After an impressive 26-5 season, the Notre Dame women's basketball team was named the No. 3 seed in the Birmingham Regional of the upcoming NCAA Tournament. This is the fourth consecutive March Madness appearance for the Fighting Irish, who will welcome the No. 14 seed Stephen F. Austin (SFA) Ladyjacks to South Bend for Friday's First Round contest.
Following three straight Sweet Sixteen berths, head coach Niele Ivey's team soared to new heights during the 2024-25 season, achieving the No. 1 ranking prior to a late-season slide. Led by a standout backcourt of graduate Olivia Miles, senior Sonia Citron and sophomore Hannah Hidalgo, the Irish collected three wins over top-10 opponents, including the Texas Longhorns who were slated as the No. 1 seed in the Irish's region.
Champions of the Southland Conference, the Ladyjacks returned to the field for the first time since 2022. Since a 75-71 defeat at Nicholls on Jan. 18, SFA has reeled off 15 consecutive victories, including Thursday's triumph over top-seeded Southeastern Louisiana to clinch an automatic bid. The Ladyjacks sport a high-powered offense, with all five starters averaging in double figures. Second-year head coach Leonard Bishop's side is led by graduate guard Faith Blackstone, who averages nearly 15 points per game.
As a top-four seed in the tournament, Notre Dame earned the honor of hosting multiple on-campus games for the third straight season. In addition to their showdown with Stephen F. Austin, Purcell Pavilion will host No. 6 seed Michigan and the winner of the First Four game between Iowa State and Princeton.
With the Cyclones and Tigers being two of the final four at-large selections, the March Madness festivities will kick off in South Bend Wednesday evening as the two battle for the right to face Michigan in the First Round.
After missing last season's NCAA Tournament, the Wolverines turned in a strong 22-10 season behind the performance of freshman guard Olivia Olson. The Minnesota native is averaging over 16 points per game with some of the most efficient true shooting numbers in the nation. Much like the Irish, the Wolverines have played numerous close games against top-end competition, setting up the an interesting potential Second Round rivalry affair.
Alongside conference champions Harvard and fellow First Four competitor Columbia, the Tigers were included in the bracket in a banner year for the Ivy League. Despite dropping Friday's tournament semifinal to the Crimson, Princeton still earned their fourth consecutive March Madness appearance. Led by sophomore guard Skye Belker, the Tigers used a strong non-conference showing to achieve a record of 21-7 heading into the Big Dance.
Led by 30-year head coach Bill Fennelly, Iowa State used a late-season surge in which they won seven of their last nine games to qualify for the tournament for a second straight season. Star sophomore center Audi Crooks garnered national attention in last year's tournament, as her play helped the team take a talented Stanford side to overtime in the Second Round. The Iowa native has upped her performance this year, tallying over 23 points and seven rebounds a night.
Speaking with the media after the brackets were announced, Ivey stressed the importance of her team controlling what's in front of them without focusing on the setbacks of the last two weeks.
"Our group needed to reset physically and mentally, but then it was right back to work," Ivey said. "We've tried to learn from some of the lessons from dropping three of our last five, and we've just tried to get back to the basics."
She continued to emphasize the focus on defensive principles for the tournament, especially against the powerful Ladyjacks offense.
"When we aren’t getting stops that hurts our ability to get out and run, and controlling pace has been important for us in our non-conference games," Ivey said.
Hidalgo agreed with her coach, adding that "We learned a lot about ourselves recently. We are extremely hungry after how we ended the season, and it's important that we stay locked in for every game."
Official tip-off times for the NCAA Tournament have yet to be released, but both First Round games will take place on Friday. The Second Round showdown will then occur on Sunday, with coverage for all games being broadcasted on the ESPN family of networks.
