2027 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament
| Teams | 68 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals site | Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio | ||||
| |||||
The 2027 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament will involve 68 teams in a single-elimination tournament to determine the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college basketball national champion for the 2026–27 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The 45th edition of the tournament will begin on March 17, 2027, with the First Four, and will conclude with the championship game on April 4, at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.[1]
Tournament procedure
Pending any changes, a total of 68 teams will enter the 2027 tournament. 31 automatic bids shall be awarded to each program that wins their conference's tournament. The remaining 37 bids are "at-large", with selections extended by the NCAA Selection Committee on Selection Sunday, March 14. The Selection Committee will also seed the entire field from 1 to 68.
Eight teams (the four-lowest seeded automatic qualifiers and the four lowest-seeded at large-teams) play in the First Four. The winners of these games will advance to the main tournament. bracket.
2027 NCAA Tournament schedule and venues
First Four
- March 17 and 18
Subregionals (First and Second Rounds)
- March 19 and 20 (Fri/Sun)
- March 21 and 22 (Sat/Mon)
Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)[2]
- March 26–29
National semifinals and finals (Final Four and National Championship)[2]
- April 2 and 4
Columbus will host the final four for the second time, having previously hosted in 2018.[3]
Game officials
First Four
First and Second Rounds (Subregionals)
Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet 16 and Elite Eight)
National semifinals and finals (Final Four and National Championship)
Media coverage
Television
ESPN broadcast each game of the tournament across either ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, or ABC. For the fifth consecutive season, the national championship game aired on ABC.[4]
Radio
Westwood One will serve as radio broadcaster of the tournament.
See also
References
- ^ Deatsch, Thomas (2 October 2024). "2025 – 2031 Future Host Dates and Sites" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
- ^ a b "Women's Final Four: Future dates & sites". NCAA. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
- ^ Burchard, Molly (9 March 2026). "The Biggest Stage in Women's Basketball: Looking Ahead to the 2027 NCAA Women's Final Four". Columbus Sports. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ^ "ESPN acquires NCAA rights for US$500 million". SportsPro Media. April 2, 2012. Retrieved 2021-04-06.