NCAA Tournament Rankings Changes: USC Trojans, UCLA Bruins Earn No. 1 Seeds

The NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee released its top-16 rankings for the second time this season, and the USC Trojans are ranked No. 3. As a result, they would earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament if these were the final rankings.

Joining USC as No. 1 seeds in this current March Madness projection would be the UCLA Bruins (No. 1 overall), the Texas Longhorns (No. 2), and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (No. 4).

Texas picked up an impressive win over No. 7 LSU on Feb. 16, but it was No. 5 South Carolina's loss to No. 6 UConn on the same day that allowed the Longhorns to move up in the rankings. The Gamecocks previously held the No. 2 ranking, but they lost 87-58 to the Huskies.

Feb 11, 2024; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; UConn Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) drives around South Carolina Gamecocks forward Ashlyn Watkins (2) in the second half at Colonial Life Arena. | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

LSU switched places with UConn, and the Tigers are now ranked No. 7 after losing to Texas and Alabama in the last few weeks. LSU picked up a win over No. 14 Kentucky, but they lost on the road to Alabama 88-85. The Crimson Tide were not ranked by the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee, but they are the No. 20 team in the country according to the latest AP Top-25 Poll.

USC leapfrogged Notre Dame after the Fighting Irish lost to No. 8 North Carolina State. With UCLA and USC's second matchup coming on Saturday as well as conference tournament results, the top of the rankings are expected to change.

However, should the season end on Feb. 28, the Trojans and the Bruins would be on opposite sides of the bracket, meaning they could only meet in the championship game.

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In the previous edition of the rankings released on Feb. 16, USC was outside of the top-four at No. 5 despite holding one of the most impressive wins in the country over No. 1 UCLA. The Bruins have been ranked No. 1 in both versions of the top-16.

USC star JuJu Watkins and the Trojans got the best of the Bruins on Feb. 13, and the rematch between the two teams is one of the most highly-anticipated games of the season.

A key member of USC's dominance in addition to Watkins has been Trojans forward Kiki Iriafen. After spending three seasons at Stanford and transferring to USC, Iriafen is a key contributor on the No. 3 team in the country, averaging 18.2 points per game.

Feb 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans forward Kiki Iriafen (44) enters the court against the Michigan State Spartans at the Galen Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

“Kiki has really over the last, I don’t know, couple weeks hit her stride. With confidence, with her level of unguardability. When she’s in her spots, and whether that’s on the perimeter or in the post, I thought our team did a really good job of feeding off their energy today," said USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb after the Trojans' win over Illinois on senior night.

UCLA will host USC on Saturday in the regular season finale for both teams. The Big Ten regular season is on the line as well as potential seeding in the NCAA Tournament.

Here is the full top-16 from the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee:

1. UCLA

2. Texas

3. USC

4. Notre Dame

5. South Carolina

6. UConn

7. LSU

8. North Carolina State

9. TCU

10. North Carolina

11. Duke

12. Tennessee

13. Oklahoma

14. Kentucky

15. Kansas State

16. Ohio State