2026 Women's NCAA Tournament Second Round Highlights
The second round of the women's NCAA tournament concluded with eight teams moving to the regional semifinals. Key matchups featured Texas and TCU's thrilling victories.
The second round of the 2026 women's NCAA tournament has concluded, with eight teams securing their places in the regional semifinals.
On Sunday, Texas emerged as the first No. 1 seed to reach the Sweet 16, while TCU triumphed over Washington in an overtime thriller.
Oregon, having recently defeated Maryland in the Big Ten tournament second round, is on a strong run, winning three of their last four games. This marks their best performance since a four-game winning streak in late January. However, they face a tough challenge ahead against Texas, who previously handed the Ducks a 22-point loss.
This victory against Maryland also marks Oregon's 23rd win of the season, making it their most successful campaign since the 2020 season, which was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Texas, known for reaching the Elite Eight in four of the last five years, will match up against No. 8 seed Oregon after the Ducks defeated Virginia Tech 70-60 in the first round. Coach Vic Schaefer is likely devising a defensive strategy to counter Oregon’s standout guard Katie Fiso, who scored 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting against the Hokies.
Michigan State will face Oklahoma, where they need to contend with a supportive home crowd and freshman point guard Aaliyah Chavez, along with dominant center Raegan Beers. The Spartans must excel in three-point shooting to open up the floor for Grace VanSlooten.
Oklahoma, on the other hand, has been performing well, shooting 51% from the field with four players scoring in double digits. Notably, Chavez made her NCAA tournament debut without any turnovers in 31 minutes.
Washington achieved its first tournament win since 2017 and will now challenge No. 3 seed TCU, led by triple-double threat Olivia Miles. The Huskies need to ensure their defense is strong from the start to avoid falling behind early, as they did against South Dakota State.
For TCU, their recent offensive resurgence followed a low-scoring performance in the Big 12 tournament final. In the first half against UC San Diego, they scored 48 points, showing improvement in their pick-and-roll offense with 23 assists on 32 field goals. This offensive confidence will be crucial against either Georgia or South Dakota State in the next round.