Expansion to 76 teams isn’t the only change coming to the NCAA women’s basketball tournament.
Beginning with March Madness in the upcoming 2026-27 season, the top 16 teams — the ones that get to host games during the tournament’s opening weekend — will be seeded according to their true ranking, regardless of conference affiliation. The change was first reported by the Associated Press and has since been confirmed by USA TODAY Sports.
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In past tournaments, the selection committee would determine the top 16 seeds and seed them to avoid in-conference matchups early in the tournament. Additionally, the top four teams in each
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