The first round of the 2026 women’s NCAA tournament is complete! We tracked every game Saturday, from USC’s overtime thriller against Clemson to UConn’s impressive start and Virginia’s come-from-behind win.
Here is ESPN’s guide to all the Day 2 results, with analysis from reporters of how each game was won, and our experts’ takes on each winner’s chances to advance to the Sweet 16.
How UCLA won: After a competitive first half, UCLA came out of halftime and scored the first 11 points of the third quarter. The Bruins never looked back, and they led by 37 points at the end of the third quarter. Their plus-27 point differential in the third quarter is their second best since quarters were adopted in 2015-16, according to ESPN Research. UCLA had five players with double-digit points in the victory, led by center Lauren Betts with 22. Betts also had 10 rebounds.
How the Commodores can advance to the Sweet 16: The Commodores are headed to the round of 32 for the first time since 2013, where they ran into then-No. 1-seeded UConn. This year, they will face Illinois. After falling to Ole Miss in the first round of the SEC tournament a few weeks ago, the Commodores believe they have a lot more in them than what they showed. It started against High Point. — Kendra Andrews
How Syracuse won: The Orange couldn’t stop Iowa State junior center Audi Crooks, who had 37 points on 17-of-25 shooting. But the Cyclones basically stopped themselves from 3-point range, going 3-of-22 (14%). That was too much to overcome for an Iowa State program that has relied so much on 3-point shooting for the past 30 years. Junior guard Jada Williams was the only other Cyclone in double figures (14 points) as Iowa State finished 22-10.
Syracuse had a big performance from a center, too, with ACC Rookie of the Year Uche Izoje leading four players in double-figure scoring with 23 points. Guard Laila Phelia, a fifth-year senior spending her final season at Syracuse, had 18 points. Sophomore guard Olivia Schmitt had 15 points, making five of the Orange’s nine 3-pointers, and junior guard Sophie Burrows had 14 points.
How the Orange can advance to the Sweet 16: The Orange will need to pull an epic upset. UConn has made the Sweet 16 every tournament from 1994 to 2025, and has defeated Syracuse 27 times in a row, going back to the days when both schools were in the old Big East. In all, UConn is 39-4 against the Orange. Their last meeting was a 72-64 UConn victory in the 2024 NCAA second round.
With Izoje and another 6-foot-3 player, forward Journey Thompson, the Orange have some size to go up against UConn star forward Sarah Strong. But considering what Crooks was able to do against Syracuse, the Orange will need better defense against Strong and the Huskies. — Michael Voepel
How the Mountaineers can advance to the Sweet 16: The Mountaineers are heading to the second round for the third consecutive year, but their aspirations are set further than that. West Virginia wants to make it to the second weekend for the first time since 1992. That year was also the last time West Virginia hosted the first two rounds of the tournament, which it is doing this year as well. To get back to the Sweet 16, the Mountaineers will have to go through Kentucky. — Andrea Adelson
The game saw 19 lead changes and seven ties. Mia Moore almost sealed the win for Clemson when she hit an incredible bank shot as regulation expired, but the game clock expired just moments before she got her shot off.
Randolph led Louisville with a career-high 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting and a career-high 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double in the last five games. Hanson finished with 22 points to lead Vermont.
How the Cardinals can advance to the Sweet 16: There is no doubt Jeff Walz will want his team to get off to a much better start in the next round after struggling in particular to score off the pass. The ball movement vastly improved in the second half, and the way Randolph has played over the last five games is something for Louisville to build off headed into its next game. It is clear that Vermont provided a test the Cardinals can learn from as they move forward. — Andrea Adelson
How the Bruins can advance to the Sweet 16: Despite the 53-point win, UCLA allowed 34 points in the first half, the most the team had allowed in a first half since Jan. 18 against Maryland. The Bruins will want to compete against Oklahoma State more like they did in the second half, when they held California Baptist to nine points. The biggest discrepancy between the teams showed up on the glass. In the regular season, UCLA averaged 15.6 second-chance points per game. On Saturday against California Baptist, it had 17 second-chance points in the first half. The Bruins used their size advantage over the Lancers to outrebound CBU 62-21. — Sarah Barshop
How Illinois won: The Illini have a very young team, but they looked poised and composed Saturday in a game that was tight until the closing minutes. Illinois had two strong NCAA tournament debuts from freshmen: Forward Cearah Parchment had 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting, and guard Destiny Jackson had 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Sophomore forward Berry Wallace added 18 points for the Illini, who are into the NCAA second round for the second year in a row. Before last year, Illinois had not been to the second round since 2000. Junior guard Desiree Wooten had 17 points and seven rebounds to lead the Buffaloes, who finished 22-12.
How Oklahoma State won: Oklahoma State weathered a third-quarter storm from Princeton that brought the Tigers within four points in what was otherwise a game controlled by the No. 8-seeded Cowgirls. Oklahoma State was led by forward Achol Akot (28 points) and guard Jadyn Wooten, who led the team with 10 assists. Akot’s dominance came in the paint, where she scored 24 such points against Princeton — the most by an Oklahoma State player in an NCAA tournament game since ESPN began tracking in 2021. On defense, Oklahoma State forced Princeton to settle for jump shots. According to ESPN Research, the Tigers attempted just 13 layups compared with 47 jump shots. They were 5-of-13 on layups and 21-of-47 on jump shots.
How the Cowgirls can advance to the Sweet 16: Oklahoma State was a well-rounded team this season, with five players averaging 10 or more points per game. According to ESPN Research, it was the only team in the Big 12 with five players averaging double-digit scoring. On Saturday against Princeton, Oklahoma State came close to that number, with four players in double digits and eight points for guard Stailee Heard. Oklahoma State lost in the first round of the tournament a year ago to South Dakota State, and that loss stuck with the team. In her pre-tournament news conference, guard Micah Gray said she thought the team was “hungry” to get a win and get out of the first round. Oklahoma State accomplished that on Saturday and will face UCLA on Monday. — Sarah Barshop
How Vanderbilt won: Vanderbilt took control of the game from the tip, jumping out to an 11-0 run, and the Commodores never looked back. Mikayla Blakes led the way, as she has all year, finishing with 30 points on 11-of-16 shooting, five assists and three rebounds in 29 minutes. But she didn’t do it alone. Sacha Washington had a double-double, and Aubrey Galvan finished with 17 points, six assists and four steals. Their well-balanced attack — as well as their big lead — allowed Blakes to rest for the majority of the second half. All of Vanderbilt’s starters were pulled midway through the third, giving them ample time to get their legs ready for the second round.
How West Virginia won: After West Virginia fell behind 14-11 in the first quarter, it flipped a switch and never looked back, building as much as a 36-point lead. It all started with the defense, which has been the Mountaineers’ signature all season long. The press defense in particular caused a ton of issues for Miami. West Virginia held Miami to 2-of-5 shooting and forced 10 turnovers in possessions that started in a press. The Mountaineers are now the second team this tournament (along with Ohio State) to force at least 10 opponent turnovers with the defensive press. West Virginia had four players finish in double-figure scoring, led by Sydney Shaw with 19 points and nine rebounds. Kierra Wheeler had a near double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds, and Jordan Harrison had 15 points and eight assists.
How Iowa won: It looked for a while like history might be made: the first women’s NCAA tournament victory by a No. 15 seed. The Northeast Conference champion Knights entered the NCAA tournament on a 22-game winning streak and kept Saturday’s game against Iowa at a slow pace. After three quarters, Iowa had just a 35-33 lead. But the Hawkeyes finally took control in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Knights 23-15. Iowa was led by its post players: Sophomore Ava Heiden had 29 points on 11-of-16 shooting, and senior Hannah Stuelke had 13 points and 16 rebounds. Fairleigh Dickinson made 10 3-pointers to Iowa’s one. Sophomore Ava Renninger led the Knights with 13 points as FDU finished its season 30-5.
How the Hawkeyes can advance to the Sweet 16: The Hawkeyes need to shoot better from the perimeter against the Cavaliers, their second-round opponent, than they did against the Knights. Virginia already has won two games on the Carver-Hawkeye Arena court: 57-55 Thursday over Arizona State in the First Four and then Saturday’s 82-73 overtime win over No. 7 seed Georgia in the first round. Virginia junior guard Kymora Johnson had a combined 45 points, 17 rebounds and 11 assists in those games, so the Hawkeyes will need to try to slow her down while continuing to rely on their powerful post offense. — Michael Voepel
How USC won: Freshman Jazzy Davidson took over for the Trojans in overtime — the second OT game of the day — scoring six of USC’s eight points in the extra period. She made history during the game, with her 31 points matching the most by a USC player in her NCAA tournament debut. She also became the first freshman with 30 points, five rebounds and five assists in her first career NCAA tournament game over the past 25 years. Davidson scored or assisted on 43 of USC’s 71 points. Kara Dunn came alive in the fourth quarter, giving Davidson just the right amount of support to steal this game away. She finished with 22 points and four rebounds.