Six lady teams from Texas enter Big Dance
Published 5:15 am Tuesday, March 17, 2026
Texas
Fresh off of an SEC Tournament championship, the Longhorns were rewarded with a No. 1 seed in Regional 3 and will face the winner of Missouri St. and Stephen F. Austin’s First Four matchup. That game will be in Austin Friday afternoon at 3.
Led by Madison Booker’s 18.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, Texas spent the year joining UConn, South Carolina, and LSU in the pantheon of elite women’s hoops teams. The winner advances to face the winner of No. 8 Oregon and No. 9 Virginia Tech.
Texas Tech
Texas Tech is going to dance for the first time since 2013, as they enter the Tournament as a No. 7 seed in Regional 2 with a game against No. 10 Villanova Friday night at 7:30 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The Lady Raiders raced to a 19-0 start this year, before dropping three of their final five games during the regular season. Tech head coach Krista Gerlich won Big 12 Coach of the Year and wants her team to put aside the losses. “There’s nothing about getting in the NCAA Tournament that’s easy and you can never take for granted getting into the tournament,” said Gerlich. “The moment you slip out of it you see how hard it is to get back in. I’m proud of this group for getting us there.”
TCU
TCU continues its resurgence as they enter the Tournament as the No. 3 seed in Regional 1 with a game against No. 14 UC San Diego Friday morning at 11 on tap.
Despite the loss of star point guard Haley Van Lith to the WNBA, the Lady Frogs remained strong this year, capturing the Big 12 regular season crown. The winner advances to play the winner of No. 6 Washington and No. 11 South Dakota St.
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Baylor
After an up and down season in which coach Nicki Collen questioned the effort of her team, Baylor is back in the big dance as a No. 6 seed in Regional 2 and will take on the winner of Nebraska and Richmond Friday afternoon at 1.
Turnovers and other mental mistakes doomed Baylor in games against top ranked opponents, but they feel they have a punchers chance with sophomore guard Taliah Scott and her 20 points per game.
UTSA
The Lady Roadrunners are going dancing for the first time since 2009. They may have finished sixth in the American Conference, but UTSA used a surprising run in their conference tournament to win the championship and capture a berth in the big dance.
Awaiting No. 16 UTSA is No. 1 UConn Saturday afternoon at 2 in Storrs, Connecticut. The victor will advance to play the winner of No. 8 Iowa St. and No. 9 Syracuse.
Stephen F. Austin
SFA is heading to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in six years, preparing for a bout with Missouri St. for the right to the No. 16 seed in Regional 3. The always steady Lady Jacks capped off a strong season in the Southland conference, knocking off regular season champion McNeese St. to capture the conference tournament crown. The winner advances to face No. 1 seed Texas.
Lane Fobbs is a sports writer for the Victoria Advocate. Drop him a line on Twitter/X @fobbstalkinball