Where Kentucky women’s basketball stands in the NCAA’s final bracket seeding preview
The final week of the regular season carries significant weight. Each game matters, particularly in this year’s women’s college basketball landscape, where the race to many of the upcoming conference tournaments, or to an NCAA national championship, appears more open than ever before.
Every opportunity to gain a competitive edge is beneficial, and, per the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee, Kenny Brooks and Kentucky (22-5, 11-4 SEC) are still on track to receive a massive one. In the committee’s second and final preview of the top 16 teams on Thursday, the Wildcats were revealed to remain in contention for hosting privileges during the NCAA Tournament’s first and second rounds.
The Wildcats, who were revealed to be a No. 4 seed in the committee’s initial preview on Feb. 16, were again predicted to receive home-court advantage in March on Thursday night; ahead of its 82-58 rivalry rout of No. 11 Tennessee (21-7, 8-7) Kentucky was once again named a fourth-line squad, predicted to be placed in the Spokane 3 Region. Kansas State, Ohio State and Oklahoma were also named No. 4 seeds.
UCLA was once again named the No. 1 overall seed, alongside Texas, Southern California and Notre Dame on the top line. LSU, North Carolina State, Connecticut and South Carolina are projected No. 2 seeds, and North Carolina, TCU, Tennessee and Duke would be No. 3 seeds.
Kentucky-Tennessee was one of five marquee, Top 25 matchups with potential postseason seeding implications on Thursday night. No. 22 Creighton fell to No. 5 Connecticut; No. 8 North Carolina lost at No. 16 Duke; No. 3 Notre Dame fell to No. 24 Florida State; and No. 7 LSU was upset at No. 20 Alabama.
Remaining game for SEC’s top eight teams
The Wildcats’ win Thursday night clinched the fourth and final double-bye in next week’s SEC Tournament. Kentucky will open play Friday, March 7, in Greenville, S.C. Here is how the regular-season race looks with one game to play, and the opponent for each of the top eight teams this Sunday:
1. South Carolina (14-1) — vs. Kentucky
1. Texas (14-1) — vs. Florida
3. LSU (12-3) — vs. Ole Miss
4. Kentucky (11-4) — at South Carolina
5. Oklahoma (10-5) — vs. Alabama
5. Alabama (10-5) — at Oklahoma
6. Ole Miss (9-6) — at LSU
8. Tennessee (8-8) — vs. Georgia
Submit a mailbag question
Have any questions about Kentucky women’s basketball or next week’s SEC Tournament? Email your questions to cmakauskas@herald-leader.com or contact Caroline on X or Bluesky with a post or direct message. You can also fill out the Google form below.
Next game
No. 15 Kentucky at No. 6 South Carolina
When: 2 p.m. Sunday
TV: ESPN
Radio: WLAP-AM 630
Records: Kentucky 22-5 (11-4 SEC), South Carolina 26-3 (14-1)
Series: South Carolina leads 41-35
Last meeting: South Carolina won 103-55 on Feb. 25, 2024, at Rupp Arena in Lexington
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 9:18 PM.
