Women's Bracketology: 2025 NCAA tournament

By Charlie Creme Updated: 5/1/2024 at 9:50 a.m. ET

The NCAA tournament will look different in 2025. With the Pac-12 mostly gone and the ACC (18 teams), Big Ten (18 teams), Big 12 (16 teams) and SEC (16 teams) bigger than ever, the NCAA still has decisions to make as to how to format the bracket. For now, let's assume there will be 31 automatic bids and an additional at-large. The expectation: Bigger conferences means more teams from those leagues will make the field. That grows the likelihood that the selection committee is forced to have two teams from the same conference possibly meeting in the second round. The two-regional format remains, with Birmingham and Spokane hosting.

Bracket Watch

One thing that won't look different in 2024-25 is which team starts the season at No. 1. Kamilla Cardoso is in the WNBA, but everyone else who contributed to South Carolina's undefeated national championship returns for Dawn Staley. With Oklahoma and Texas entering the SEC, the conference competition gets more difficult for the Gamecocks. USC will immediately be the conference favorite after moving to the Big Ten. The Trojans might also be South Carolina's greatest competition nationally, though UConn -- with national player of the year favorite Paige Bueckers back for one more run -- will have something to say about that. And could this be the first time Tennessee, with a new coaching staff and bigger challenges ahead in the SEC, doesn't make the tournament?

On the Bubble

Last Four Byes

Last Four In

First Four Out

Next Four Out

68-Team Bracket

Region 1 Birmingham

Columbia

Columbus

Waco

Raleigh

Region 4 Spokane

South Bend

Norman

Ames

Los Angeles

Region 2 Spokane

Los Angeles

Morgantown

Durham

Baton Rouge

Region 3 Birmingham

Storrs

Manhattan

Louisville

Austin

Conference Breakdown

Conference

Team

Photo illo by ESPN Illustration, additional photos courtesy of Getty Images, Associated Press, Imagn, Icon Sportswire, EPA/Shutterstock

RULES

ESPN's Bracketology efforts are focused on projecting the NCAA tournament field just as we expect the NCAA Division I basketball committee to select the field in March. ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme uses the same data points favored by the committee, including strength of schedule and other season-long indicators, including the NET and team-sheet data similar to what is available to the NCAA, in his projections of the field. Visit the NCAA's website for a fuller understanding of NCAA selection criteria.

64-Team Bracket

The 64-team bracket is the standard version of the NCAA tournament field that has been in place since 1994. If the 2021 field is comprised of 64 teams, there will be some key differences to past years, however.

The primary adjustment from a normal year is, of course, the playing of the entire NCAA tournament at a single site. This eliminates the need for geographical considerations in seeding. Additionally, there will be at least one fewer automatic qualifier this season, as the Ivy League's decision to forgo the 2020-21 season reduces the number of AQ entries to 31 for this season.

48-Team Bracket

In this projection, a condensed selection process would reduce the field by eight at-large teams and eight automatic qualifiers (the latter of which still receive a revenue unit). The top four seeds in each region would receive a bye into the second round, with four first-round games per region - 5 vs. 12, 6 vs. 11, 7 vs. 10 and 8 vs. 9.

16-Team Bracket

In this projection, the committee selects and seeds the 16 best available teams. There are no automatic qualifiers, although all non-competing conference champions receive the designated revenue unit.

To maintain some sense of national balance, conference participation is capped at four teams. And no region shall have more than one team from the same conference.

ESPN

Bracket Watch

Top Overall Seed

First Team Out

Last Team In

On the Bubble

Last Four Byes

Last Four In

First Four Out

Next Four Out

68-Team Bracket

Region 1 Birmingham

Columbia

Columbus

Waco

Raleigh

Region 4 Spokane

South Bend

Norman

Ames

Los Angeles

Region 2 Spokane

Los Angeles

Morgantown

Durham

Baton Rouge

Region 3 Birmingham

Storrs

Manhattan

Louisville

Austin

Conference Breakdown

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