2026 Women’s March Madness Bracket and Odds: Huskies & Bruins on a Championship Collision Course?

Last year, the longtime standard bearers returned to the summit of women's college basketball, as UConn cut down the nets for the first time since 2016. But while it took nine years for the Huskies to rule women's March Madness once again, it looks like it will take some work to push them off their perch in 2026.

During UConn's title drought, five different schools won national championships, and numerous new faces (South Carolina, Mississippi State, Oregon, Arizona, and Iowa) or former powers (LSU, Texas, and USC) took the spotlight.

In that stretch, the Huskies lost in the national semifinals five times and in the championship game in 2022. They even failed to reach the Final Four in 2023, which snapped a streak of 14 straight Final Four appearances.

Last year, the Huskies went into the tournament as a #2 seed but flexed their muscles like the days of old, beating every opponent by double digits, including a 34-point win over UCLA in the national semifinals and a 23-point thumping of South Carolina in the championship game.

Paige Bueckers moved on to the WNBA after capturing the national title that had eluded her, but the Huskies haven't missed a beat this season, led by sensational sophomore Sarah Strong and sharpshooting Azzi Fudd, who has had her healthiest and most prolific season. If they march through women's March Madness unscathed, Geno Auriemma will have his seventh undefeated national championship squad.

And with the tournament about to tip off, the 34-0 Huskies, the top overall seed, are a heavy favorite at Lucky Rebel, BetOnline, and other top online sportsbooks, ahead of UCLA and the SEC trio of Texas, South Carolina, and LSU.

Odds to Win the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament

Odds are from BetOnline as of Tuesday, March 17, 2026.

2026 Women's March Madness Bracket

For the fourth consecutive year, the four women's March Madness regionals will be decided at two sites. This year, the regional semifinals and finals will take place in Fort Worth and Sacramento.

While UConn is undefeated and sits atop the national polls, the choice to make the Huskies the top overall seed is not a universally popular one.

UCLA enters the tournament at 31-1 and has won 25 straight games since its lone blemish, a 76-65 loss to Texas on November 26. The Bruins swept the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles, own a dozen wins over teams who were ranked at the time (seven more than UConn), and also have a win over Duke (who swept the ACC regular season and tournament titles), two wins over Washington (who was ranked for much of the season), and a win over Minnesota, who has since become one of the hottest teams in the country.

But despite that robust resume, which includes 29 double-digit wins (including a 51-point win over Iowa to win the Big Ten tournament), not only are the Bruins not the top overall seed, oddsmakers see a significant gap between them and the Huskies.

We will find out if the committee made the right decision if the two meet for the national title in Phoenix on April 5. To get there, UConn may have to go through Vanderbilt and the nation's leading scorer, Mikayla Blakes, in the Elite Eight, then South Carolina in the Final Four. The Bruins, meanwhile, might have to see off LSU in the Elite Eight and Texas, who won the SEC tournament with a dominant performance against South Carolina, in the Final Four.

2026 Women's March Madness Region-by-Region Bracket

Bet on Women's March Madness at Lucky Rebel

These days, all of the best March Madness betting sites have both men's and women's March Madness odds.

If you are looking for the best sites for NCAA tournament betting in 2026, look no further than Lucky Rebel and BetOnline.

Throughout the season, both of these books have had women's March Madness futures odds, as well as odds for many games. And for the tournament, you will find both futures odds and odds for every game at both Lucky Rebel and BetOnline.

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