The brackets have been announced for the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, and two programs from the 11-team BIG EAST Conference will continue their quests for a national title this season. 

The University of Connecticut and Creighton – the top two teams in the regular-season conference standings and the two finalists in the 2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by JEEP – will represent the BIG EAST in the big bracket this year.

The 64-team bracket will be finalized March 19-20 with the First Four – an eight-team, four-game battle for four open spots in the bracket.

The first round of play will take place March 21-22 at two locations - Spokane, Washington, and Birmingham, Alabama. 

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UConn earned its spot in the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship by winning the 2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament last weekend, but Creighton had to wait until Sunday’s selection show on ESPN to find out of its campaign would continue.

The 68-team field for this year’s edition of Women’s March Madness includes 31 conference champions, all earning automatic bids, and 37 at-large selections, determined by a selection committee based on how the teams performed this season. 

UConn’s path in the Big Dance will be through Regional 4 – Spokane as the No. 2 seed and will begin March 22 against No. 15 Arkansas State (21-10). The Red Wolves won the 2025 Sun Belt Conference Tournament and will be making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Creighton earned the No. 9 spot in Regional 3 – Birmingham and will open the event against No. 8 Illinois (21-9), also on March 22.

See the complete women’s bracket here.

About UConn And Creighton

The BIG EAST has become a tough place to play, especially if your name isn’t UConn. 

The Huskies’ win in this year’s conference tournament was their fifth in a row and 23rd BIG EAST title overall. The tournament was held for the first time in 1983.

UConn (31-3) was perfect in conference play this year, going 18-0, before adding three wins in the tournament, including a 70-50 victory over Creighton (26-6) in the final. 

The championship game was the most-watched BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament final in FOX Sports history. 

The tournament as a whole was the most-watched BIG East women’s tournament in FOX Sports history, averaging 269,000 viewers across FOX, FS1 and FS2, a 74% increase from last year.

But none of that matters now. March Madness truly is mad. No matter how the rest of your season went, everything now comes down to one game at a time. Win, or go home.

It would be unlikely that UConn didn’t celebrate last week’s success – at least for a minute – but knowing longtime head coach Geno Auriemma, the Huskies probably were quick to turn their focus to what would be a record-extending 12th women’s basketball national championship.

Read more: Who Won The 2025 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament?

When Did The Brackets Come Out For The 2025 NCAA Division I Tournament?

The brackets for the 2025 NCAA Division I Basketball Championships were released Sunday night.

See the complete brackets: WOMEN | MEN

About Each BIG EAST Women’s Team That’s Moving On

UConn WBB (31-3)

No. 2 seed in Regional 4 – Spokane 

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.

DePaul is next on the all-time wins list with five tournament titles. 

The Huskies also topped the regular-season standings for the 21st time this year.

Of course, winning the tournament means earning the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division I 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.

Arkansas State recently picked up its first Sun Belt Tournament championship, rallying from down 17 at halftime to defeat James Madison 86-79 in overtime. The win earned the Red Wolves an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, and it’ll be the first appearance in program history. 

Opponent: No. 15 Arkansas State (21-10); March 22

Last Year’s NCAA Tournament: The UConn women made the Final Four last season but fell to eventual national runner-up Iowa, 71-69. Iowa went on to the final and lost to South Carolina (78-59).

Creighton WBB (26-6)

No. 9 seed in Regional 3 – Birmingham

Being second fiddle to the UConn dynasty probably isn’t the worst thing, and it might even help make Creighton a stronger team. You know, to be the best, you have to beat the best.

The Bluejays are returning to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive time, 11th time overall and eighth time in the last 13 years. 

Creighton reached the Elite Eight in 2022 and own a 7-7 record all-time in the tournament. The Bluejays advanced to the second round in 2013, 2017, 2018, 2022 and 2024. 

Illinois will be making its 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Illini played in the First Four in 2023 but lost to Mississippi State (70-56). The last time Illinois made the formal 64-team bracket was 2003.

The Illini’s 21 regular-season wins tied a program record, and they now are looking to win their first NCAA Tournament games since 2000.

Creighton and Illinois have played each other one other time – in December 1991. Illinois won that game 87-71.

Opponent: No. 8 Illinois (21-9); March 22

Last Year’s NCAA Tournament: In last year’s NCAA Tournament, Creighton picked up an 87-73 win over UNLV and then suffered a second-round loss to UCLA (67-63).

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 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)

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 all got to sit out the first round. 

Last year, 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. 

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

Selection Sunday was March 16!

The selection show for the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament took place March 16 at 8 p.m. Eastern. It was 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. 

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.

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A Behind-The-Scenes Look At BIG EAST Media Day 2024

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