The NCAA Tournament opening rounds historically haven\u2019t produced many upsets from the women\u2019s teams.\u00a0 The most stunning all-time upset was No. 16 Harvard defeating No. 1 Stanford. But that was way back in 1998. A No. 14 or No. 15 seed has ever won a tournament game.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A No. 13 seed has worn the Cinderella tiara only once in the last seven tournaments and only seven times ever (four occasions in the wild times between 2000-2007). No. 12 (26 times) and No. 11 seeds (37 times) are a little more regular at providing upsets. Will there be any magic this season? Check out our odds predictions here<\/a> and our forecast bracket here<\/a>. And don\u2019t forget to see how your The Athletic bracket<\/a> is doing against the expert bracket from Chantel Jennings.<\/p>\n Follow along today for our takeaways from the opening day of March Madness.<\/p>\n Tennessee without Janiah Barker<\/p>\n Just before Tennessee\u2019s upcoming first-round game against NC State, ESPN announced that the Lady Vols\u2019 second-leading scorer, Janiah Barker, was ruled out due to an illness.<\/p>\n Barker, a UCLA transfer, averages 14.3 points per game, and leads Tennessee with 6.3 rebounds per game. She met with the media and practiced on Thursday, but began feeling ill earlier in the day on Friday, ESPN said.<\/p>\n Barker is a massive loss for Tennessee, which reached the Sweet 16 last season and was hoping to build off of that success. Instead, the Lady Vols finished the regular season 16-13 after losing 10 of their final 12 games, including their last seven.<\/p>\n The end of the season has brought some uneasy moments and buzz around Knoxville about second-year coach Kim Caldwell\u2019s job security entering the tournament.\u00a0 A win for the No. 10 seed Lady Vols would help her case, but losing Barker makes that substantially harder against No. 7 seed NC State.<\/p>\n Caldwell\u2019s $4 million buyout may be too rich for Tennessee to cut ties with her after this season, but a first-round exit could make next season even more important for Caldwell and the Lady Vols. \u2014 Cameron Teague Robinson<\/p>\n No. 6 Washington 72, No. 11 South Dakota State 54<\/p>\n Up next: No. 3 TCU, Round 2, Sunday<\/p>\n Last season, Avery Howell was thrust into a bigger position for USC when star guard JuJu Watkins tore her ACL in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Howell, who had played more than 25 minutes only five times during the regular season, went on to average 34 minutes a game between the second round and when the Trojans ultimately lost to UConn in the Elite Eight.<\/p>\n During the offseason, the Idaho native transferred to Washington but with the Huskies picking up a No. 6 seed this postseason \u2014 matching the second-best mark for the program since 1995 \u2014 Howell was eager to bring that March experience with her to Washington.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that (2025 experience) just helped me gain confidence that I was prepared for that moment. And I hope to bring that this year and just be a steady force on the court,\u201d Howell said. \u201cWhatever the team needs from me, I want to provide that just so our team can be as successful as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n If by \u201csteady force,\u201d Howell actually meant a 3-point shooting menace? Then, yes. She was a steady force for the Huskies in their first-round win over South Dakota State.<\/p>\n The sophomore sunk a career-best seven 3-pointers and led all scorers with 30 points. She added another nine rebounds, two steals and one assist in Friday\u2019s win.<\/p>\n Howell\u2019s hot hand meant that Washington\u2019s leading scorer, Sayvia Sellers, attempted far fewer shots than usual (just five field goal attempts compared to 14). But if Howell can carry over this shooting performance and Sellers can get up her typical performance in the second round, then the Huskies\u2019 meeting with TCU becomes quite a bit more interesting. Washington averaged about six fewer points per game this season, but when Howell is on fire from long range like that? Another six points is nothing.<\/p>\n Plus, Washington must feel good about how being battle-tested through the Big Ten can help it in the postseason. The Huskies\u2019 two best wins (over Michigan and Maryland in January) are better than TCU\u2019s best win (West Virginia, twice). \u2014 Chantel Jennings<\/p>\n Skylar Jones leaves Louisville before NCAA Tournament<\/p>\n Louisville coach Jeff Walz announced Friday that junior guard Skylar Jones is no longer with the program. At Friday\u2019s news conference, Walz said, \u201cWe\u2019ve just parted ways. It\u2019s best for both parties.\u201d<\/p>\n Jones averaged 16.6 minutes (seventh-most on the team) and 8.4 points this season, and she appeared in every game after transferring from Arizona. However, she played 11 minutes total in the ACC semifinal and championship game before the split.<\/p>\n The Cardinals face No. 14 seed Vermont in Saturday\u2019s first round contest in Louisville.<\/p>\n They still have a perimeter rotation of Tajianna Roberts, Mackenly Randolph, Reyna Scott and Imari Berry, each of whom play at least 23.5 minutes per game. Walz seemed unconcerned about the Cardinals\u2019 depth.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you go back to the past month, it\u2019s really not going to change much. In our ACC finals, (Randolph) played all 45 minutes,\u201d Walz said. \u201cWe have plenty of players.\u201d<\/p>\n Elsewhere in the Fort Worth 3 region, Tennessee is also dealing with the sudden absence of a player, as Kaiya Wynn left the program earlier this month after not playing on the Lady Vols\u2019 senior night. \u2014 Chantel Jennings<\/p>\n No. 3 Duke 81, No. 14 Charleston 64<\/p>\n Up next in Round 2: No. 6 Baylor<\/p>\n Duke tipped off the tournament by taking care of business against College of Charleston. Sophomore forward Toby Fournier led the Blue Devils with 24 points, and junior Delaney Thomas added 19 as the Blue Devils were never really in any danger of losing their lead.<\/p>\n But even coach Kara Lawson knows the Blue Devils will have to play better moving forward \u2026 and now Duke\u2019s future opponents do, too.<\/p>\n Despite Charleston shooting just 26 percent from the field, junior guard Taryn Barbot put on a clinic against the Blue Devils with 36 points, marking the most points by any Duke opposing player all season. She did it with remarkable efficiency in 38 minutes of play. And the worst part for the Blue Devils? She did it in all sorts of different ways to keep them on their toes all afternoon.<\/p>\n The 5-foot-10 junior might have finished just 8-of-24 shooting, but she went 6 of 12 from 3 and perhaps most notably, 14 of 16 from the foul line. The CAA\u2019s Player of the Year had only one rebound and still finished with four turnovers. But she was fearless about taking it to the Blue Devils and drawing plenty of contact along the way. (Her twin sister and teammate Taylor Barbot chipped in 13 points, by the way.)<\/p>\n After the game, Lawson was reportedly asked to compare Taryn Barbot to the ACC guards Duke has faced Lawson initially declined, then gave a nod to Notre Dame\u2019s Hannah Hidalgo.<\/p>\n Kara Lawson, asked to compare Charleston\u2019s Taryn Barbot to guards in the ACC, declines to do so and then adds:<\/p>\n \u201cHave you seen Hannah Hidalgo play?\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014 Mitchell Northam (@primetimeMitch) March 20, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Lawson, who tossed her clipboard into the bleachers in frustration late in the fourth quarter, can be pleased with a win while also knowing Duke exposed some early vulnerabilities that opponents will no doubt pounce on. And it\u2019ll only get more competitive from here. \u2014 Grace Raynor<\/p>\n