South Carolina, Indiana, Stanford and UConn earn top seeds in first DI WBB Committee Top-16 Reveal

The NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee tabbed South Carolina, Indiana, Stanford, and UConn as the No. 1 seeds in the first top-16 early reveal announced on Thursday evening.

If the season ended today, LSU, Utah, Iowa and Duke would be the No. 2 seeds. The nine through 16 seeds feature Maryland, Notre Dame, Michigan and Texas on the three line, while Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Villanova and Ohio State were tabbed as No. 4 seeds.

The NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship regional rounds in 2023 will be utilizing a two-site format, with eight competing teams playing at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina, and eight teams at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. 

The committee provided region assignments for all 16 seeds, with Greenville Regional 1 including South Carolina, Duke, Maryland, and Ohio State. Greenville Regional 2 included Indiana, Utah, Notre Dame and Villanova. Seattle Regional 3 included Stanford, Iowa, Texas, and North Carolina, while Seattle Regional 4 included UConn, LSU, Michigan and Virginia Tech. The number listed next to the regional site location (e.g. Seattle Regional 4) reflects the true seed number of the number one seed within that respective regional pod.

“Today’s first top-16 reveal proved very difficult because of the amount of parity we are seeing in our game this season,” said Lisa Peterson, senior associate commissioner of the Pac-12 Conference and chair of the Division I Women’s Basketball Committee. “The next 32 days before Selection Sunday will be very telling for all of the teams earning top-16 seeds today and for all of the other teams chasing them.” 

The defending national champion, South Carolina, 23-0 overall and 10-0 in Southeastern Conference (SEC) play, was the No. 1 overall seed in this first reveal. The Gamecocks are currently the No. 1 team in the latest Associated Press women’s college basketball top 25 poll. 

Indiana, 22-1 overall and 12-1 in Big Ten Conference play, was the No. 2 overall seed. The Hoosiers are riding a 10-game winning streak going into an important home game against Iowa on Feb. 9.

Stanford, 22-3 overall and 10-2 in Pac-12 Conference play, was the No. 3 overall seed. Winners of five of the last six games, the Cardinal also came up short against South Carolina, 76-71 in overtime, in a game played Nov. 20 at Stanford.

UConn, the No. 4 overall seed, is currently 21-4 overall and 13-1 in Big East Conference play. The Huskies dropped a hard-fought home contest against South Carolina on Feb. 6 by an 81-77 count.

Thursday’s top-16 reveal was the first of two that will be provided by the committee during the 2022-23 regular season. The other will take place on Thursday, February 23 during halftime of the South Carolina-Tennessee game on ESPN that will tip-off at 7 p.m. ET.

The top-16 teams announced during both reveals have no bearing on the final 68-team field for the 2023 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship that will be announced during the NCAA Women’s Basketball Selection Show on Sunday, March 12 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The First Four opening-round games of the 2023 championship will take place March 15-16 and will again be conducted on the campuses of four of the teams seeded in the top 16. First- and second-round games will take place March 17-20 on the campuses of the top-16 seeds. Regional play in Greenville and Seattle will take place March 24-27, with each site hosting two regional semifinal games March 24 and two March 25. In addition, each site will host a regional championship game March 26 and one March 27. The 2023 Women’s Final Four will be played March 31 and April 2 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee – February 9 – Top 16 Ranking*

1. South Carolina
2. Indiana
3. Stanford
4. UConn
5. LSU
6. Utah
7. Iowa 
8. Duke
9. Maryland
10. Notre Dame
11. Michigan
12. Texas
13. Virginia Tech
14. North Carolina
15. Villanova
16. Ohio State

REGIONAL ASSIGNMENTS

Greenville Regional 1:  

1. South Carolina
2. Duke
3. Maryland
4. Ohio State

Greenville Regional 2:

1. Indiana
2. Utah
3. Notre Dame
4. Villanova

Seattle Regional 3:

1. Stanford
2. Iowa
3. Texas
4. North Carolina

Seattle Regional 4:

1. UConn
2. LSU
3. Michigan
4. Virginia Tech

*Rankings and regional assignments based on games played through Wednesday, February 8.