Women’s March Madness 2024: Second-round tournament updates
What chalk? After higher seeds went 31-1 in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament, Duke delivered an upset in the first game of the second round Sunday.
The Blue Devils advanced to their first Sweet 16 since 2018 after rallying from 16 down to eliminate No. 2 seed Ohio State in Columbus.
Later Sunday, No. 5 seed Colorado upended fourth-seeded Kansas State.
We’re tracking all the action of Sunday’s second-round games, which are all on ESPN networks and the ESPN App.
Check out where every team landed as we reseeded the 32 remaining teams in the field. And be sure to check out everything we learned Friday on Day 1 and our Day 2 takeaways from Saturday.
Did Duke just change the makeup of this NCAA tournament? After higher seeds went 31-1 over the first two days, the most chalk the tournament has seen since it expanded to 64 teams in 1994, the very first game of the second round produced a big upset, as Duke stunned the Big Ten regular-season champion Buckeyes in Columbus. After trailing by as many as 16 points in the second quarter and going more than 11 minutes without a field goal in the first half, the Blue Devils took complete control. They scored 12 of the final 14 points of the second quarter and then completely dominated the second half.
The Buckeyes’ shooting percentage plummeted to 28% after halftime, preventing them from using their full-court press. Without it, and mounting foul trouble, Ohio State didn’t have a Plan B. The Buckeyes, who were also badly outrebounded, made just one 3-pointer, and it came when the outcome was already decided. Meanwhile, Duke made 61.9% of its shots in the second half, playing perhaps its best offensive game of the season.
What it means for Duke: The Blue Devils are a team built on defense and offensive balance. In this NCAA tournament, they might have also found a superstar. Reigan Richardson is not only Duke’s best player — she is one of the best in the entire tournament. Against Ohio State, she scored 28 points on 11-for-18 shooting. That follows a 25-point outing on 10-of-18 shooting against Richmond in the first round, a game in which Duke also made a furious comeback after trailing by nine at the half. Richardson — the first Duke player with back-to-back 25-point games in the tournament since Alana Beard in 2003 — is a sophomore, and coach Kara Lawson plays five freshmen, making Duke one of the youngest teams in the NCAA tournament. They are in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2018.
What it means for Ohio State: Buckeyes coach Kevin McGuff predicted that rebounding would be the key to this game. He was right. His team lost the battle on the glass 38-20. After last year’s Elite Eight trip, this is a huge disappointment for the Buckeyes. In three postseason games, they made just 28.5% of their 3-pointers. Cotie McMahon, whose season has been up and down, played one of her best games of the season with 27 points, but she got little help. Jacy Sheldon was the only other Buckeye in double figures with 13. Now McGuff says goodbye to Sheldon, Celeste Taylor, Rebeka Mikulasikova and possibly Rikki Harris, adding to the disappointment of bowing out of the NCAA tournament so early. — Charlie Creme
How does Duke’s upset impact the bracket? The Buckeyes’ loss disrupts the Portland 3 bracket in terms of a potential Sweet 16 matchup with UConn. Last year, the Buckeyes beat the Huskies in the regional semifinals in Seattle, ending UConn’s Final Four streak that dated to 2008.
When the bracket came out this season, people immediately saw that Ohio State and UConn could meet again in the same round. Would it be the Huskies’ chance at revenge, or would the Buckeyes eliminate UConn two years in a row?
The Huskies still have to get through their second-round game against Syracuse. But if they do, they won’t be meeting Ohio State in Portland. — Michael Voepel
Big Ten suffers another (eerily similar) loss: McGuff talked about rebounding being a problem in the Buckeyes’ Big Ten tournament quarterfinal upset, and it hurt them again in their season-ending loss Sunday.
It’s also bizarre how Ohio State’s season ended so similarly to Indiana’s last year. Like the Hoosiers, the Buckeyes won the Big Ten regular-season title, lost their regular-season finale at Iowa, didn’t make the league tournament final, and then got upset at home in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
In both cases, it was a shocking, heart-wrenching end to an otherwise great season. — Michael Voepel
Surprising, yes, but inconsistencies have plagued OSU: It seemed incomprehensible a month ago that Ohio State, which had won 15 consecutive games to start the 2024 calendar year, wouldn’t make it out of the first weekend of the NCAA tournament. At their best, the Buckeyes looked like a team that could improve upon last year’s Elite Eight run and make it to Cleveland, and the urgency was there given how many seniors are on their roster.
While Sunday’s loss was shocking in many respects, the Buckeyes have been prone to in-game inconsistencies for multiple years now, particularly on the offensive end, because they can’t set up their trademark press if they can’t make shots. But even with that in mind, being outscored by 22 in the final 30 minutes on Sunday, and letting a six-point lead slip away in the game’s final 17 minutes without a real last push, was still surprising. Ohio State, which was up four at the break, had been 19-0 when leading at the half entering Sunday’s contest. — Alexa Philippou
How good is Colorado’s defense? Statistically, Colorado has a good — but not great — defense. In Sunday’s game, particularly in the second half, the Buffaloes were great. They limited Kansas State star Ayoka Lee the entire game and held the Wildcats to 15 points in the second half. Kansas State missed 20 of its 26 shots and committed 11 turnovers in the final 20 minutes. Junior Aaronette Vonleh, who drew the assignment guarding 6-6 Lee in the post, was the defensive star. Vonleh had seven steals, all in the first half. Lee had just nine field goal attempts and 10 points.
Colorado also struggled offensively in the second half, failing to score a point until there was 3:42 left in the game — yes, you read that right — further spotlighting the importance of how well the Buffs played defense. They had 17 total steals and forced 22 turnovers from a Kansas State team that averaged 13.9 on the season. Balance ruled the day with six Colorado players scoring between 9 and 11 points.
What it means for Colorado: A second straight Sweet 16 appearance is a big accomplishment for a program that hadn’t been there in 20 years prior to last year and which came into the NCAA tournament having lost six of eight games. The Buffs had also blown leads in their last two losses. Holding on in the fourth reversed the trend. The program hasn’t been to the Elite Eight since 2002 and has never been to the Final Four. With this amount of experience, this could be the season to end those streaks. All eight players in the rotation are at least juniors, and four are playing in their fifth year.
What it means for Kansas State: After a good season, one that slightly exceeded expectations, this ending is tough. Lee hasn’t announced a decision on whether she’ll return next season for her bonus fifth year. If she does, with Serena Sundell, Jaelyn Glenn and Brylee Glenn back, the Wildcats can get back here again in 2025. — Charlie Creme
Is South Carolina invincible? The Gamecocks sure looked unbeatable in Columbia. South Carolina jumped to a 20-point lead after the first quarter and never looked back. South Carolina seemed to capitalize on every mistake UNC made: a missed rebound, a turnover, a bad shot selection. The Gamecocks played like the best team in the country and national championship favorites they are, getting 32 points and a perfect performance from beyond the arc (6-for-6) from the bench in the first half.
It was an incredible half of basketball. South Carolina shot 80% from 3 and held UNC to 17 points. The 37-point halftime difference was the largest deficit for an ACC team in NCAA tournament history. South Carolina absolutely looked invincible.
What it means for South Carolina: This was a statement win from South Carolina. The Gamecocks won 65-58 when these two teams met Nov. 30. Freshman star MiLaysia Fulwiley played just three minutes. It was a battle start to finish. It was also a battle that took place in Chapel Hill.
On Saturday, South Carolina guards Raven Johnson and Te-Hina Paopao talked about the need to be the aggressor in Sunday’s matchup. Mission accomplished. This game was a completely different story. Fulwiley led all scorers with 20 points, shooting 4-for-7 from 3, snagging nine boards, and contributing three steals and three blocks. Dawn Staley said Fulwiley told her she’d be a different player Sunday. If she plays like this throughout the tournament — alongside the rest of South Carolina’s talented squad — it might spell doom for the field. Oh, and Kamilla Cardoso and Bree Hall are back. No big deal.
What it means for North Carolina: The Tar Heels ran into a buzz saw Sunday. Given the result of the first game between these two teams, UNC likely expected to be more competitive. Foul trouble dogged North Carolina early, and the Tar Heels were never in the game. Coach Courtney Banghart will look to rebuild next season with the core of this team eligible to move on. — Katie Barnes