Nebraska and Missouri State are going dancing, as the No. 11 seed Cornhuskers and No. 16 seed Bears punched their tickets to the 64-team Big Dance bracket with Wednesday's First Four wins.
Nebraska topped mid-major standout Richmond 75-56, as Husker guards Britt Prince and Callin Hake's combined 36 points helped neutralize Spiders star forward Maggie Doogan's game-leading 24-point, 10-rebound double-double.
"As a senior, there's definitely a sense of urgency that I want to fight for more games with these girls," said Hake after the Huskers' season-extending win. "I think we did exactly that today."
Wednesday's nightcap saw Missouri State down Stephen F. Austin 85-75, with Bears guard Kaemyn Bekemeier's 22 points leading her team's five double-digit scorers to secure the win — and a Friday date with No. 1 seed Texas.
"We can't get too high on this one," said Bekemeier. "I know we're really excited to play against a really high level team.... It's just going to make us a better team and better basketball players individually."
The First Four will wrap up on Thursday night ahead of Friday's first-round tipoff — though one team fighting for qualification could find itself short-handed.
No. 10 seed Arizona State's head coach Molly Miller might miss the Sun Devils' First Four clash with fellow 10 seed Virginia due to illness, with the team traveling to Iowa without the first-year boss on Wednesday.
No. 16 seeds Samford and Southern will also square off on Thursday, battling for a shot at challenging No. 1 seed South Carolina on Saturday.
How to Watch Thursday's First Four March Madness Games
First Four action continues on Thursday night with Southern facing Samford at 7 PM ET before Virginia takes on Arizona State at 9 PM ET.
Both clashes will air live on ESPN2.
Nebraska is gearing up to meet Richmond in North Carolina, as the Huskers tip off the 2026 NCAA tournament with Wednesday's First Four. The winner advances to face No. 6 seed Baylor in the Big Dance.
Both teams enter as 11 seeds, with the Cornhuskers (18-12) earning their tournament berth despite finishing 7-11 in Big Ten play thanks to a strong NET ranking.
Nebraska nearly missed March Madness entirely after blowing an 18-point third-quarter lead against Indiana in the Big Ten tournament. The Hoosiers rallied to win 72-69, putting the Cornhuskers squarely on the bubble before Selection Sunday.
Richmond (26-7) makes its third consecutive NCAA tournament appearance under head coach Aaron Roussell, after the Spiders finished 15-3 in Atlantic 10 play behind back-to-back conference Player of the Year Maggie Doogan. The 6-foot-2 forward averaged 21 points and nearly eight rebounds per game.
Senior guard Rachel Ullstrom provides secondary scoring for Richmond with 14 points per game, hitting a team-leading 92 3-pointers at 41.3% shooting in 2025/26. Junior Ally Sweeney rounds out the double-figure scorers at 10.5 points per game.
The First Four matchup marks the first-ever meeting between Nebraska and Richmond.
The Cornhuskers seek their second NCAA tournament victory in three years after their 2024 breakthrough. Richmond won its first March Madness game last season, as the Spiders ride conference tournament momentum into Wednesday's clash.
The winner earns a challenging second-round matchup against Big 12 powerhouse Baylor.
How to Watch the 2026 NCAA Women's Tournament's First Four
The First Four matchup tips off at 7 PM ET, live on ESPN2.
The Big Ten showed off its depth in women's basketball this week, as a record-tying nine teams from the conference made Monday's AP Top 25 poll.
With three teams — No. 4 UCLA, No. 6 Michigan, and No. 7 Maryland — still in the Top 10, the Big Ten has tied its own record for ranked squads set in December 2024, as No. 24 Nebraska joined this week's list following a 9-0 start to the 2025/26 NCAA basketball season.
"I've been honored to be a part of this league for the last 13 seasons, working on year 14, where I've watched the [Big Ten] just get better and better," said Michigan head coach Kim Barnes Arico after Monday's poll drop.
No Big Ten team had a more dramatic weekend than Maryland, who kept their season's unbeaten streak alive with a furious comeback to defeat unranked Minnesota 100-99 in double overtime on Sunday.
Despite falling behind by nine points in the second overtime period, the Terrapins executed an 8-0 run in just nine seconds to put the game within reach, before guard Saylor Poffenbarger hit the game-winner with just 11 seconds remaining.
"Maryland has a standard," Poffenbarger said after her team-leading 30-point, 10-rebound double-double performance on Sunday. "When you come to Maryland, you know the things that come with it."
2025/26 AP Top 25 Women's College Basketball Poll: Week 6
1. UConn (9-0, Big East)
2. Texas (10-0, SEC)
3. South Carolina (9-1, SEC)
4. UCLA (9-1, Big Ten)
5. LSU (10-0, SEC)
6. Michigan (8-1, Big Ten)
7. Maryland (11-0, Big Ten)
8. TCU (10-0, Big 12)
9. Oklahoma (9-1, SEC)
10. Iowa State (10-0, Big 12)
11. Iowa (9-0, Big Ten)
12. UNC (9-2, ACC)
13. Baylor (9-1, Big 12)
14. Vanderbilt (9-0, SEC)
15. Kentucky (10-1, SEC)
16. USC (7-2, Big Ten)
17. Ole Miss (8-1, SEC)
18. Tennessee (6-2, SEC)
19. Notre Dame (6-2, ACC)
20. Washington (8-1, Big Ten)
21. Ohio State (7-1, Big Ten)
22. Louisville (8-3, ACC)
23. Oklahoma State (10-1, Big 12)
24. Nebraska (9-0, Big Ten)
25. Michigan State (8-1, Big Ten)