2024-25 NCAA Women’s Basketball Start Date And Key Matchups

During the 2023-24 season, women’s college basketball received more attention than ever. For instance, the NCAA tournament games on ESPN’s networks averaged 2.2 million viewers, a 121% increase from the previous season. And the national title game between South Carolina and Iowa drew 18.9 million viewers, which shattered the all-time record of 14.4 million viewers that was set two days earlier with the Iowa-Connecticut Final Four game.

Stars such as Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and LSU’s Angel Reese are now in the WNBA, but there still should be a lot of eyes on women’s basketball this season. Below, we provide an overview of what to look forward to and expect.

When Does The Women’s College Basketball Season Start?

The season begins on Nov. 4. Eighteen of the 25 teams in the Associated Press’s preseason poll will be playing that day, including two matchups of ranked teams that are taking place in Paris, France: No. 20 Ole Miss vs. No. 3 USC tips off at 12 pm Eastern Time on ESPN, followed by No. 17 Louisville against No. 5 UCLA at 2:30 pm on ESPN2.

The Aflac Oui-play event is marketed and overseen by Complete Sports Management, a company that also runs the annual Battle 4 Atlantis men’s college basketball event in the Bahamas in November as well as the Bahamas Bowl, a college football bowl game in December.

USC and UCLA are both in their first years as members of the Big Ten conference and among the favorites to contend for a national title. The Associated Press this month named USC stars JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriafen (a Stanford transfer) as first team preseason All-Americans, while UCLA is led by 6-foot-7 junior center Lauren Betts, who averaged 14.9 points and 9.3 rebounds per game last season.

Ole Miss, meanwhile, has made the past three NCAA tournaments after not qualifying for the previous 13 tournaments. Seniors Madison Scott (12.8 points and 6.4 rebounds per game last season) and Kennedy Todd-Williams (10.6 points and 4.9 rebounds) are back, as is guard KK Deans, who only played six games last season due to a knee injury.

Louisville was upset in the first round of the NCAA tournament in March, its worst postseason showing since missing the tournament in 2010 in coach Jeff Walz’s third season. But Walz has a few players returning, including Olivia Cochran, who tied for the team lead in rebounding (6.6 per game) and was second in points (10.8 per game). They also have talented freshmen in guard Imari Berry (No. 19 in the HoopGurlz 2024 high school rankings), forward Mackenly Randolph (No. 23) and guard Tajianna Avant-Roberts (No. 24).

How Long Does The Season Run?

The season runs for more than five months. Teams play in their conference tournaments in early- to mid-March, and 68 teams will get selected for the NCAA tournament, which begins with the First Four on March 19. The first and second rounds take place from March 21-24, followed by regionals in Birmingham, Ala., and Spokane, Wash., from March 28-31. The season concludes with the Final Four in Tampa, Fla., with the national semifinals on April 4 and the national championship game on April 6. Tampa has also hosted the Final Four in 2008, 2015 and 2019.

Top Games To Watch Early In The Season

Here are five non-conference games to watch (in chronological order). These games should get the teams prepared as they enter their conference play, which begins in earnest in late December or early January.

No. 1 South Carolina Vs. No. 9 North Carolina State On Nov. 10

This is a rematch of the Final Four game in April, which South Carolina won, 78-59, in Cleveland, Ohio. It is the opener of the Ally Tipoff, a doubleheader in Charlotte, N.C., that also features Iowa playing Virginia Tech. South Carolina is looking to win its second consecutive national title and third in four years, while NC State is aiming for its first NCAA championship. Both teams have talented guards, with MiLaysia Fulwiley (11.7 points per game last season), Raven Johnson (8.1 points and 4.8 assists per game), Te-Hina Paopao (11 points per game) and Bree Hall (9.2 points per game) leading the way for South Carolina and returning starters and top scorers Aziaha James (16.8 points per game last season) and Saniya Rivers (12.5 points per game) back for NC State.

No. 6 Notre Dame At No. 3 USC On Nov. 23

This game will receive plenty of attention, as NBC will televise it at 4 pm Eastern Time heading into the Notre Dame-Army football game on the same channel. Both teams have sophomore All-Americans in USC’s JuJu Watkins and Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo. They also added impact transfers, with USC signing forward Kiki Iriafen (19.4 points and 11 rebounds per game at Stanford last season) and guard Talia Von Oelhoffen (10.7 points and 5 assists per game at Oregon State) and Notre Dame signing forwards Liatu King (18.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game at Pittsburgh) and Liza Karlen (17.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per game at Marquette).

No. 1 South Carolina Vs. No. 8 Iowa State On Nov. 28

South Carolina faces another difficult test when it plays Iowa State in the Fort Myers Tipoff in Florida. The game will be broadcast on Fox on Thanksgiving at 1:30 pm Eastern Time. Iowa State is led by sophomore center Audi Crooks, a first team All Big 12 Conference performer last season who averaged 19.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. The Cyclones also return sophomore forward Addy Brown, who averaged 13 points and 8.2 rebounds per game last season, and senior guard Emily Ryan, who averaged 11.6 points and 6.9 assists per game. The Big 12’s coaches selected Iowa State to finish second in the league behind Kansas State, which is ranked 13th in the preseason AP poll.

No. 4 Texas At No. 6 Notre Dame On Dec. 5

This is the marquee matchup of the SEC/ACC Challenge, which takes place on Dec. 4 and 5 and features 16 games. Notre Dame and Texas haven’t met since 1997 when the Fighting Irish won, 86-83, in an NCAA tournament second round game. Madison Booker, a first team preseason All-American, is the best player for Texas. As a freshman last season, the 6-foot-1 forward averaged 16.5 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game and was a second team All-American. The Longhorns also return forwards Taylor Jones (12.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game last season) and Aaliyah Moore (11.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per game), as well as point guard Rori Harmon, who averaged 14.8 points, 7.8 assists and 5.6 rebounds in 12 games before sustaining a season-ending knee injury in late December. Other matchups to watch in the SEC-ACC Challenge include No. 11 Duke at No. 1 South Carolina, No. 22 Kentucky at No. 15 North Carolina and No. 20 Ole Miss at No. 9 North Carolina State, all of which are on Dec. 5.

No. 3 USC At No. 2 UConn On Dec. 21

This game, which will take place at the XL Center in Hartford and air on Fox at 8 pm Eastern Time, is the end of a challenging stretch for UConn. The Huskies also face No. 17 Louisville on Dec. 7 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., No. 6 Notre Dame on Dec. 12 on the road and No. 8 Iowa State on Dec. 17 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. In March, UConn defeated USC, 80-73, to advance to the Final Four. USC was the top seed in the regional, while UConn was third. USC’s JuJu Watkins and UConn’s Paige Bueckers were first team All-Americans last season and should vie for national player of the year this season.

Major Storylines To Watch For This Season

Can South Carolina Win Its Second Consecutive NCAA Tournament And Third Title In Four Years?

The Gamecocks went 38-0 last season and defeated Iowa, 87-75, in the NCAA tournament championship game. Over the past three seasons, they have gone 109-3 with two national titles, with their only NCAA tournament loss occurring in the 2023 Final Four against Iowa. South Carolina enters this season No. 1 in the AP poll and could become the first repeat champion since UConn won four in a row from 2013 through 2016. Kamilla Cardoso, the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player and No. 3 overall pick in the WNBA draft, is no longer playing for the Gamecocks. But they return the other four starters: Raven Johnson, Te-Hima Paopao, Bree Hall and Chloe Kitts. They also have a standout freshman in forward Joyce Edwards, who was the No. 3 player in the high school Class of 2024, according to HoopGurlz.

Can UConn Win Its First National Title Since 2016?

Since winning four consecutive national titles from 2013 through 2016, the Huskies have not won another championship, which is their longest drought since they won their first NCAA title in 1995. Still, UConn is always in the mix. The Huskies have made the Final Four in six of the past seven tournaments, including last year when they lost to Iowa, 71-69, in a classic game. Paige Bueckers, a first time All-American, is back after averaging 21.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. UConn also returns starters Ashlynn Shade (11 points per game last season) and KK Arnold (8.9 points per game), as well as Azzi Fudd, the top recruit in the high school Class of 2021 who only played in two games last season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament. The Huskies have talented newcomers, too, including point guard Kaitlyn Chen, a transfer from Princeton who averaged 15.8 points and 4.9 assists per game last season, and freshman forward Sarah Strong, the No. 1 recruit in the high school Class of 2024.

How Will USC’s JuJu Watkins Perform After A Breakout Freshman Season?

With Iowa’s Caitlin Clark off to the WNBA, Watkins could become the face of women’s college basketball. Watkins, who just turned 19 in July, has Name, Image and Likeness deals with Gatorade, Nike and numerous other companies and is represented by Klutch Sports. Last season, Watkins was a first team All-American and averaged 27.1 points per game, second in the nation behind Clark, and broke the national freshman record with 920 points. She also averaged 7.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. USC lost in the Elite Eight to UConn, but the Trojans are No. 3 in the preseason AP poll and could win its first national title since 1984. Besides Watkins, the Trojans have another preseason first team All-American in Kiki Iriafen, a Stanford transfer who averaged 19.4 points and 11 rebounds per game last season.

How Will Stanford Fare Without Longtime Coach Tara VanDerveer?

VanDerveer, who won an NCAA-record 1,216 games, retired in April after 38 seasons at Stanford. With VanDerveer at the helm, the Cardinal advanced to 14 Final Fours and won national titles in 1990, 1992 and 2021. Kate Paye, who played for VanDerveer from 1991 through 1995 and was an assistant for 17 years, is now the head coach. Stanford is unranked in the preseason AP poll for the first time since 2000. The Cardinal were 30-6 last season, but they lost their top three scorers in Kiki Iriafen, who transferred to USC, and Cameron Brink and Hannah Jump, both of whom graduated. Stanford has two returning starting guards in Elena Bosgana and Talana Lepolo, yet the Cardinal were recently selected by the league’s coaches to finish seventh in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Stanford will have a difficult conference schedule as well as some tough non-conference games such as No. 25 Indiana on Nov. 17 on the road, No. 7 LSU on Nov. 5 on the road in the SEC/ACC Challenge and No. 14 Ohio State on Dec. 20 in a neutral court game at the Chase Center in San Francisco.

What Will Iowa Look Like In The Post-Caitlin Clark Era?

Clark was the biggest name in women’s basketball the past few seasons and one of the most popular players in all sports. She led the nation in scoring three times, broke the all-time college scoring record, played in the past two national title games and was a two-time national player of the year and three-time All-American. She also drew significant interest to Iowa games, both in arenas and on television. With Clark now in the WNBA, Iowa is starting anew and is unranked in the preseason AP poll. The Hawkeyes return two starters in forward Hannah Stuelke, who was second on the team in scoring (14 points per game) last season, and guard Sydney Affolter, who averaged 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. They also have Lucy Olsen, a transfer guard from Villanova who was third in the nation with 23.3 points per game last season. Stuelke and Olsen were selected to the preseason All-Big Ten team by the league’s head coaches.