The Power Four wrapped up their 2024/25 NCAA basketball seasons on Sunday, with newly minted conference tournament champions punching their tickets to the March Madness tournament.

While the Big 12's weekend was all chalk as No. 8 TCU added their first tournament title since 2005 to their 2024/25 regular-season conference trophy on Sunday, the ACC capped their contest with chaos.

No. 11 Duke put the conference — and the NCAA selection committee — on notice, upsetting both No. 6 Notre Dame and No. 7 NC State en route to their first ACC tournament championship in 12 years.

In the SEC, No. 5 South Carolina had the last word against No. 1 Texas. After splitting their two 2024/25 meetings and sharing the regular-season title, the defending national champion Gamecocks turned the SEC tournament final into a defensive masterclass, defeating the Longhorns 64-45 to claim the conference trophy.

Meanwhile, Sunday's Big Ten finale saw No. 4 UCLA enact revenge on their crosstown rivals, No. 2 USC. After dropping both their matchups and ceding the conference's regular-season title to the Trojans, the Bruins held USC to just 34.3% from the field and 28.6% from beyond the arc to snag the tournament crown with a 72-67 win.

South Carolina basketball head coach Dawn Staley and forward Sania Feagin lift the 2025 SEC tournament trophy as the team cheers.
South Carolina's resume makes them a possible overall No. 1 seed in March Madness. (John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Conference winners eye NCAA tournament seeding

With their Sunday wins and their automatic entries into the upcoming NCAA basketball tournament, conference champions are now eyeing their shots at top national seedings.

While TCU and Duke each made strong cases for increasing their seeds, UCLA and South Carolina fully cemented themselves as frontrunners to top the 2024/25 bracket.

"When you win this [SEC] tournament and play the schedule that we play, I do think we’re the No. 1 overall seed," remarked South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley. "There isn’t anybody in the country that has played the schedule that we have played, that had share of the regular-season title, won this tournament and beat the No. 1 team in the country."

The stats back up Staley's claims. South Carolina played more Top 25 opponents this season than any other currently ranked squad, winning 12 of those games — seven against Top 10 teams. The only three losses they logged all season came against No. 1 Texas, No. 3 UConn, and No. 4 UCLA, with the Gamecocks handing the Longhorns two defeats in return.

UCLA head coach Cori Close took a more diplomatic approach when asked about top seeding after winning the Big Ten title.

"I think it would mean a lot for us [and USC] both to be No. 1 seeds," Close told ESPN. "And I hope we do get the chance to do it [in the Final Four] in Tampa a fourth time."

The final decisions rest with the selection committee, who will reveal their 2024/25 NCAA tournament bracket this Sunday.

Creighton's Molly Mogensen defends UConn's Azzi Fudd during a 2025 Big East basketball game.
UConn will face Creighton for the Big East tournament championship on Monday. (Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images)

How to watch Monday's Big East tournament final

Though the Power Four have handed out their hardware, other DI conference tournaments will be in action all week, with the Big East championship tipping off Monday night.

No. 3 UConn is hunting their fifth straight Big East tournament trophy, but they'll have to beat No. 23 Creighton to hoist it.

The No. 1-seed Huskies and No. 2-seed Bluejays will tip off at 7 PM ET, with live coverag on FS1.

Creighton’s historic run continues as the No. 10 seed stunned No. 3 seed Iowa State, 76-68, in the Sweet 16 on Friday night.

The Bluejays will play in their first Elite Eight appearance in program history, becoming only the fourth double-digit seed to make a run this deep into the women’s NCAA Tournament.

Morgan Maly led the way for Creighton, scoring 21 points off the bench on 7-for-10 shooting from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the arc.

The Bluejays outshot Iowa State 44.8 to 38.1 percent in the game, relying heavily on their bench to make an impact. Creighton’s depth has been critical to the team’s success in the tournament, including in a shocking 64-62 upset win over No. 2 seed Iowa in the second round.

Next up: Creighton meets a much tougher foe in the Elite Eight, taking on No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

No. 10 seed Creighton is heading to the first Sweet 16 in program history after upsetting No. 2 Iowa 64-62 in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.

The second-round matchup came down to the final possession, with Iowa unable to tie up the game after inbounding the ball with three seconds remaining on the clock. Creighton sophomore Lauren Jensen, an Iowa transfer, had a team-high 19 points, including the decisive 3-pointer to give the Bluejays the lead with 12.6 seconds left on the clock.

The Bluejays put the pressure on the Hawkeyes early, ending the first half with a 38-32 lead thanks to a 29-15 advantage on the boards. Creighton dominated on the boards the rest of the way, pulling down a total of 52 rebounds to Iowa’s 37.

Both teams struggled from the field, shooting just over 35 percent each. The Bluejays, however, had the upper hand from beyond the arc, making 10 of their 37 attempted 3-point shots, while Iowa went just 5-of-22 from deep. Creighton’s defense also shut down the Hawkeyes’ perimeter game, holding Caitlin Clark to just 15 points.

Iowa’s stunning second-round loss comes after the team clinched the Big Ten regular season and tournament title.

Creighton will meet the winner of No. 6 Georgia and No. 3 Iowa State in the Sweet 16 on Friday.