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The second day of the 2025 NCAA Tournament was one for the history books.
We haven’t had many Cinderellas, but the big teams have been flexing their muscles. Texas, UConn and LSU all won in blowout fashion, scoring over 100 points in their first-round matchups. They joined South Carolina, Tennessee and Notre Dame in scoring 100 or more points during this opening round. It’s the most teams to reach the century mark during a round in NCAA Tournament history.
Per @ESPNStatsInfo: South Carolina, Notre Dame, Tennessee, UConn, Texas and LSU all reached the century mark in scoring in the first round — marking the first time in NCAA tournament history that six teams have scored 100 points in a single round
— Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) March 23, 2025
The big three wins (really) big
While there may be more depth and parity in women’s basketball than ever before, these first games have mostly suggested otherwise. No. 1-seed Texas beat No. 16-seed William & Mary 105-61, No. 2-seed UConn obliterated No. 15-seed Arkansas State 103-34 and No. 3-seed LSU took care of No. 14-seed San Diego State 103-48.
Flau’jae Johnson scored 22 for the Tigers, Azzi Fudd led the Huskies with 27 points and Madison Booker had 20 for the Longhorns.
This dominance may demonstrate that there is still a wide delta between the haves and the have-nots, or perhaps it’s just a great day for some big programs. In any event, the power conferences have been doing well, and we’ll see if that continues for the rest of the month.
Jackrabbits give us an upset
There weren’t many upsets on Saturday, but No. 10-seed South Dakota State defeated No. 7-seed Oklahoma State, 74-68.
The Jackrabbits struggled in the first half but took control in the second. Despite Oklahoma State hanging around, South Dakota State never gave up their lead in the fourth and came out with the win. South Dakota State got the victory by relying heavily on their starters—four of them scored in double figures.
Bulldogs control Golden Bears
It wasn’t the biggest upset, but Mississippi State defeated California 59-46 in the No. 8-vs.-No. 9 game. Center Madina Okot and guard Eniya Russell each scored a team-high 14 points in the victory for the Bulldogs.
Mississippi State only trailed during the opening minutes of the game. After that, they jumped out to a 12-5 lead and stayed in control throughout.
Now, the Bulldogs, like all the opening round winners, have to turn around and quickly prepare for their second round matchups. By the end of Monday, there will only be 16 teams left fighting for the national title.
