Don’t sleep on these five teams taking part in the NCAA women’s tournament

March Madness didn’t earn its name from everything going the way you’d expect. The tournament has upsets, bracket-busters, Cinderella stories, and games most fans wouldn’t predict. With the tournament just days away, these are a few dark horses on the women’s side you need to look out for and pencil in on your women’s bracket.

Fairfield tied its best seed in program history at No. 12 and will face off against Kansas State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champions went 19-1 in conference play and won 22 of their last 23 games. The Stags have experience in the tournament after winning the MAAC to secure an automatic bid last season as well. They fell to Indiana in the first round. Although it is their seventh tournament appearance, it’s the first time they’ve made back-to-back appearances.

The Connecticut-based team ranks in the top 10 in scoring defense, holding opponents to 54 points per game.

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Harvard secured the No. 10 seed against seventh-seeded Michigan State. The two will play their first-round game on Saturday (4:30 p.m., ESPNews). Harvard earned its first tournament berth since 2007 after winning the Ivy League tournament against Columbia, 74-71. While the Lions will face off against Washington on Thursday in the First Four for a chance to compete in the first round, Harvard will make its seventh tournament appearance, with the 10th seed being its highest yet.

The Crimson are led by senior Harmoni Turner, averaging 22.5 points while also leading the team in rebounds, assists, and steals. Turner is the ninth-leading scorer in the country.

Momentum has favored the Antelopes, who are on a 30-game winning streak, going undefeated in the Western Athletic Conference. Grand Canyon has the best winning percentage and longest winning streak in women’s basketball. It beat Texas-Arlington to earn its first NCAA appearance and secure a date against No. 4 Baylor on Friday (3:30 p.m., ESPN2).

The Antelopes have four players averaging double digits, with senior Trinity San Antonio leading the charge with 15.7 points per game. They have an average victory margin of 20.5 points, good for eighth in the nation. They are second in the nation in field goal percentage, shooting at an average of 49.3%, slightly behind UConn’s 50.85% clip.

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After making the tournament in back-to-back-to-back seasons from 2021-23, the Bulls could not secure a bid last year. But now they’re back in the Big Dance as a No. 12 seed, tipping off against No. 5 Tennessee on Friday (8 p.m., ESPN).

South Florida is making its 10th NCAA appearance during coach Jose Fernandez’s 25 seasons at the helm. It downed Rice in the American Athletic Conference championship to earn it second conference title. Sophomore Vittoria Blasigh finished with 20 points in the ACC championship while fifth-year player Sammie Puisis leads the Bulls in scoring for the season, averaging 14.8 points.

Creighton has punched its ticket to the tournament for the fourth consecutive season despite falling to UConn in the Big East championship. The ninth-seeded Bluejays will face eighth-seeded Illinois in the tournament’s first round. Creighton has two scorers averaging 17-plus points a game in Lauren Jensen and Morgan Maly. Maly is also a top 15 three-point shooter, shooting at a 43.02% clip. Creighton moves the ball well, with the sixth-ranked assist-to-turnover ratio (1.51).

The Bluejays had just two losses in the Big East this season, both at the hands of the Huskies. They also posted a notable 80-74 win over a ranked Nebraska team earlier this season.

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