to not field an All-Star this year.

How to watch the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game draft

Clark and Collier will draft their 2025 WNBA All-Star Game teams during Tuesday's broadcast of WNBA Countdown, airing at 7 PM ET on ESPN.

Another round of upsets tore through the WNBA over the long weekend, with the youth-powered No. 11 Dallas Wings grabbing headlines behind Thursday's 98-89 win over the No. 2 Phoenix Mercury.

With injured Dallas stars DiJonai Carrington and Arike Ogunbowale forced to watch from the sidelines, four Wings rookies started Thursday's matchup — the most first-year starters on any WNBA team since 2000.

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The team's young core stepped up and shined, with Aziaha James, Paige Bueckers, and JJ Quinerly combining for 68 points to outlast Phoenix forward Kahleah Copper's game-leading 33-point performance.

"The rookies were fantastic," Copper said afterwards. "They came out with no fear, as you should. They played free, they played aggressive, and they showed what they could do."

While the Mercury's two-game losing streak has yet to impact their spot in the current WNBA standings, it did widen the gap at the top of the table.

Phoenix's stumble gave No. 1 Minnesota a 4.5-game lead over the field, with the Lynx ending the weekend on a 3-0 run to avenge last Tuesday's WNBA Commissioner's Cup loss.

Also climbing the ranks was the No. 4 Seattle Storm, who downed both No. 5 Atlanta and No. 3 New York to pull within a half-game of the skidding Liberty.

As for the 2025 Commissioner's Cup champs, No. 7 Indiana opened their long weekend slate with a massive 81-54 Thursday win against No. 8 Las Vegas — the Fever's first victory over the Aces since 2019 — before narrowly falling 89-87 to the No. 10 LA Sparks on Saturday.

How to watch the Dallas Wings vs. Phoenix Mercury WNBA game

After falling on the road to Dallas last Thursday, Phoenix will hope Monday's home-court advantage will snap their two-loss streak as they try their luck against Wings again at 10 PM ET.

The rematch will air live on WNBA League Pass.

Basketball's biggest stars aren't holding back on criticizing the league's CBA proposal after the WNBA Player's Association (WNBPA) rejected last week's opening offer.

With the parties set to engage in CBA negotiations during next week's 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend, Phoenix Mercury forward and WNBPA representative Satou Sabally called the league's initial offer "a slap in the face."

Also weighing in was WNBPA vice president and New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart, who echoed Sabally's sentiment by confirming her frustration with the league to reporters.

"Anytime you go back-and-forth, you're not expecting to hear that 'yes' on the first [proposal], but you're expecting to have a conversation," she added. "They kind of just ignored everything we said."

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The WNBA's current CBA expires at the end of this season, with players upping their demands in light of the league's recent popularity boom and planned expansion.

"It's been made clear that [there's] this perception that the players don't understand the business," WNBPA president and Seattle forward Nneka Ogwumike told reporters on Saturday. "We want to have a growing portion of the revenue share. We want this league to be exactly what it is today and more. So I'm hoping that something positive [and] progressive yields from this meeting that we'll have in Indy."

The WNBPA will enter face-to-face CBA negotiations with the WNBA in Indianapolis later this month, with the union tapping Nobel Prize-winning economist Claudia Goldin to assist in what Stewart predicts will be a "spicy" meeting.