Women’s March Madness-Upsets were few and far between in the early rounds of the women’s NCAA tournament. The Sweet 16 delivered right away.
No. 3 seed Oregon State upended second-seeded Notre Dame in Friday’s opening game of the regional semi-finals.
But while the Beavers advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2018 and for the third time in program history, Pac-12 counterpart Stanford was knocked out.
No. 3 seed NC State overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to upset the No. 2 seed Cardinal 77-67 behind Aziaha James’ 29 points.
The Pac-12 put five teams in the Sweet 16 and could still make up half of the Elite Eight. No. 2 seed UCLA, No. 5 seed Colorado and No. 1 seed USC all play Saturday when the regional semi-finals continue
LSU-UCLA tip off Saturday’s four-game slate at 1 p.m. ET (ABC), with all games on ESPN Networks.
The women’s NCAA tournament rolled into the Sweet 16 with four games on Friday, including two top seeds in action. Undefeated No. 1 South Carolina fought off a challenge from No. 4 Indiana, while No. 1 Texas rolled past No. 4 Gonzaga in the final game of the night.
No. 2 Notre Dame fell to No. 3 Oregon State amid controversy in the first game of the day. And No. 3 NC State will be joining its men’s team in the Elite Eight after knocking off No. 2 Stanford.
Texas too much for Gonzaga
Three Longhorns scored in double-figures, led by Aaliyah Moore’s 16, and Texas held Gonzaga to just 27% shooting, beating the Zags 69-47 and advancing to the Elite Eight for the third time in four years.
The top-seeded Longhorns will take on NC State Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.
Texas bullied the Zags all night, pushing them off their spots and forcing them to take tough looks. It seemed that every shot was contested.
The Longhorns also dominated on the glass, outrebounding Gonzaga 39-26, and doubling them up in the paint, 36-18. Texas got 14 points from its bench, while Gonzaga got just two.
Gonzaga played Texas even in the third quarter and close in the fourth, only losing the period 15-11. But that didn’t matter after the Longhorns blitzed GU in the first half, holding them to just 14% from the field and taking a 19-point lead into the locker room.
The game ended with a thud too, when Gonzaga senior forward Eliza Hollingsworth went down hard under the GU basket with 22 seconds to play.
Hollingsworth screamed and immediately clutched her left knee. She stayed on the floor, sobbing, for nearly five minutes. She had to be helped off the court and couldn’t move her left leg at all.
Women’s March Madness-Fans paint Raleigh red: Both NC State teams in Elite Eight
After North Carolina State’s men’s and women’s basketball teams both advanced to the Elite Eight on Friday, fans flooded the streets of Raleigh to celebrate.
It’s the first time in Wolfpack history that both teams have made it past the Sweet 16 together.
Cityscape photographer Matt Robinson captured an image of the school’s Memorial Bell Tower bathed in red light.
Cars lined the streets around the landmark. ABC news reporter Tom George shared a photo of the tower with fans surrounding it.
Saniya Rivers said it “would be nice” if the Elite Eight broadcasts didn’t overlap so fans could focus on each game.
Aziaha James disagreed, saying, “It feels good to have both of our teams win at the same time.”
Women’s March Madness- NC State leads heading to fourth quarter; Cameron Brink has four fouls
Well, this is an interesting development: NC State suddenly has an eight-point lead, 55-47, going into the fourth quarter. And Cameron Brink has four fouls.
Brink picked up her fourth right after coming back in — the fourth foul was sort of dumb luck, she and another player went after a board and collided with a NC State player, but because the NC State player went flying they blew the whistle. Kiki Iriafen already has three. How long does Tara VanDerveer keep Brink on the bench?
NC State has turned it on, and Saniya Rivers’ sweet take to the basket to end the quarter increased the Wolfpack’s lead and gave NC State a little burst of momentum.
Rivers has 11, and Aziah James has 20. NC State looks especially good defensively right now, having held Stanford to 1-of-10 shooting to end the quarter.
That’s a 28-10 quarter for NC State.
Men’s March Madness updates:
Elite 8 matchups are set
Clemson, UConn, Alabama and Illinois punched their Elite Eight tickets Thursday night. NC State, Purdue, Duke and Tennessee joined them on Friday.
The Elite Eight games will be played on Saturday (UConn vs. Illinois and Clemson vs. Alabama) and Sunday (NC State vs. Duke and Purdue vs. Tennessee), and then we’ll head to Phoenix for the Final Four.
2024 NCAA tournament schedule, scores, highlights
Saturday, March 30 (Elite Eight)
(1) UConn vs. (3) Illinois | 6:09 p.m.
(4) Alabama vs. (6) Clemson | 8:49 p.m.
Sunday, March 31 (Elite Eight)
(1) Purdue vs. (2) Tennessee | 2:20 p.m.
(4) Duke vs. (11) NC State | 5:05 p.m.
Saturday, April 6 (Final Four)
TBD vs. TBD
TBD vs. TBD
Monday, April 8 (National championship game)
TBD vs. TBD | 9:20 p.m.
