Destined for Dallas
Bracket Breakdown
Information by Chris Werner | Assistant Sports Editor | [email protected]
Page by Jami Martin-Trainor | Assistant Digital Editor | [email protected]
No. 2 Iowa (30-6)
Fast Facts
Location: Iowa City, Iowa
Enrollment: 31,317
Conference: Big Ten
Mascot: Hawkeyes
Coach: Lisa Bluder (23rd season)
Final Four appearances: Two (2023, 1993)
Road to Dallas
95-43 No. 15 SE Louisiana
74-66 No. 10 Georgia
87-77 No. 6 Colorado
97-83 No. 5 Louisville
Statistical Leaders
Points per game
Caitlin Clark – 27.3
Monika Czinano – 17.2
McKenna Warnock – 11.1
Rebounds per game
Caitlin Clark – 7.3
Monika Czinano – 6.6
McKenna Warnock – 6.0
Assists per game
Caitlin Clark – 8.6
Kate Martin – 3.6
McKenna Warnock –1.9
Top Player
Junior guard Caitlin Clark is not only Iowa’s top player but may be the nation’s top player, too. Clark is an offensive servant. From logo 3-pointers, pull-up jumpers, and driving layups, to pinpoint passes from all over the floor, the Big Ten’s scoring and assists leader can do it all on the offensive end.
Why Iowa can win the national title
Iowa has Caitlin Clark, that’s the main reason the Hawkeyes can win it all this season. But Iowa has put a steady, experienced team around her. The Hawkeyes are rolling with the same starting five for the third year in a row, and Clark’s sidekick Monika Czinano is one of the nation’s premier post players.
Roster
No. 1 South Carolina (36-0)
Fast Facts
Location: Columbia, S.C.
Enrollment: 35,587
Conference: Southeastern
Mascot: Gamecocks
Coach: Dawn Staley (15th season)
Final Four appearances: Five (2023, 2022, 2021, 2017, 2015)
Road to Dallas
72-40 No. 16 Norfolk State
76-45 No. 8 South Florida
59-43 No. 4 UCLA
86-75 No. 2 Maryland
Statistical Leaders
Points per game
Zia Cooke – 15.1
Aliyah Boston – 13.2
Kamilla Cardoso 9.7
Rebounds per game
Aliyah Boston – 9.8
Kamilla Cardoso – 8.4
Brea Beal – 4.4
Assists per game
Raven Johnson – 3.5
Brea Beal – 2.8
Kierra Fletcher – 2.0
Top Player
Aliyah Boston won National Player of the Year last season, and she is a finalist again this season. Like LSU’s Reese, Boston is a dominant post player who can score in a variety of ways around the basket. Along with her 2022 unanimous National Player of the Year Award, Boston also won Defensive Player of the Year last season.
Why South Carolina can win the national title
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. South Carolina has been to three straight Final Fours and won the 2022 NCAA Championship, and with four of the same starters from last year’s team returning to the starting lineup this season, there’s no reason to think the Gamecocks won’t repeat.
Roster
No. 3 Virginia Tech (31-4)
Fast Facts
Location: Blacksburg, Va.
Enrollment: 29,760 (undergraduate Fall 2021)
Conference: Atlantic Coast
Mascot: Hokies
Coach: Kenny Brooks (7th season)
Final Four appearances: One (2023)
Road to Dallas
58-33 No. 16 Chattanooga
72-60 No. 9 South Dakota State
73-64 No. 4 Tennessee
84-74 No. 3 Ohio State
Statistical Leaders
Points per game
Elizabeth Kitley – 18.2
Georgia Amoore – 16.3
Taylor Soule – 11.1
Rebounds per game
Elizabeth Kitley – 10.7
D’asia Gregg – 6.1
Taylor Soule – 5.7
Assists per game
Georgia Amoore – 5.0
Kayana Traylor – 2.9
Taylor Soule – 1.7
Top Player
Like LSU and South Carolina, a majority of Virginia Tech’s offense runs through the post. That post player is Elizabeth Kitley. The 6-foot-6 senior from Summerfield, North Carolina, has averaged slightly more than 18 points per game in each of her last three seasons in Blacksburg and has shot over 50 percent from the field in all four seasons of her college career.
Why Virginia Tech can win the national title
The Hokies’ dynamic duo of Kitley and junior guard Georgia Amoore has been the Hokies driving force all season offensively. Defensively, the Hokies allow under 57 points per game, the second-lowest of remaining teams behind South Carolina. The scoring balance and sound defense could spell a national title for Virginia Tech in its first Final Four.
Roster
No. 3 LSU (32-2)
Fast Facts
Location: Baton Rouge, La.
Enrollment: 37,354
Conference: Southeastern
Mascot: Tigers
Coach: Kim Mulkey (2nd season)
Final Four appearances: Six (2023, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004)
Road to Dallas
73-50 No. 14 Hawaii
66-42 No. 6 Michigan
66-63 No. 2 Utah
54-42 No. 9 Miami
Statistical Leaders
Points per game
Angel Reese – 23.2
Alexis Morris – 14.9
Flau’jae Johnson – 11.1
Rebounds per game
Angel Reese – 15.7
LaDazhia Williams – 6.0
Flau’jae Johnson – 5.9
Assists per game
Alexis Morris – 4.1
Kateri Poole – 2.4
Angel Reese – 2.2
Top Player
After two seasons at Maryland, Angel Reese came to LSU before the 2022-23 season. The 6-foot-3 junior has averaged a double-double for the past two seasons and has shot the ball above 50 percent from the floor in each of those years. The Baltimore, Maryland, native has scored in double figures in every game this season and has been held under 15 points just twice.
Why LSU can win the national title
Angel Reese is a force down low, and Tigers’ head coach Kim Mulkey knows how to win championships. Reese is the SEC’s top scorer and the fifth-best bucket-getter in the country. Couple a bonafide superstar in Reese and a coach in Mulkey who has won three national championships as a coach and two as a player and you’ve got a contender.