The 2023 women’s NCAA tournament is as exciting as the men’s – and it’s all due to the disturbance.
For decades, the women’s tournament seemed to be just a show off for the great powers because of the huge disparity in talent. Between 1987-2016, Connecticut (11) and Tennessee (eight) won a total of 19 titles and were light years ahead of their opponents.
More recently, the top seeds have almost always made it to at least the Sweet 16. But that’s changing and that’s great for the game.
In the 2023 tournament, the No. 1 seeds Stanford and Indiana both failed to make it past the second round at the weekend. The mess removed talented teams but gave fans another reason to watch.
“The league disappointment – perhaps the disappointment of the last 12 NCAA tournaments – belongs to [Mississippi]. Their elimination from Stanford on Sunday marks the first time a No. 1 seed has failed to make it to the Sweet Round of 16 since 2009.” ESPN noted in a recent reseed by Sweet 16 female.
Magic Johnson’s Basketball Hall of Fame highlighted the women’s tournament in a tweet.
