NCAA Women’s basketball tournament 2016: Bracket, schedule and scores

The 2016 NCAA women’s tournament is likely to once again feature UConn prominently. Why wouldn’t it? The Huskies are the national No. 1 seed, the only unbeaten team in the sport, and the only program that has three-time Final Four Most Outstanding Player Breanna Stewart in its starting lineup.

That doesn’t mean that the Huskies are a lock to win their 11th national title, and give Geno Auriemma one more trophy than John Wooden won in his time at UCLA. Sure, UConn does have a road to the Final Four that runs through Connecticut, and has gone 2-0 against other No. 1 seeds and also beaten a No. 2 seed and a No. 3 seed this season, and hasn’t lost since November 2014, which was the Huskies’ only loss since March 2013, and ... okay, yes, UConn’s basically a lock to win that 11th title.

But, hey, No. 1 seed South Carolina is as good as it has ever been, and No. 2 seed Maryland isn’t scared of the Huskies. No. 6 seed South Florida, which led UConn at the half in a recent meeting, is even in the Huskies’ region! In all probability, six teams will get a shot at derailing the UConn train, and it’s hard to win six games in a row.

Except: UConn has won 69 games in a row, and as such has won six games in a row 11 times over in the last two years. So good luck, everyone else!

The women’s NCAA Tournament -- the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, if you’re feeling formal -- is a 64-team, single-elimination tournament that resembles the men’s NCAA Tournament, with some significant differences. The most important difference is that the women’s tournament plays its first two rounds at campus sites, with teams seeded No. 4 or higher hosting subregional pods. That’s why games will be played in Storrs (UConn), Corvallis (Oregon State), and South Bend (Notre Dame) in the tournament’s first weekend.

The lone top-four seed that is not hosting play is No. 4 Michigan State, which is playing in Starkville (home to No. 5 Mississippi State in the same subregional pod) thanks to a scheduling conflict with Michigan high school girls’ basketball.

From there, teams move on to regionals that are named after their cities, not regions — with the cities chosen often significantly smaller and closer to epicenters of women’s basketball fans than ones used for the men’s NCAA Tournament. UConn, for example, would go to the Bridgeport Regional for Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games, and can get to the Final Four without ever leaving the Nutmeg State.

But while No. 1 seed Baylor could stay in-state at a Dallas Regional, No. 1 seed South Carolina will have to travel to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to play Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games. And while No. 1 seed Notre Dame won’t have to travel that far to get to Lexington should it advance to the second weekend of play, the Irish could find themselves in a regular final against No. 3 seed Kentucky on the Wildcats’ home floor — and Kentucky has a path to the Final Four that doesn’t require any travel at all.

This year’s Final Four will take place at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Bridgeport Region

No. 1 UConn
No. 2 Texas
No. 3 UCLA
No. 4 Michigan State
No. 5 Mississippi State
No. 6 South Florida
No. 7 Brigham Young
No. 8 Seton Hall
No. 9 Duquesne
No. 10 Missouri
No. 11 Colorado State
No. 12 Chattanooga
No. 13 Belmont
No. 14 Hawai’i
No. 15 Alabama State
No. 16 Robert Morris

Dallas Region

No. 1 Baylor
No. 2 Oregon State
No. 3 Louisville
No. 4 Texas A&M
No. 5 Florida State
No. 6 DePaul
No. 7 Oklahoma State
No. 8 St. John’s
No. 9 Auburn
No. 10 St. Bonaventure
No. 11 James Madison
No. 12 Middle Tennessee State
No. 13 Missouri State
No. 14 Central Arkansas
No. 15 Troy
No. 16 Idaho

Sioux Falls Region

No. 1 South Carolina
No. 2 Arizona State
No. 3 Ohio State
No. 4 Syracuse
No. 5 Florida
No. 6 West Virginia
No. 7 Tennessee
No. 8 George Washington
No. 9 Kansas State
No. 10 Green Bay
No. 11 Princeton
No. 12 Albany
No. 13 Army
No. 14 Buffalo
No. 15 New Mexico State
No. 16 Jacksonville

Lexington Region

No. 1 Notre Dame
No. 2 Maryland
No. 3 Kentucky
No. 4 Michigan State
No. 5 Stanford
No. 6 Miami
No. 7 Oklahoma
No. 8 Washington
No. 9 Georgia
No. 10 Penn
No. 11 Purdue
No. 12 South Dakota State
No. 13 San Francisco
No. 14 UNC Asheville
No. 15 Iona
No. 16 North Carolina A&T

You can find the printable 2016 women’s NCAA Tournament bracket here.

ESPN will air the entirety of the women’s NCAA Tournament on its roster of channels, but will air the games of the first weekend on ESPN2 using “whip-around” coverage. Fans in home markets of teams (check ESPN’s coverage map) will be able to watch those teams’ games in their entirety, but fans without a home-market team currently playing will be shown “the most compelling action from multiple games.”

Games will also be available for online streaming via ESPN3 and WatchESPN, and via the ESPN app.

Friday, March 18 (all times Eastern, all broadcasts on ESPN2)

No. 4 Michigan State 74, No. 13 Belmont 60
No. 6 West Virginia 74, No. 11 Princeton 65
No. 12 Albany 61, No. 5 Florida 58
No. 6 DePaul 97, No. 11 James Madison 67
No. 3 Louisville 87, No. 14 Central Arkansas 60
No. 3 Ohio State 88, No. 14 Buffalo 69
No. 4 Syracuse 73, No. 13 Army 56
No. 5 Mississippi State 60, No. 12 Chattanooga 50
No. 1 Baylor 89, No. 16 Idaho 59
No. 9 Kansas State 56, No. 8 George Washington 51
No. 7 Tennessee 59, No. 10 Green Bay 53
No. 2 Oregon State 73, No. 15 Troy 31
No. 1 South Carolina 77, No. 16 Jacksonville 41
No. 2 Arizona State 74, No. 15 New Mexico State 52
No. 9 Auburn 68, No. 8 St. John’s 57
No. 10 St. Bonaventure 65, No. 7 Oklahoma State 54

Saturday, March 19

No. 1 UConn 101, No. 16 Robert Morris 49
No. 9 Duquesne 97, No. 8 Seton Hall 76
No. 2 Maryland 74, No. 15 Iona 58
No. 5 Florida State 72, No. 12 Middle Tennessee State 55
No. 6 Oklahoma 61, No. 11 Purdue 45
No. 3 Kentucky 85, No. 14 UNC Asheville 31
No. 4 Texas A&M 74, No. 13 Missouri State 65
No. 7 Washington 65, No. 10 Penn 53
No. 1 Notre Dame 94, No. 16 North Carolina A&T 61
No. 3 UCLA 66, No. 14 Hawai’i 50
No. 12 South Dakota State 74, No. 5 Miami 71
No. 10 Missouri 78, No. 7 Brigham Young 69
No. 2 Texas 86, No. 15 Alabama State 42
No. 4 Stanford 85, No. 13 San Francisco 58
No. 6 South Florida 48, No. 11 Colorado State 45
No. 9 Indiana 62, No. 8 Georgia 58

Sunday, March 20

No. 4 Syracuse 76, No. 12 Albany 59
No. 3 Ohio State 88, No. 6 West Virginia 81
No. 6 DePaul 73, No. 3 Louisville 72
No. 5 Mississippi State 74, No. 4 Michigan State 72
No. 1 South Carolina 73, No. 9 Kansas State 47
No. 1 Baylor 84, No. 9 Auburn 52
No. 7 Tennessee 75, No. 2 Arizona State 64
No. 2 Oregon State 69, No. 10 St. Bonaventure 40

Monday, March 21

No. 1 UConn 97, No. 9 Duquesne 51
No. 1 Notre Dame 87, No. 9 Indiana 70
No. 7 Washington 74, No. 2 Maryland 65
No. 2 Texas 72, No. 10 Missouri 55
No. 3 Kentucky 79, No. 6 Oklahoma 58
No. 3 UCLA 72, No. 6 South Florida 67
No. 5 Florida State 74, No. 4 Texas A&M 56.
No. 4 Stanford 66. No. 12 South Dakota State 65

Friday, March 25

No. 4 Syracuse 80, No. 1 South Carolina 72
No. 7 Washington 85, No. 3 Kentucky 72
No. 4 Stanford 90, No. 1 Notre Dame 84
No. 7 Tennessee 78, No. 3 Ohio State 62

Saturday, March 26

No. 1 Connecticut 98, No. 5 Mississippi State 38
No. 2 Texas 72, No. 3 UCLA 64
No. 1 Baylor 78, No. 5 Florida State 58
No. 2 Oregon State 83, No. 6 DePaul 71

Sunday, March 27

No. 7 Washington 85, No. 4 Stanford 76
No. 4 Syracuse 89, No. 7 Tennessee 67

Monday, March, 28

No. 1 Connecticut 86, No. 2 Texas 65
No. 2 Oregon State 60, No. 1 Baylor 57

Sunday, April 3

No. 1 Connecticut 80, No. 2 Oregon State 51
No. 4 Syracuse 80, No. 7 Washington 59

Tuesday, April 5

Connecticut vs. Syracuse, 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Greatest Cinderella: Was it the NC State Wolfpack or Butler Bulldogs?

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