It would be impossible to talk about women’s college basketball without mentioning the University of Connecticut, and in case anyone forgot that, the Huskies found their way back into the spotlight Monday night with a win at the 2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by JEEP.

UConn got out to a hot start and cruised to a 70-50 victory over Creighton at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, where the Huskies now own a 45-1 record all-time. 

It was the fifth consecutive BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament title for UConn and its 23rd BIG EAST championship overall. 

The 2025 tournament took place March 7-10 and included all 11 BIG EAST teams. 

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UConn was ranked No. 3 in the latest AP Division I Women’s Basketball Rankings and entered the BIG EAST Tournament as the No. 1 seed, also for the fifth straight season. Creighton landed at No. 23 in the rankings and was the No. 2 seed for the conference tournament. 

The Huskies, who haven’t lost a conference tournament game since 2013, outscored the Bluejays 27-11 in the opening quarter Monday and never looking back, though neither team scored more than 17 points in any quarter the rest of the way.

Redshirt senior guard Paige Bueckers, a three-time BIG EAST Conference Player of the Year, amassed more than a third of UConn’s points in the win, and her 24-point effort helped secure her third career BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player honor. 

Graduate guard Azzi Fudd and freshman forward Sarah Strong each contributed 13 points to help secure their team’s automatic bid to the upcoming 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, where the Huskies will be looking for their record-extending 12th national title. 

Seniors Lauren Jensen (13) and Morgan Maly (12) each scored in the double digits in the losing effort for Creighton.

Since 2014, UConn and Creighton have played a dozen times, with the Huskies winning all 12 contests. 

On the season, UConn is 31-3 and ready for its journey to continue. 

Creighton was playing in the BIG EAST Tournament final for the first time since 2016, its only other appearance. That year, the Bluejays fell to St. John’s. Creighton’s last conference championship came in the Missouri Valley Conference in 2012.

The Bluejays are 26-6 this year and now will have to wait until Sunday to see if they’ll be headed back to the NCAA Tournament with UConn.

All 11 of the BIG EAST’s teams advanced to this week’s conference tournament, with the top five teams from the regular-season standings earning first-round byes.

What Happened In The Semifinals?

UConn and Creighton made light work of their opponents in the semifinals of the 2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament, setting up the showdown between the top two seeds in the event.

In the first semifinal Sunday, UConn steamrolled Villanova in a contest that was separated by just 10 points at halftime but ended in an 82-54 UConn victory. 

Out of the break, UConn held the Wildcats to six points in the third quarter to pull away early. Bueckers led the way for the Huskies with 23 points and six assists. 

Creighton, which narrowly escaped its quarterfinal game against Georgetown, left no doubt against Seton Hall in the semifinals, holding the Pirates to single-digit point totals in two quarters on the way to a 73-44 victory. 

A day earlier, Creighton was trailing Georgetown by 12 points halfway through the third quarter, before completing an epic comeback to escape with a 72-70 win. The Bluejays outscored the Hoyas 19-11 in the final quarter. 

2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament Recap

All Times Eastern

First Round

Friday, March 7

• Game 1: No. 8 St. John’s def. No. 9 Butler, 66-50
• Game 2: No. 10 Georgetown def. No. 7 Providence, 58-56
• Game 3: No. 11 Xavier def. No. 6 DePaul, 80-73

Quarterfinals

Saturday, March 8

• Game 4: No. 1 UConn def. No. 8 St. John’s, 71-40
• Game 5: No. 5 Villanova def. No. 4 Marquette, 73-66
• Game 6: No. 2 Creighton def. No. 10 Georgetown, 72-70
• Game 7: No. 3 Seton Hall def. No. 11 Xavier, 48-40

Semifinals

Sunday, March 9

• Game 8: No. 1 UConn def. No. 5 Villanova, 82-54
• Game 9: No. 2 Creighton def. No. 3 Seton Hall, 73-44

Championship

Monday, March 10

• Game 10: No. 1 UConn def. No. 2 Creighton, 70-50

What Schools Play Women’s Basketball In The BIG EAST?

Here are the 11 BIG EAST women’s basketball teams for the 2024-2025 season and how they placed in the regular-season conference standings:

• UConn  (28-3, 18-0)
• Creighton (24-5, 16-2)
• Seton Hall (21-8, 13-5)
• Marquette (20-9, 12-6)
• Villanova (17-13, 11-7)
• DePaul (13-18, 8-10)
• Providence (13-18, 6-12)
• St. John’s (15-14, 5-13)
• Butler (15-16, 5-13)
• Georgetown (11-18, 4-14)
• Xavier (6-23, 1-17)

How To Watch The 2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament

All first-round games were streamed on the BIG EAST Digital Network FloCollege, so you can go back and find them in the archives on FloCollege and the FloSports app.

For the quarterfinals, the action shifted to Fox Sports 1 and FS2. The semifinals aired on FOX. The championship game was broadcast on FS1.

About The BIG EAST Conference 

The BIG EAST Conference plays basketball at the NCAA Division I level. The conference includes 11 teams this year.

For the 2025 conference tournament, based on the regular-season standings, UConn, Creighton, Seton Hall, Marquette and Villanova got to sit out the first round. 

In the final of the 2024 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament, UConn defeated Georgetown 78-42.

Three BIG EAST teams ended up advancing to the 2024 NCAA Tournament – UConn, Creighton and Marquette. UConn made it the farthest in the tournament, earning a spot in the Final Four, where the Huskies lost to eventual national runner-up Iowa. South Carolina won it all.

Four additional teams advanced to the inaugural 32-team Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament – Georgetown, St. John’s, Seton Hall and Villanova. Illinois defeated Villanova to win the event. 

About UConn Women’s Basketball

UConn, the No. 3 team in the latest AP NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Rankings, earned the top seed for the BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament for the fifth consecutive year and was able to deliver a tournament win each time. 

The Huskies topped the regular-season standings for the 21st time this year and claimed their record-extending 23rd Big EAST Tournament title. DePaul is next on the all-time wins list with five tournament titles. 

Of course, winning the tournament also means earning the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament, where the Huskies have continued to be a dominant force, too.

UConn also holds the record for the most NCAA Division I women’s basketball national championships with 11. Tennessee is next on the list with eight. 

The most recent championship for UConn was 2016, and that was the fourth consecutive win for the Huskies. Head coach Geno Auriemma has coached the team for all 11 national titles. He’s now in his 40th season at the helm.

All-Time BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament Victories

• UConn – 22
• DePaul – 5 
• St. John’s – 4
• Villanova – 3 
• Miami (Fla.) – 2 

Syracuse, Providence, Boston College, Rutgers, Notre Dame and Marguette each have one title. 

AP Division I Women's Basketball Rankings

As of March 3

1. Texas (25) – 29-2 – 768 – Prev. 1
2. Southern Cal (6) – 26-2 – 749 – Prev. 4
3. UConn – 28-3 – 685 – Prev. 5
4. UCLA – 27-2 – 676 – Prev. 2
5. South Carolina – 27-3 – 664 – Prev. 6
6. Notre Dame – 25-4 – 626 – Prev. 3
7. NC State – 24-5 – 589 – Prev. 9
8. TCU – 28-3 – 570 – Prev. 10
9. LSU – 27-4 – 490 – Prev. 7
10. Oklahoma – 23-6 – 450 – Prev. 13
11. Duke – 23-7 – 436 – Prev. 16
12. Kentucky – 22-6 – 405 – Prev. 15
13. Ohio State – 24-5 – 397 – Prev. 12
14. North Carolina – 25-6 – 386 – Prev. 8
15. Maryland – 23-6 – 316 – Prev. 19
16. West Virginia – 23-6 – 301 – Prev. 18
17. Baylor – 25-6 – 286 – Prev. 17
18. Tennessee – 21-8 – 236 – Prev. 11
19. Alabama – 23-7 – 221 – Prev. 20
20. Kansas State – 25-6 – 220 – Prev. 14
21. Oklahoma State – 24-5 – 189 – Prev. 21
22. Florida State – 23-7 – 128 – Prev. 24
23. Creighton – 24-5 – 83 – Prev. 22
24. Michigan State – 21-8 – 67 – Prev. 23
25. South Dakota State – 26-3 – 42 – NR

Dropped out: Louisville (25).

Others Receiving Votes:  Louisville 40, Richmond 21, Ole Miss 15, Utah 6, James Madison 5, Iowa 3, Fairfield 2, California 2, Georgia Tech 1.

When Is The 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Selection Show?

Selection Sunday is March 16!

The selection show for the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament is scheduled for March 16 at 8 p.m. Eastern. It will be broadcast live on ESPN.

When Does The 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament Start?

The First Four games of the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament will take place March 19-20.

The first round of the tournament will be March 21-22. The second round will be March 23-24. 

The Sweet 16 is set for March 28-29. The Elite Eight will be March 30-31. 

The Final Four (national semifinals) will be April 4.

The championship game is scheduled for April 6 at 3 p.m. Eastern, live on ABC.

Where is The 2025 NCAA Women’s Final Four?

The Final Four (the national semifinals and championship game will take place at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. 

Who Won The NCAA Division I Women’s National Title In 2024?

South Carolina defeated Iowa 87-75 to win the national title in 2024. 

Watch NCAA Basketball On FloHoops And FloCollege

NCAA Basketball is streaming live on FloHoops, FloCollege and the FloSports app. 

The BIG EAST Digital Network is also on FloHoops and the FloSports app.

FloHoops Archived Footage

Video footage from all events will be archived and stored in a video library for FloHoops subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscriptions.

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