Texas lifted its first-ever SEC women's basketball tournament trophy on Sunday, as the No. 4 Longhorns topped No. 3 South Carolina 78-61 to avenge last year's conference championship loss.
Texas laid a strong foundation for the upset victory with a 27-point first quarter, jumping out to an early 14-0 lead behind five forced turnovers plus tournament MVP Madison Booker's hot hand.
"I had some kids that were here on a mission," Longhorns head coach Vic Schaefer said postgame. "I just felt like my group was ready. They have really responded in the last three weeks and are in a different zone right now."
Sunday's win should secure Texas a top-seeded entry into the 2025/26 NCAA women's basketball tournament, while the Gamecocks must now await their fate in this weekend's Selection Sunday bracket reveal.
The 17-point loss marks South Carolina's worst tournament loss since 2011, snapping the program's three-year title-winning streak.
"Our team knows we didn't play our best basketball, not nearly what we're capable of doing," said head coach Dawn Staley.
That said, Staley isn't ruling out another NCAA trophy.
"I told them that the last time we lost in this situation, we won the national championship," the Gamecocks sideline leader noted, referencing South Carolina's 2022 NCAA tournament run. "It might be the very thing this team needs."
UCLA capped a dominant Big Ten run on Sunday, as the No. 2 Bruins thrashed No. 9 Iowa 96-45 to secure back-to-back Big Ten women's basketball tournament titles — and continue a 24-game conference unbeaten streak.
The 51-point win marked the largest margin of victory in Big Ten tournament final history, with guard Gianna Kneepkens's 19 points leading the six UCLA players who reached double-digit scoring in the matchup — including 15 points from tournament MVP Kiki Rice.
"For us to come out the way we did, it means a lot because we're doing it against really good teams," said Bruins head coach Cori Close.
Carrying the fourth-strongest Division I schedule alongside 18 Quad 1 wins, UCLA is making a case for the 2026 NCAA tournament's overall No. 1 seed ahead of Selection Sunday.
That said, the Bruins' toughest competition for that top spot is No. 1 UConn, with the defending national champion Huskies topping the NET rankings without a single loss in 2025/26 NCAA play — albeit in the weaker Big East conference.
"I don't really care," Close said about NCAA seeding. "When you focus on things out of your control, it will adversely affect the things under your control."
What's Next for UCLA Women's Basketball
UCLA will learn their national tournament path when the NCAA committee reveals the 2026 March Madness bracket this weekend.
Live coverage of the Selection Sunday bracket drop will begin at 8 PM ET on ESPN.
NCAA women's basketball heavy hitters are storming the court on Friday, as top seeds enter conference tournament quarterfinals after two jam-packed days of Power Four action.
A few Big Ten underdogs are still alive, with No. 11-seed Oregon taking down No. 6 Maryland while No. 10 Illinois narrowly upset No. 7 Michigan State in Thursday's second round.
The SEC also saw some surprises on Thursday, as No. 9 Kentucky ousted No. 8 Georgia and No. 11 Alabama sent No. 6 Tennessee packing.
Three Big 12 lower seeds also punched quarterfinals tickets on Thursday, with No. 10-seed Arizona State upsetting No. 7 Iowa State, No. 9 BYU scoring a big win over No. 8 Utah, and No. 12 Kansas State continuing their historic tournament run by ousting No. 5 Texas Tech in the second round.
All eyes now turn to the season's national contenders, namely SEC titans No. 1 seed South Carolina, No. 2 Vanderbilt, No. 3 Texas, and No. 4 LSU.
The Longhorns received an early nod for the NCAA tournament's fourth No. 1 seed, but that spot could shift depending on the weekend's results.
Projected No. 1 seed UCLA will also manage expectations, as the Bruins look to put a bow on a perfect 2025/26 Big Ten run.
How to watch Power Four women's basketball quarterfinals
The ACC will tip off Friday's Power Four quarterfinals when No. 1-seed Duke takes on No. 9 Clemson at 11 AM ET, airing live on ESPN2.
The SEC, Big 12, and Big Ten will follow suit at 12 PM ET, tipping off their matchups on ESPN, ESPNU, and BTN, respectively.
The 2026 ACC women's basketball tournament is heating up, as lower-seeded teams look to impress the NCAA selection committee with conference fireworks leading up to the Big Dance.
Thursday's second-round winners will advance to face either No. 1-seed Duke, No. 2 Louisville, No. 3 North Carolina, or No. 4 NC State in the ACC quarterfinals on Friday.
"I think in postseason basketball, everyone's more urgent," said Duke head coach Kara Lawson. "As a coach and as a staff, the players are on both sides because it's one-and-done for everybody."
One team counting on a deep conference tournament run is No. 5-seed Notre Dame, who closed out a shaky regular season with an impressive five-game winning streak — including a finale upset win over nationally ranked No. 12 Louisville last Sunday.
Reigning back-to-back ACC Player of the Year and three-time Defensive Player of the Year Hannah Hidalgo leads the charge for the Fighting Irish, with the junior guard averaging 25.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per game this season while setting a program record in career steals.
"She's part of that Notre Dame legacy guards that are different," head coach Niele Ivey told reporters. "Arike [Ogunbowale] was different, Skyler [Diggins], different. Jewell [Loyd] — a list of those guards who just play this game at such an elite level. That's Hannah."
How to watch Notre Dame in the 2026 ACC basketball tournament
Notre Dame will kick off their postseason by taking on No. 12-seed Miami in the second round of the ACC tournament on Thursday.
The Irish and the Hurricanes will tip off at 1:30 PM ET on ACCN.
Champ Week tipped off with a bang on Wednesday, as college women's basketball teams seeking NCAA bracket boosts fought for survival in this week's conference tournaments.
Top Power Four seeds mainly held fast through Wednesday's first round, with only SEC No. 10-seed Texas A&M and Big Ten No. 12-seed Nebraska suffering upset losses.
"If we could keep the game under 60, we've got a good chance to win, and we were able to do that today," No. 15-seed Auburn head coach Larry Vickers said following the Tigers' 50-49 win over the Aggies.
Elsewhere, one team made history despite the chalk, as No. 12-seed Kansas State dropped 17 three-pointers on No. 13-seed Cincinnati to break the Big 12 tournament record.
The Wildcats shot 53.1% from behind the arc in the 91-66 win, led by freshman guard Jordan Speiser (6-of-8), junior forward Nastja Claessens (5-of-7), and junior guard Taryn Sides (5-of-11) — also tying the program's single-game three-point record in the process.
"I don’t even know what to think," Speiser said of the record. "Just the energy that we all gave each other, that really helped go into the way I played today."
How to watch Power Four teams as Champ Week continues
The Power Four conference tournaments will tip off their second-round action on Thursday, with the ACC, Big 12, and SEC starting at 11 AM ET while the Big Ten hits the court at 12 PM ET.
Thursday's full slate of games will air live across ACCN, ESPN+, SECN, and BTN.
While No. 2 UCLA looks to run the Big Ten women's basketball table, this week's conference tournament will also provide opportunities for underdogs to better their odds in the national bracket.
Wednesday's first round features unranked Indiana, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Illinois, Purdue, and Oregon, before Thursday sees unranked USC and Washington tip off alongside No. 11 Ohio State, No. 14 Maryland, and No. 18 Michigan State.
The teams surviving the first two rounds will then face top-seeded No. 2 UCLA, No. 8 Michigan, No. 9 Iowa, and No. 19 Minnesota, who all earned byes into Friday's quarterfinals.
One of the teams in the hot seat is No. 9 seed USC, as the Trojans fight to make the NCAA tournament cut while continuing to build around 2025/26 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Jazzy Davidson.
The top 2025 recruit stepped up in lieu of injured star JuJu Watkins in a big way, averaging 17.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 2.1 blocks, and two steals per 34.4 minutes of game time to lead the team in nearly every category.
"She's had an incredible freshman year," USC head coach Lindsey Gottlieb said. "And I think we're still only tapping into what she's capable of."
How to watch the 2026 Big Ten women's basketball tournament
The 2026 Big Ten tournament tips off with Indiana vs. Nebraska at 3:30 PM ET on Wednesday.
All three Wednesday matchups will stream live on Peacock before tournament coverage shifts to the Big Ten Network on Thursday.
The SEC is stepping into the spotlight, as the NCAA's deepest women's basketball conference tips off Champ Week with ranked teams featuring in every round of their 2026 tournament.
No. 17 Kentucky enters as the No. 9 seed, while No. 11 seed Alabama fell off the AP Top 25 Poll for the first time since Week 9 on Monday.
"Kentucky has done a great job," South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said following the top-seeded Gamecocks' narrow 60-56 win over the Wildcats on Sunday. "Take some of what has happened in this league, and what this league is doing, it is hard to measure."
The AP Poll currently features eight SEC teams, as No. 7 Oklahoma, No. 22 Georgia, and No. 24 Ole Miss gear up to enter the SEC tournament in Thursday's second-round action.
As for the Top 4 seeds, No. 3 South Carolina, No. 4 Texas, No. 5 Vanderbilt, and No. 6 LSU will enter the competition in Friday's quarterfinals, as teams battle for a shot at Sunday's SEC championship trophy.
"Thank God we're a tournament team," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin prior to the high-stakes conference competition. "Go ahead, put us where you want. Because were going to be ready to compete when we're full go. This is our storm."
How to watch the 2026 SEC women's basketball tournament
The 2026 SEC tournament will tip off with No. 17 Kentucky battling unranked Arkansas at 11 AM ET on Wednesday.
All first and second round games will air live on the SEC Network.
The latest AP Top 25 Poll dropped Monday, with just one team making meaningful strides in the final NCAA women's basketball rankings of the 2025/26 regular season.
No. 10 TCU moved up one spot after Sunday win over No. 20 Baylor, breaking into the Top 10 for the first time this season while the rest of the upper echelon held fast.
On the other hand, No. 12 Louisville ceded their Top 10 standing, dropping two spots after Sunday's upset loss to unranked Notre Dame — with the Irish narrowly missing out on rejoining the ranks.
Undefeated UConn caps the 2025/26 season as the wire-to-wire No. 1, riding a perfect 31-0 record into Champ Week.
The Huskies have won 25 of their games by 30 points or more, notching the third-best season-long margin of victory in NCAA women's basketball history — trailing only the 2014/15 and 2015/16 UConn lineups.
"[There are] really close-knit teams that really love playing together, and you get a little bit of something from everybody every night," UConn head coach Geno Auriemma said of his team.
With the regular season in the rearview, teams are now gearing up for the 31 Division I conference tournaments — most of which tip off this week.
Though only 31 will walk away with titles — and automatic entry into the 2026 March Madness bracket — all teams will look to pad their resumes in tournament play, hoping to impress the committee ahead of March 15th's Selection Sunday.
2025/26 AP Top 25 Women's College Basketball Poll: Week 17
1. UConn (31-0, Big East)
2. UCLA (28-1, Big Ten)
3. South Carolina (29-2, SEC)
4. Texas (28-3, SEC)
5. Vanderbilt (27-3, SEC)
6. LSU (26-4, SEC)
7. Oklahoma (23-6, SEC)
8. Michigan (24-5, Big Ten)
9. Iowa (24-5, Big Ten)
10. TCU (27-4, Big 12)
11. Ohio State (24-6, Big Ten)
12. Louisville (25-6, ACC)
13. Duke (21-8, ACC)
14. Maryland (23-7, Big Ten)
15. West Virginia (24-6, Big 12)
16. North Carolina (25-6, ACC)
17. Kentucky (21-9, SEC)
18. Michigan State (22-7, Big Ten)
19. Minnesota (22-7, Big Ten)
20. Baylor (24-7, Big 12)
21. Texas Tech (25-6, Big 12)
22. Georgia (22-8, SEC)
23. Princeton (23-3, Ivy)
24. Ole Miss (21-10, SEC)
25. Fairfield (25-4, MAAC)
The ACC saw some fireworks over the weekend, as the conference's two top-ranked basketball squads stumbled in their regular-season finales.
First, 2025/26 ACC regular-season champions No. 12 Duke fell to rival No. 21 North Carolina 74-69 on Sunday, after two Blue Devil starters — forwards Toby Fournier and Delaney Thomas — fouled out of the game.
The No. 10 Louisville Cardinals also struggled in a 65-62 loss to unranked Notre Dame, with star guard Hannah Hidalgo dominating with 30 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, and five steals to help continue the Fighting Irish's late-season surge.
With only three ACC teams in the AP Top 25 Poll, Sunday's results indicate a wide-open field heading into this week's conference tournament.
Clemson and Virginia both earned ranked wins just over one week ago, while Notre Dame now enters the postseason on a five-game winning streak.
"We are a team that, no matter what, we're going to get to work the next day," Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey told reporters. "The sense of urgency went to an all-time high in February."
How to watch the 2026 ACC women's basketball tournament
While the conference's top seeds — No. 1 Duke, No. 2 Louisville, No. 3 UNC, and No. 4 NC State — earned byes into Friday's quarterfinal round, the 2026 ACC tournament will tip off with teams fighting to extend their seasons at 11 AM ET on Wednesday, airing live on the ACC Network.
Just like their PWHL counterparts, college hockey's Olympic stars will return to the ice on Friday night, when seven members of Team USA will rejoin their NCAA teams to battle through conference tournaments ahead of the national bracket's Selection Sunday on March 8th.
Hoping to kick off their 2025 NCAA title defense with a conference trophy is No. 1 Wisconsin and their four Team USA gold medalists: goaltender Ava McNaughton, forward Kirsten Simms, and defensemen Laila Edwards and Caroline Harvey — the 2026 Olympic tournament MVP.
"It's just more so getting the whole group back on the same page," Harvey said of Wisconsin's post-Olympic mindset. "There's a lot of excitement around playoffs now, so this is a time especially when we all naturally come together and we're united for a common goal, and we know that's winning a couple championships."
The Badgers, however, have other Olympic teammates standing in their way, with USA forwards Joy Dunne's No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes and Abbey Murphy's No. 4 Minnesota Golden Gophers also vying for the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) crown.
Meanwhile, the seventh collegiate reigning Olympic gold medalist will be skating toward the 2026 Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) trophy, as forward Tessa Janecke helps her No. 3 Penn State Nittany Lions hunt a fourth straight conference tournament title.
College hockey's five Division I conference tournaments — which also include the New England Hockey Alliance, Hockey East Association, and ECAC Hockey — run through next week, with the puck dropping on all five championship games on Friday, March 7th, before the NCAA tournament kicks off on March 12th.
How to watch US Olympic stars on this weekend's NCAA hockey ice
WCHA's best-of-three quarterfinals take center stage this weekend, with No. 2 Ohio State taking on St. Thomas starting at 6 PM ET on Friday before No. 1 Wisconsin faces Bemidji State and No. 4 Minnesota plays St. Cloud State at 7 PM ET.
Elsewhere, after earning a bye through to the best-of-three AHA semifinals, top-seeded No. 3 Penn State will take on Syracuse for this weekend's series, which also begins at 6 PM ET on Friday.
All games featuring the Top 4 teams will air live on B1G+.