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When is March Madness 2024? Dates, TV schedule, locations, odds & more for NCAA Women's Tournament

craig meyer, usa today network
·12 min read

The 2023-24 women’s college basketball season has been a banner one for a sport that has watched its popularity skyrocket in recent years.

Over the past four months, there has been no shortage of compelling storylines that have captivated fans nationally.

MORE: Watch the 2024 NCAA Women's Tournament live with Fubo (free trial)

South Carolina and coach Dawn Staley wrapped up their second-consecutive undefeated regular season and, in the weeks to come, they will look to bolster their reputation as the sport’s modern-day dynasty. LSU, the Gamecocks’ budding SEC rival, will look to successfully defend its national championship and become the first repeat title-winner in nearly a decade. Then, of course, there’s Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, who spent this season breaking longstanding NCAA scoring records, guiding her team to a No. 2 finish in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll and serving as the star attraction of some of the highest-rated women’s basketball games in the sport’s history.

All of that action, engrossing as it was, was just a prelude. Now, it’s time for all those teams and players to compete for the prize they all set out to earn at the start of the season.

REQUIRED READING: As Dawn Staley, South Carolina pursue perfection, what Geno Auriemma might say | Toppmeyer

Next week marks the start of the 2024 NCAA women’s basketball tournament, which will kick off a three-week stretch in which the sport’s top teams and biggest stars will undoubtedly help March Madness live up to its name.

Here's what you need to know for the 2024 NCAA women’s basketball tournament, including TV schedules, results, streaming options, game locations, national championship betting odds and more:

March Madness Bracket 2024

Like its men's counterpart, the NCAA women's tournament is made up of 32 automatic qualifiers who won their respective conference tournaments and 36 at-large teams that the tournament's selection committee picks to be included.

NCAA Tournament schedule 2024

  • Start date: Wednesday, March 20 (First Four)

  • End date: Sunday, April 7 (national championship)

The 2024 NCAA women's basketball tournament tips off on Wednesday, March 20 with the First Four, which will be held at campus sites of teams that are among the tournament's top 16 overall seeds. The first set of first-round games will begin Friday, March 22.

The Final Four will begin Friday, April 5 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland. The action will culminate with the national championship game, which will be held on Sunday, April 7.

Here is the full schedule breakdown for the 2024 NCAA Tournament:

All times Eastern

First Four

Wednesday, March 20

  • Game 1: (16) Presbyterian vs. (16) Scared Heart | 7 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 2: (12) Columbia vs. (12) Vanderbilt | 9 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

Thursday, March 21

  • Game 3: (11) Arizona vs. (11) Auburn | 7 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 4: (16) UT Martin vs. (16) Holy Cross | 9 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

Round 1

Friday, March 22

  • Game 5: (8) North Carolina vs. (9) Michigan State | 11:30 a.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 6: (2) Ohio State vs. (15) Maine | Noon | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 7: (6) Louisville vs. (11) Middle Tennessee | 1:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 8: (1) South Carolina vs. (16) Presbyterian/Scared Heart| 2 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 9: (7) Duke vs. (10) Richmond| 2:30 p.m. | ESPNEWS (Fubo)

  • Game 10: (1) Texas vs. (16) Drexel | 3 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 11: (4) Virginia Tech vs. (13) Marshall | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 12: (3) LSU vs. (14) Rice | 4 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 13: (4) Kansas State vs. (13) Portland| 4:30 p.m. | ESPNEWS (Fubo)

  • Game 14: (8) Alabama (9) Florida State | 5:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 15: (5) Baylor vs. (12) Columbia/Vanderbilt | 6 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 16: (5) Colorado vs. (12) Drake | 7 p.m. | ESPNEWS (Fubo)

  • Game 17: (7) Iowa State vs. (10) Maryland | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 18: (3) Oregon State vs. (14) Eastern Washington | 8 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 19: (2) Stanford vs. (15) Norfolk State | 10 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 20: (6) Nebraska vs. (11) Texas A&M | 10:30 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

Saturday, March 23

  • Game 21: (6) Tennessee vs. (11) Green Bay | Noon | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 22: (3) UConn vs. (14) Jackson State | 1 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 23: (4) Indiana vs. (13) Fairfield | 1:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 24: (8) Kansas vs. (9) Michigan | 2 p.m. | ESPNEWS (Fubo)

  • Game 25: (2) Notre Dame vs. (15) Kent State | 2:15 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 26: (3) NC State vs. (14) Chattanooga | 2:30 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 27: (1) Iowa vs. (16) UT Martin/Holy Cross | 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 28: (6) Syracuse vs. (11) Arizona/Auburn | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 29: (5) Oklahoma vs. (12) FGCU | 4 p.m. | ESPNEWS (Fubo)

  • Game 30: (1) USC vs. (16) Texas A&M-Corpus Christi | 4:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 31: (7) Ole Miss vs. (10) Marquette | 4:45 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 32: (8) West Virginia vs. (9) Princeton| 5:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 33: (7) Creighton vs. (10) UNLV | 7 p.m. | ESPNEWS (Fubo)

  • Game 34: (4) Gonzaga vs. (13) UC Irvine | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 35: (2) UCLA vs. (15) California Baptist | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 36: (5) Utah vs. (12) South Dakota State | 10 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

Second Round

This section will be updated.

Sunday, March 24

  • Game 37: TBD vs. TBD | Noon | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 38: TBD vs. TBD | 1 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 39: TBD vs. TBD | 2 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 40: TBD vs. TBD | 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 41: TBD vs. TBD | 4 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 42: TBD vs. TBD | 6 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 43: TBD vs. TBD | 8 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 44: TBD vs. TBD | 10 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

Monday, March 25

  • Game 45: TBD vs. TBD | 2 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 46: TBD vs. TBD | 4 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 47: TBD vs. TBD | 6 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 48: TBD vs. TBD | 7 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 49: TBD vs. TBD | 7:30 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 50: TBD vs. TBD | 8 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 51: TBD vs. TBD | 9 p.m. | ESPN2 (Fubo)

  • Game 52: TBD vs. TBD | 10 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

Sweet 16

This section will be updated.

Friday, March 29

  • Game 53: TBD vs. TBD | 2:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 54: TBD vs. TBD | 5 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 55: TBD vs. TBD | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 56: TBD vs. TBD | 10 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

Saturday, March 30

  • Game 57: TBD vs. TBD | 1 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 58: TBD vs. TBD | 3:30 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 59: TBD vs. TBD | 5:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 60: TBD vs. TBD | 8 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

Elite Eight

This section will be updated.

Sunday, March 31

  • Game 61: TBD vs. TBD | 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

  • Game 62: TBD vs. TBD | 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

Monday, April 1

  • Game 63: TBD vs. TBD | 7:15 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 64: TBD vs. TBD | 9:15 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

Final Four

This section will be updated.

Friday, April 5

  • Game 65: TBD vs. TBD | 7 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 66: TBD vs. TBD | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

NCAA Tournament championship game

This section will be updated.

Sunday, April 7

  • Game 67: TBD vs. TBD | 3 p.m. | ABC (Fubo)

MARCH MADNESS: 2024 NCAA Tournament brackets

When is the First Four?

For just the third year in its existence, the NCAA women's basketball tournament will feature a First Four after the field expanded from 64 teams to 68 for the 2022 tournament. Unlike the men's First Four, which is held every year at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio, the women's First Four will take place at campus sites of the team hosting first-round games. Last season, for example, the First Four games were held in South Bend, Indiana (Notre Dame); Bloomington, Indiana; Columbus, Ohio; and Stanford, California.

The First Four will match up the four lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers against each other in two separate games while the same format will hold for the four lowest-seeded at-large teams. The winner of each game advances to the Round of 64, which will begin Friday, March 22.

Wednesday, March 20

  • Game 1: (16) Presbyterian vs. (16) Scared Heart | 7 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 2: (12) Columbia vs. (12) Vanderbilt | 9 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

Thursday, March 21

  • Game 3: (11) Arizona vs. (11) Auburn | 7 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

  • Game 4: (16) UT Martin vs. (16) Holy Cross | 9 p.m. | ESPNU (Fubo)

When is the Final Four?

The 2024 Final Four will take place at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, the home arena of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers. The two national semifinal games will be played on Friday, April 5, followed by the national championship game on Sunday, April 7.

It's the second time the venue has hosted the women's Final Four. The previous instance came in 2007, when it was then known as Quicken Loans Arena. That year, Tennessee defeated Rutgers in the national championship game.

Friday, April 5

  • Game 65: TBD vs. TBD | 7 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

  • Game 66: TBD vs. TBD | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN (Fubo)

How to watch March Madness games in 2024

  • Channels: ABC | ESPN | ESPN2 | ESPNU | ESPNews

  • Streamingn: NCAA March Madness Live app | Fubo (free trial)

Every game of the 2024 NCAA women's basketball tournament will air on ESPN's family of networks. Just like last season, each game will be broadcast on one of ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNews.

You can also stream select NCAA Tournament games on Fubo (free trial for new users) and the NCAA March Madness Live app.

Where is March Madness 2024?

The NCAA women's tournament is formatted slightly differently from its male counterpart, in which every game is staged at a neutral site.

The First Four games are held at a campus site of one of the tournament's top 16 overall seeds. From there, the first- and second-round games will take place at the home arena of the highest-rated team in a given four-team pod. For example, South Carolina, as a certain No. 1 seed, will host a yet-to-be-determined No. 16 seed before, barring a seismic upset, playing against the winner of the No. 8 seed's matchup against the No. 9 seed, with all those games taking place at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia.

Once in the Sweet 16, neutral sites are introduced, though the women's tournament has just two regions, compared to four for the men's. This year, those Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games will be held in Albany, New York and Portland, Oregon. The Final Four and national championship will be hosted at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.

Here is a full breakdown of which sites and locations will be a part of the NCAA Tournament this year:

First Four:

Note: First Four games held at campus sites among top 16 seeds

  • Albany Regional 1: Colonial Life Arena (Columbia, S.C.)

  • Portland Regional 3: Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.)

  • Albany Regional 1: Carver–Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City, Iowa)

  • Portland Regional 3: Cassell Coliseum (Blacksburg, Va.)

Rounds 1-2

Note: first- and second-round games held among top 16 overall seeds of NCAA Tournament

  • Colonial Life Arena (Columbia, S.C.)

  • Gill Coliseum (Corvallis, Ore.)

  • Moody Center (Austin, Texas)

  • Maples Pavilion (Stanford, Calif.)

  • Bramlage Coliseum (Manhattan, Kan.)

  • Pete Maravich Assembly Center (Baton Rouge, La.)

  • Cassell Coliseum (Blacksburg, Va.)

  • Value City Arena (Columbus, Ohio)

  • Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (Bloomington, Ind.)

  • Purcell Pavilion (Notre Dame, Ind.)

  • McCarthey Athletic Center (Spokane, Wash.)

  • Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, N.C.)

  • Carver–Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City, Iowa)

  • Pauley Pavilion (Los Angeles)

  • Galen Center (Los Angeles)

  • Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (Storrs, Conn.)

Sweet 16-Elite Eight:

  • Albany Region: MVP Arena (Albany, N.Y.)

  • Portland Region: Moda Center (Portland, Ore.)

Final Four

  • Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (Cleveland)

REQUIRED READING: March Madness bracket tracker: Updated list of automatic bids to 2024 NCAA Women's Tournament

Odds to win March Madness 2024

According to odds from BetMGM, South Carolina is the favorite to win the national championship, which would be the Gamecocks' third since 2017. Last year, they carried an undefeated record into the Final Four, but once there, they lost to Clark and Iowa 77-73.

Here's a full list of odds for teams to win the national championship (as of Wednesday, March 13):

  • South Carolina (-120)

  • Iowa (+400)

  • LSU (+650)

  • Stanford (+2000)

  • UConn (+2500)

  • Ohio State (+2500)

  • UCLA (+3000)

  • Texas (+3000)

  • Kansas State (+3500)

  • N.C. State (+4000)

  • USC (+4000)

  • Virginia Tech (+5000)

  • Indiana (+5000)

  • Oregon State (+5000)

  • Notre Dame (+6000)

  • Colorado (+8000)

  • Utah (+10000)

  • Baylor (+10000)

  • Gonzaga (+10000)

  • Louisville (+10000)

To see the full list of teams and their odds, click here.

NCAA Tournament winners

Last season, LSU won its first national championship and joined a group of 15 other schools that have claimed at least one NCAA championship. For Tigers coach Kim Mulkey, it was her fourth title, with her previous three coming at Baylor.

UConn has the most NCAA women's basketball championships of any school, with 11. Tennessee, with eight, is the only other program that has won more than three.

It's worth noting that this championship count only goes back to 1982, when the NCAA assumed governing powers over women's college basketball.

Here is a full list of which schools have won titles going back to 1982, and how many each of them has won:

  • 1. UConn: 11

  • 2. Tennessee: 8

  • T-3. Baylor: 3

  • T-3. Stanford: 3

  • T-5. South Carolina: 2

  • T-5: Louisiana Tech: 2

  • T-5. Notre Dame: 2

  • T-5. USC: 2

  • T-9. North Carolina: 1

  • T-9. LSU: 1

  • T-9. Maryland: 1

  • T-9. Old Dominion: 1

  • T-9. Purdue: 1

  • T-9. Texas: 1

  • T-9. Texas A&M: 1

  • T-9. Texas Tech: 1

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This article originally appeared on Greenville News: March Madness 2024: Dates, TV schedule, locations for NCAA Women's Tournament