Women's Bracketology: 2025 NCAA tournament
The arrival of 2025 brings the shift to conference play and the beginning of the sprint to March. Bracketology now moves to twice-weekly updates, with new projections every Tuesday and Friday. Automatic bids now total 31 as we continue to count down to Selection Sunday on March 16.
Bracket Watch
The most difficult aspect of putting the bracket together isn't determining the No. 1 seeds or the top 16. It's figuring out teams 71 through 76. The pool of NCAA tournament-worthy teams isn't deep. The group listed under Next Four Out each projection typically consists of teams that are a solid win away from the field or knocking on the door. Not this season. Those teams aren't particularly close to making the field despite mathematically being only five spots away. The bubble is that weak. That's why Virginia Tech can lose at home to Virginia and remain in the field. It's why the Ivy League is projecting to have two teams in for a second year in a row. It's why UNLV, despite not having a Quad 1 win, would probably remain in even if it wasn't leading the Mountain West. The talk of expanding the NCAA tournament sounds good in theory. This year it would not be a good idea competitively.
On the Bubble
Last Four Byes
Last Four In
First Four Out
Next Four Out
68-Team Bracket
Region 1 Spokane
Los Angeles
Knoxville
Manhattan
Austin
Region 4 Spokane
Los Angeles
- 1 USC - aq
Durham
Fort Worth
- 11 UNLV - aq
- 3 TCU
- 14
Gonzaga - aq
Baton Rouge
Region 2 Birmingham
Columbia
- 8
Nebraska
Chapel Hill
Lexington
Columbus
- 10 Iowa State
Region 3 Birmingham
South Bend
- 9
Indiana
Norman
- 4 Oklahoma
College Park
Storrs
- 10 Oregon
Photo illo by ESPN Illustration, additional photos courtesy of Getty Images, Associated Press, Imagn, Icon Sportswire, EPA/Shutterstock
