Charlie CremeNov 26, 2025, 09:30 PM ETCloseCharlie Creme projects the women’s NCAA tournament bracket for ESPN.com.
play1:19Marquette Golden Eagles vs. Milwaukee Panthers: Game HighlightsMarquette Golden Eagles vs. Milwaukee Panthers: Game Highlights
play1:19LSU Tigers vs. Tulane Green Wave: Game HighlightsLSU Tigers vs. Tulane Green Wave: Game Highlights
Miami Hurricanes vs. Iowa Hawkeyes: Game Highlights (1:19)Miami Hurricanes vs. Iowa Hawkeyes: Game Highlights (1:19)
Marquette Golden Eagles vs. Milwaukee Panthers: Game HighlightsMarquette Golden Eagles vs. Milwaukee Panthers: Game Highlights
Las Vegas has already hosted important and exciting early-season games, but nothing tops next week’s Players Era Women’s Championship, a chance for players to earn NIL money and for teams to separate themselves from the other elite squads in the country.
That event is the highlight of the holiday week tournaments and games — but not the only intriguing action across the globe over the next week. Games from Puerto Rico to Cancun and from Florida to Texas help create one of the best stretches on the women’s basketball calendar this season.
Many of these games will have far-reaching implications into March and could be the difference between being in or out of the NCAA tournament field.
It’s a crowded sports calendar at this time of year, but this is your guide to the best games and how to watch them. Come back after the final whistle to see how each contest ended and for analysis on how it might impact March.
This was the first real test for Texas, which entered the game with an average margin of victory of 53.6 points. UCLA entered the matchup ranked third in the AP poll and as the No. 2 team in the latest Bracketology — ahead of Texas in both instances — and already has wins over Oklahoma and North Carolina on its résumé. Texas will certainly overtake the Bruins in both rankings following this win, which gives the Longhorns breathing room in their bid for a No. 1 seed.
UCLA will stay on the top line for now, but its margin for error isn’t as great — and Thursday’s consolation game will determine whether the Bruins stay there.
After the Players Era Championship, this is the next-best event of Thanksgiving week. The Jackrabbits and Tar Heels lead off a great first day. South Dakota State’s Brooklyn Meyer is off to a great start and ranks among the national leaders in scoring. North Carolina’s success starts with defense. The winner of that matchup likely wins the game.
The Wolfpack and Phoenix represent a contrast in styles. NC State wants to run. Green Bay likes to control the pace. This is a dangerous game for the Wolfpack, who can’t afford any more nonconference losses if they want a top-four seed in the NCAA tournament.
In a game between SEC rivals that officially counts as a nonconference game, the Longhorns and Gamecocks will meet to decide the clear No. 2 team in the country.
Coming off the most successful season in program history and with All-American candidate Maggie Doogan back, the expectations are high for Richmond. Four games removed from a 29-point loss at Texas on Nov. 7, this represents a chance to check the Spiders’ progress. The players have meshed quickly for the Horned Frogs, who should be unbeaten heading into Big 12 play with a win over the Spiders.
Coach Scott Rueck always seems to find a way at Oregon State — and how he defends Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes will be another test. After the Beavers’ win over Illinois, they are back in the NCAA tournament hunt.
Despite the quality of the opponents at the Players Era Championship, two losses in Las Vegas will be devastating to No. 1 seed aspirations — or possibly even No. 2 seed prospects given how many more challenges in and out of conference await the Blue Devils, Bruins, Gamecocks and Longhorns.
The Cyclones won’t have been challenged until this trip to Florida. Minnesota dominated Marquette two weeks ago, the Golden Eagles should approach this game with some desperation if the NCAA tournament is part of their future.
Marquette Golden Eagles vs. Milwaukee Panthers: Game Highlights
Marquette Golden Eagles vs. Milwaukee Panthers: Game Highlights
Allie Turner of Gonzaga and Indiana’s Shay Ciezki are two of the best small guards in the country. Ciezki is off to a fast start and is one of the best 3-point shooters in the nation.
Neither team was on the NCAA tournament radar until a combined 9-0 start. This could be the game that proves whether postseason hopes are realistic.
Expect plenty of points in this one. The Cowgirls hit the 100-point mark four times in their first five games.
Spin the wheel again in Cancun and more good matchups emerge. The Wildcats have eight players averaging at or around seven points. That kind of balance will help against a SDSU defense that is consistently good, especially in the half court, under coach Aaron Johnston.
The Vanderbilt-Oregon State winner will meet either BYU or Virginia Tech. Regardless of the matchup, this game will have meaning. If the Beavers come out of the Paradise Jam with two wins, they are not only the clear WCC favorite but also in a position to earn an at-large bid. The Hokies won’t likely threaten for the top of the ACC, but their at-large chances increase significantly with a championship here.
The Lions’ Riley Weiss scored 24 points in an NCAA tournament win over Washington last season. If you missed that, here is another chance to watch Weiss, who is having an even better junior season.
If the Atlantic 10 is going to get multiple bids to the NCAA tournament like it did a season ago, George Mason is the key. A game at Maryland right before this trip to Florida and this matchup with Ole Miss gives the Patriots their two biggest opportunities for a foundational résumé win.
In the four games with sophomore Liv McGill, the Gators have scored at least 87 points. In the game she missed with a leg injury, they scored 54. If she’s on the floor, Florida is a must-watch.
LSU and Washington State is the likely matchup here. The Tigers’ nonconference schedule once again doesn’t provide many challenges, and the Cougars are struggling this season. But this might be a chance to see MiLaysia Fulwiley in her new surroundings. She’s leading LSU in scoring despite still coming off the bench.
LSU Tigers vs. Tulane Green Wave: Game HighlightsLSU Tigers vs. Tulane Green Wave: Game Highlights
An Indiana-Iowa State meeting seems most likely here, and the Hoosiers have size to throw at Cyclones star Audi Crooks, who already has a 43-point game this season.
With their fast pace, ability to shoot and the addition of freshman Aaliyah Chavez, Oklahoma is fun to watch. The Sooners meeting Florida State here is the likely matchup in one of the final games of the weekend.
Michigan State and Clemson will be the big favorites to meet in this one. The Tigers’ early losses were to South Carolina and Louisville, but they played well for long stretches in both. The Spartans opened the season by scoring at least 92 points in four straight games, sparked by Grace VanSlooten and the best assist totals in the country.
Ohio State handed West Virginia its first loss of the season thanks to a strong fourth quarter. It gave Ohio State the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo championship, Goombay Division, in Nassau, Bahamas. It’s a big win for Ohio State, which has now won three consecutive games after a tough 100-68 loss to No. 1 UConn on Nov. 16, and should help propel the Buckeyes, who were already on the rise as a No. 7 seed in ESPN’s latest Bracketology.
This loss will sting for West Virginia, which led by eight with less than four minutes left and won the rebounding battle 38-28. Most things lined up for a West Virginia win. But the Mountaineers committed 25 turnovers to Ohio State’s 17 — West Virginia is typically on the right side of turnover margin — and shot 4-of-17 from 3-point range.
Ohio State guards Jaloni Cambridge, the team’s leading scorer this season, and her sister, Kennedy Cambridge, both fouled out in the last 4½ minutes. Two other Ohio State players, Kylee Kitts and Bryn Martin, also fouled out of the game. Yet the Buckeyes still managed to outscore the Mountaineers 28-20 in the final period.
Ohio State guard Ava Watson made two free throws with three seconds left to give the Buckeyes an 83-80 lead. West Virginia still had a chance to tie the score as guard Sydney Shaw was fouled on a 3-point attempt with six-tenths of a second left. She missed the first attempt, made the second and intentionally missed the third to try to get a rebound and putback for the Mountaineers. But Ohio State grabbed the ball and the victory.
Jaloni Cambridge led Ohio State (5-1) with 22 points. Guard Gia Cooke’s 24 points led West Virginia. — Michael Voepel
Auburn has opened Larry Vickers’ coaching tenure with the Tigers with eight straight wins, and this one was by far the biggest. Cal had just moved into the field in the latest Bracketology as a No. 10 seed, and Auburn was among the First Four Out. If these two remain bubble teams come March, this could prove to be a difference-making win for the Tigers, who were led by senior guard A’riel Jackson’s 17 points.
Another one of these matchups awaits Auburn on Sunday when the Tigers host Oregon. The Bears will fall entirely out of NCAA tournament contention for now if they drop a game at Missouri next Thursday in the ACC/SEC Challenge.
The Buffaloes just moved back into the NCAA field in the latest Bracketology as the second-to-last team in. They immediately fall back out after this loss in the Hawaii North Shore Showcase. It’s an extremely damaging defeat since Colorado doesn’t have another potential résumé-building nonconference game on the schedule.
With upcoming games against Georgia Tech and West Virginia, both of which rank in the top-50 of the NET, the Aggies set themselves up nicely with this win. Texas A&M completely controlled the second half with 23 points from new point guard Ny’Ceara Pryor.
This was a must-have for the Bulldogs. They have gotten off to a good start, but this Emerald Coast Classic Bay Bracket championship game against Middle Tennessee marked their best nonconference game the rest of the way. A loss here would have been damaging to the résumé, so while a win guarantees nothing, beating the Blue Raiders sets Mississippi State up to have a solid record when SEC play begins.