NCAA Seeds Women’s Top 16 by True Ranking in 2027 as Tournament Expands to 76 Teams
Updated
Updated · USA TODAY · Jul 13
NCAA Seeds Women’s Top 16 by True Ranking in 2027 as Tournament Expands to 76 Teams
3 articles · Updated · USA TODAY · Jul 13
Summary
Beginning with the 2026-27 season’s March Madness, the NCAA will place the women’s tournament top 16 seeds by true ranking, even if conference rivals land in the same region.
The shift drops a long-used effort to separate the top four teams from each conference, a rule strained by Power 4 expansion and recent realignment.
Last season’s bracket showed the tension: LSU and Vanderbilt were pushed down to avoid early SEC clashes with South Carolina and Texas, while Duke and North Carolina still met in the Sweet 16.
Coaches broadly backed the move as a cleaner reward for regular-season performance, though some also called for wider NET Quad categories and more transparent officiating criteria.
The seeding overhaul follows the NCAA’s May decision to expand both the men’s and women’s tournaments from 68 to 76 teams, adding eight at-large bids and doubling play-in games to eight.