Current:Home > MarketsFirst Four launches March Madness 2024. Here's everything to know about women's teams. -Streamline Finance
First Four launches March Madness 2024. Here's everything to know about women's teams.
View
Date:2025-04-27 12:07:38
For the women, March Madness ramps up one day after the men with their own First Four matchups.
The expanded field is fairly new to the women's game, which started the First Four round in 2022. It was one of a handful of changes that the NCAA began making in the wake of a gender equity report showing vast disparities between the men's and women's basketball tournaments.
Unlike the men, who stage all four games in one place, the women play each game at a different location, picking four sites out of the top 16 national seeds.
Here is what you need to know about the women's teams in this year's First Four.
First Four teams for women's March Madness
- Arizona (17-15): Went into the Pac-12 tournament as the No. 7 seed and was eliminated by top-seeded USC in the conference quarterfinals.
- Auburn (20-11): Finished in a sixth-place tie with Mississippi State in the SEC and was routed by LSU in the conference quarterfinals.
- Columbia (23-6): Finished tied with Princeton for the top seed in the Ivy League before going on to beat the Tigers 75-58 in the conference championship game.
- Holy Cross (20-12): Was the top seed in the Patriot League and went on to win the conference championship against Boston University 61-55.
- Presbyterian (20-14): Finished in a tie for fourth place in the Big South, but went on to beat Radford in the conference title game.
- Sacred Heart (24-9): Only lost one game in the NEC and ran away with the conference championship. The Pioneers have won 15 consecutive games.
- UT Martin (16-16): Was one of three teams to finish in second place in the OVC and made it to the conference championship game before losing to top-seeded Southern Indiana.
- Vanderbilt (22-9): Finished the regular season as the No. 6 seed in the SEC tournament, where they were ousted by Florida in the first round.
IT'S BRACKET MADNESS: Enter USA TODAY's NCAA tournament bracket contest for a chance at $1 million prize.
When is First Four for women?
The women's First Four will take place with two games on Wednesday, March 20 and two games on Thursday, March 21.
First Four games for women
Wednesday, March 20
- Sacred Heart (24-9) vs. Presbyterian (20-14), 7 p.m. ET on ESPNU. The winner will be the No. 16 seed in Albany Regional 1 and face No. 1 South Carolina.
- Vanderbilt (22-9) vs. Columbia (23-6), 9 p.m. ET on ESPNU. The winner will be the No. 12 seed in Portland Regional 3 and face No. 5 Baylor.
Thursday, March 21
- Auburn (20-11) vs. Arizona (17-15), 7 p.m. on ESPN2. The winner will be the No. 11 seed in Portland Regional 3 and face No. 6 Syracuse.
- Holy Cross (20-12) vs. UT Martin (16-16), 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The winner will be the No. 16 seed in Albany Regional 2 and face No. 1 Iowa.
Where is First Four for women?
The sites of the women's First Four games will be: Blacksburg, Virginia; Columbia, South Carolina; Storrs, Connecticut; and Peoria, Illinois.
How to watch women's First Four
The women's First Four games will be broadcast on ESPNU and ESPN2.
Have any First Four teams won the women's national championship?
No, in fact Mississippi State is the only team to ever win a first-round game after advancing out of the First Four. Last season the Bulldogs beat Creighton in the Round of 64 before losing to Notre Dame 53-48 in the second round.
USA TODAY Sports' Steve Gardner contributed to this report.
veryGood! (78)
Related
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Kremlin foe Alexei Navalny’s team confirms his death and says his mother is searching for his body
- Massive oil spill near Trinidad and Tobago blamed on barge being tugged
- Over 400 detained in Russia as country mourns the death of Alexei Navalny, Putin’s fiercest foe
- Matt Damon remembers pal Robin Williams: 'He was a very deep, deep river'
- Texas ban on university diversity efforts provides a glimpse of the future across GOP-led states
- NBA commissioner for a day? Vince Staples has some hilarious ideas – like LeBron throwing a chair
- Stephen Curry tops Sabrina Ionescu in 3-point shootout at All-Star weekend
- Illinois governor calls for resignation of sheriff whose deputy fatally shot Black woman in her home
- See Ashley Park Return to Emily in Paris Set With Lily Collins After Hospitalization
Ranking
- 'Kraven the Hunter' spoilers! Let's dig into that twisty ending, supervillain reveal
- Kremlin foe Alexei Navalny’s team confirms his death and says his mother is searching for his body
- In MLB jersey controversy, cheap-looking new duds cause a stir across baseball
- 30 cremated remains, woman's body found at rental of Colorado funeral home director
- Realtor group picks top 10 housing hot spots for 2025: Did your city make the list?
- Buying Nvidia stock today? Here are 3 things you need to know.
- Over 400 detained in Russia as country mourns the death of Alexei Navalny, Putin’s fiercest foe
- Sheriff says Tennessee man tried to enroll at Michigan school to meet minor
Recommendation
US Open player compensation rises to a record $65 million, with singles champs getting $3.6 million
Wholesale prices rose in January, signaling more inflation woes for American consumers
A man in Iran guns down 12 relatives in a shooting rampage with a Kalashnikov rifle
Bears great Steve McMichael contracts another infection, undergoes blood transfusion, family says
Most popular books of the week: See what topped USA TODAY's bestselling books list
Spoilers! What that ending, and Dakota Johnson's supersuit, foretell about 'Madame Web'
Satellite shows California snow after Pineapple Express, but it didn't replenish snowpack
How long will the solar eclipse darkness last in your city? Explore these interactive maps.