Selection Sunday has arrived. It's the day we've all been waiting for.
By the end of the night, we will have the 68-team bracket for the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament, and the projections listed below will become just a memento of what I got wrong.
But jokes aside, here is a brief preview of the Selection Show and what I'm most interested in seeing.
South Carolina and Indiana are locks on the No. 1 line, in that order. Following them, it seems like four teams (Stanford, Iowa, Virginia Tech and UConn) are contenders for the last two No. 1 seeds.
I believe Stanford has the strongest overall resume, but they're also the only team in the group that failed to win their conference tournament, falling in the Pac-12 semifinals to UCLA. Could that send the Cardinal down to a No. 2?
Will the committee favor Iowa's highest-quality wins (a combined three over Indiana and Maryland) or Virginia Tech's higher number of NET top 25 wins? And how about UConn, who is ranked No. 2 in the NET? We saw them as low as No. 7 overall in the last top 16 reveal but the Huskies got Azzi Fudd for the Big East Tournament and looked like a top contender once again.
I'm interested in seeing if Texas climbs to a No. 3 seed and who the final No. 4 seeds are who will get to host in the first weekend of the Tournament. Since my last update, North Carolina has replaced Oklahoma for the final No. 4. Could either Tennessee or Washington State make that jump after huge conference tourney results?
Around the bubble, both Middle Tennessee and Princeton won auto bids on Saturday to finalize their spots in the field. Will Columbia remain in and give us two teams from the Ivy League?
There are plenty of interesting decisions to be made on the No. 10 and No. 11 lines, and it wouldn't be a major surprise if any team in my First Four Out ended up in the Tournament, although any teams beyond that certainly would be.
One of the most interesting cases is Oregon, a 17-14 team that is 0-8 vs NET top 25 opponents but nevertheless sports a NET ranking of 19 themselves. It would seem unlikely for a team with their results to make the field, but simultaneously, it would be remarkable for a team with a top 20 NET to end up in the WNIT.
NET and SOS data accurate as of Sunday morning. Double asterisks (**) represent teams who have won their conference tournaments.
No. 1 Seeds
- **South Carolina (SEC): 32-0, NET 1, SOS 19
- Indiana (Big Ten): 27-3, NET 5, SOS 22
- Stanford (Pac-12): 28-5, NET 4, SOS 8
- **Iowa (Big Ten): 26-6, NET 6, SOS 7
No. 2 Seeds
- **Virginia Tech (ACC): 27-4, NET 9, SOS 18
- **UConn (Big East): 29-5, NET 2, SOS 1
- Maryland (Big Ten): 25-6, NET 13, SOS 6
- Utah (Pac-12): 25-4, NET 7, SOS 25
No. 3 Seeds
- LSU (SEC): 28-2, NET 3, SOS 76
- Ohio State (Big Ten): 25-7, NET 16, SOS 13
- Notre Dame (ACC): 25-5, NET 8, SOS 29
- Duke (ACC): 25-6, NET 10, SOS 10
No. 4 Seeds
- Texas (Big 12): 25-9, NET 11, SOS 41
- Villanova (Big East): 28-6, NET 12, SOS 53
- UCLA (Pac-12): 25-9, NET 22, SOS 9
- North Carolina (ACC): 21-10, NET 21, SOS 3
No. 5 Seeds
- Oklahoma (Big 12): 25-6, NET 38, SOS 48
- Colorado (Pac-12): 23-8, NET 23, SOS 23
- Tennessee (SEC): 23-11, NET 15, SOS 4
- **Washington State (Pac-12): 23-10, NET 30, SOS 12
No. 6 Seeds
- **Iowa State (Big 12): 22-9, NET 14, SOS 15
- Arizona (Pac-12): 21-9, NET 27, SOS 26
- Michigan (Big Ten): 22-9, NET 26, SOS 27
- NC State (ACC): 20-11, NET 17, SOS 2
No. 7 Seeds
- Florida State (ACC): 23-9, NET 24, SOS 56
- Louisville (ACC): 23-11, NET 20, SOS 14
- USC (Pac-12): 21-9, NET 31, SOS 37
- Creighton (Big East): 22-8, NET 18, SOS 38
No. 8 Seeds
- South Florida (American): 26-6, NET 35, SOS 77
- Oklahoma State (Big 12): 21-11, NET 46, SOS 52
- Gonzaga (WCC): 28-4, NET 44, SOS 96
- Ole Miss (SEC): 23-8, NET 25, SOS 63
No. 9 Seeds
- Baylor (Big 12): 19-12, NET 32, SOS 31
- Marquette (Big East): 21-10, NET 41, SOS 42
- Miami (ACC): 19-12, NET 50, SOS 47
- Purdue (Big Ten): 19-10, NET 49, SOS 51
No. 10 Seeds
- West Virginia (Big 12): 19-11, NET 60, SOS 50
- St. John's (Big East): 22-8, NET 55, SOS 75
- **Middle Tennessee (C-USA): 28-4, NET 28, SOS 205
- Alabama (SEC): 20-10, NET 29, SOS 64
- Illinois (Big Ten): 22-9, NET 42, SOS 73
No. 11 Seeds
- **South Dakota State (Summit): 28-5, NET 34, SOS 102
- **Princeton (Ivy): 23-5, NET 40, SOS 83
- Columbia (Ivy): 23-5, NET 47, SOS 92
- Kansas (Big 12): 19-11, NET 37, SOS 66
- **UNLV (MWC): 31-2, NET 51, SOS 238
No. 12 Seeds
- **Florida Gulf Coast (ASUN): 32-3, NET 36, SOS 229
- **Drake (MVC): 22-9, NET 52, SOS 101
- **Toledo (MAC): 28-4, NET 67, SOS 154
- **Portland (WCC): 23-8, NET 79, SOS 87
No. 13 Seeds
- **Cleveland State (Horizon): 30-4, NET 69, SOS 254
- **East Carolina (American): 23-9, NET 90, SOS 124
- **Sacramento State (Big Sky): 25-7, NET 86, SOS 326
- **Gardner-Webb (Big South): 29-4, NET 138, SOS 314
No. 14 Seeds
- **Saint Louis (Atlantic 10): 17-17, NET 135, SOS 112
- **James Madison (Sun Belt): 26-7, NET 101, SOS 316
- **Iona (MAAC): 26-6, NET 149, SOS 351
- **Southern Utah (WAC): 23-9, NET 133, SOS 110
No. 15 Seeds
- **Hawai'i (Big West): 18-14, NET 147, SOS 151
- **Vermont (America East): 25-6, NET 143, SOS 324
- **Norfolk State (MEAC): 26-6, NET 164, SOS 335
- **Holy Cross (Patriot): 24-8, NET 162, SOS 325
No. 16 Seeds
- **SE Louisiana (Southland): 21-9, NET 159, SOS 147
- **Tennessee Tech (OVC): 22-9, NET 169, SOS 315
- **Chattanooga (SoCon): 20-12, NET 165, SOS 236
- **Southern University (SWAC): 18-14, NET 257, SOS 94
- **Monmouth (CAA): 18-15, NET 231, SOS 329
- **Sacred Heart (NEC): 18-13, NET 265, SOS 361
Last Four In
- Alabama (SEC): 20-10, NET 29, SOS 64
- Illinois (Big Ten): 22-9, NET 42, SOS 73
- Columbia (Ivy): 23-5, NET 47, SOS 92
- Kansas (Big 12): 19-11, NET 37, SOS 66
First Four Out
- Mississippi State (SEC): 20-10, NET 39, SOS 71
- Arkansas (SEC): 21-12, NET 48, SOS 45
- Georgia (SEC): 21-11, NET 33, SOS 67
- Oregon (Pac-12): 17-14, NET 19, SOS 20
