Can anyone deny South Carolina its first back-to-back National Championship?
The 68-team field for the March Madness 2023 women’s basketball tournament was revealed Sunday night and its No. 1 overall seed is South Carolina, which will face No. 16 Norfolk State.
Undefeated (32-0), the team is led by senior Aliyah Boston who is also the likely No. 1 pick in the 2023 WBNA Draft on April 10.
The Gamecocks have been undeniable all season long and have shown no signs of slowing down.
Their defense is not to be messed with, as they have a 20.5 margin over opponents on rebounds and average nine blocks per game.
South Carolina is in pursuit of a second straight crown – a goal that has been accomplished several times by UConn, one of them being in 2009 and ’10 with former WNBA player Maya Moore and current Phoenix Mercury center Tina Charles.
The Huskies achieved a four-peat from 2013-16 featuring a roster of 14 former and current WNBA stars such as Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Stefanie Dolson, Breanna Stewart, Kelly Faris and Bria Hartley.
This year, the Huskies earned a No. 2 seed and will face No. 15 Vermont.
2023 PRINTABLE WOMEN’S NCAA BRACKET
If accomplished, it will be South Carolina’s third title win in program history under head coach Dawn Staley, who is in her 15th season.
Those looking to make their own history include player of the year front-runner Caitlin Clark of Iowa.
2023 NCAA Women’s Tournament bracket NY PostShe has had a stunning junior year as the No. 2 point guard in the country in scoring (27 points per game), first in assists (8.3 assists per game), and plenty of jaw-dropping highlights.
Iowa, 26-6 and second in the Big Ten conference behind Indiana, received a No. 2 seed in the tournament and will face Southeastern Louisiana in the first round.
The typical looming threat of Geno Auriemma and his Huskies has dulled, as the team has been plagued by injuries all season long. However, UConn should not be counted out as they try to preserve a streak of 14 consecutive Final Four appearances under Auriemma.
South Carolina forward Aliyah Boston shoots a free throw during an NCAA college basketball game against Georgia.APStanford, Virginia Tech and and Indiana round out the No. 1 seeds.
It’s the first time in program history the Hoosiers are the top team in region.
The First Four will take place on Wednesday, March 15 and Thursday, March 16, which will solidify the four teams who will advance to the 64-team bracket.
It will feature St. John’s competing against Purdue for the No. 11 seed and he right to play North Carolina in the first round.
The first round will commence on Friday, March 17 through Saturday, March 18, and will be hosted on campus by the overall top 16 seeds.
The tournament will then move to neutral sites of Greenville, S.C., Seattle, Wash. and Dallas, Texas for the Sweet 16 from March 24-27.
The Final Four will take place in Dallas on March 31 and the championship game is set for Sunday, April 2 at 3 p.m. EST, where the 2023 winner will be crowned.
Iowa guard Caitlin Clark drives past Drake forward Courtney Becker during overtime in an NCAA college basketball game, in which Iowa won 92-86 in overtime. APAs with every March Madness tournament, we can expect just that – madness.
Last year saw a tournament filled with a number of thrilling upsets, such as Creighton over Iowa to get to the Sweet 16, Princeton knocking off Kentucky and Belmont’s double-overtime win over Oregon.
This season, eyes will certainly be on Boston and around South Carolina and also on the usual suspects of Clark and Iowa, Maddy Siegrist and No. 4 Villanova, Aaliyah Edwards and UConn and Angel Reese and No. 3 LSU.
However, the underdog stories will be present, and probably frequent, but who doesn’t love those?
Keep your eyes peeled for No. 6 Creighton, No. 7 NC State, No. 9 Gonzaga, and No. 6 Michigan to potentially bust brackets.
