Road to the Championship
Women's Final Four Championship Home

Road to the Championship
National Participation
There are 345 NCAA member institutions that sponsor Division I Women’s Basketball teams and are eligible to compete in the National Championship. All 345 programs support approximately 7,000 Women’s Basketball student-athletes across the country.
Selection Process
The 2018 Division I Women’s Basketball championship provides for a field of 64 teams to compete in a single elimination tournament. Of the 64 teams, 32 teams will receive automatic qualification with the remaining best 32 teams selected on an at-large basis by the Division I Women’s Basketball Championship Sport Committee.
Selection Show | Monday, March 12, 2018
The 2018 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship bracket will be announced Monday, March 12 on ESPN at 7 p.m. ET.
First & Second Rounds | March 16-19, 2018
First- and second-round competition for the 2018 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship will be held on 16 non-predetermined campus sites. At each campus site, four teams will compete in single-elimination first-round competition. The two winning teams will then compete against each other in single-elimination second-round competition at the same campus site. The winning team from each of the 16 second-round games will advance to the regional rounds of play.
Regionals | March 23-26, 2018
Regionals for the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship will be held March 23-26 at four locations. At each site, four teams will compete in regional semifinal competition. The two winning teams will then compete against each other in the regional final competition at the same site. The winning team from each of the four regionals will advance to the 2018 Women’s Final Four.
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DATES | SEMIFINAL GAME TIMES | FINAL GAME TIMES |
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March 23, 25 | Friday, 7 and 9:30 p.m. ET | Sunday, Noon ET |
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Kansas City, Mo. | March 23, 25 | Friday, 7 and 9:30 p.m. ET | Sunday, 7:30 p.m. ET | Sprint Center | Big 12 Conference and Kansas City Sports Commission |
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March 24, 26 | Saturday, 11:30 a.m and 2 p.m. ET | Monday, 7 p.m. ET |
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March 24, 26 | Saturday, 4 and 6:30 p.m. ET | Monday, 9 p.m. ET |
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National Championship | March 30 and April 1, 2018
The 2018 Women’s Final Four will be held at Nationwide Arena in Columbus. National semifinals will be held on Friday, March 30 at 7 and 9:30 p.m. ET, with the national championship game taking place on Sunday, April 1 at 6 p.m. ET.