NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament 2024: Odds, Players to Watch in Sweet 16 Bracket

The NCAA women's basketball tournament will continue with Sweet 16 action this weekend, and many of the country's top players will be in action across Friday and Saturday. That should lead to plenty of exciting matchups with spots in the Elite Eight on the line.

All four No. 1 seeds made it through the first two rounds of the tourney. On Friday, South Carolina (vs. No. 4 Indiana) and Texas (vs. No. 4 Gonzaga) will play its next games. Then, on Saturday, Iowa (vs. No. 5 Colorado) and USC (vs. No. 5 Baylor) will be in action.

Of the 16 teams remaining, 15 are No. 5 seeds or better. The only exception is No. 7-seeded Duke, which will face No. 3 UConn on Saturday.

Here's the full Sweet 16 slate (along with odds for each matchup), followed by a look at several top players to watch this weekend.

Sweet 16 Schedule, Odds

Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

SOUTH BEND, IN - MARCH 25: The March Madness logo is pictured on a Wilson EVO NXT basketball during the game between the Ole Miss Rebels and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the second round of the NCAA Division I Women's Championship on March 25, 2024 at Purcell Pavilion in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Friday, March 29

No. 2 Notre Dame (-3.5) vs. No. 3 Oregon State, 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

No. 1 South Carolina (-16.5) vs. No. 4 Indiana, 5 p.m. ET, ESPN

No. 2 Stanford (-5) vs. No. 3 NC State, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

No. 1 Texas (-5.5) vs. No. 4 Gonzaga, 10 p.m. ET, ESPN

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Saturday, March 30

No. 2 UCLA vs. No. 3 LSU (-3.5), 1 p.m. ET, ABC

No. 1 Iowa (-8) vs. No. 5 Colorado, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC

No. 1 USC (-4.5) vs. No. 5 Baylor, 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

No. 3 UConn (-8) vs. No. 7 Duke, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Caitlin Clark, Iowa

Matthew Holst/Getty Images

IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates after drawing a foul late in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)

Caitlin Clark is the all-time leading scorer for Division I basketball (men's and women's), so of course she's a player to watch any time she takes the court. The senior Iowa guard is on a mission to lead the Hawkeyes to their first national championship in program history.

In the first round, Clark tallied 27 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds and three steals in Iowa's 91-65 win over No. 16 Holy Cross. Then, she powered the Hawkeyes to a 64-54 victory over No. 8 West Virginia by recording 32 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.

This season alone, Clark has 1,113 points, the most in a Division I season. And she could have four more games to add to that total, if Iowa makes it to the end of the tournament for the second straight year. (In 2023, the Hawkeyes lost to LSU in the national championship game.)

Expect Clark to continue to put up big numbers, including in Iowa's Sweet 16 matchup vs. No. 5 Colorado on Saturday.

JuJu Watkins, USC

Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 23: JuJu Watkins #12 of the USC Trojans handles the ball in the second half against the Texas A&M-CC Islanders of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Galen Center on March 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)

After an impressive debut regular season at USC, JuJu Watkins' first NCAA tournament is off to a great start. The freshman guard helped power the Trojans into the Sweet 16 with victories over No. 16 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and No. 8 Kansas in the first two rounds.

In the opening round, Watkins had 23 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and four blocks. Then, she tallied 28 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two steals in USC's second-round victory.

But Watkins is capable of even better numbers. She's recorded 13 games of 30-plus points this season, including a whopping 51-point game at Stanford on Feb. 2.

Watkins should help the Trojans continue on in the tournament with another strong performance in their Sweet 16 matchup against No. 5 Baylor on Saturday.

Paige Bueckers, UConn

M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

STORRS, CT - MARCH 25: UConn Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) pumps up the student section in the final seconds of the Syracuse Orange game versus the UConn Huskies in the second round of the NCAA Division I Women's Championship on March 25, 2024, at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT. (Photo by M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Even though UConn has had an injury-riddled season, it will be playing in the Sweet 16 for the 30th straight NCAA tournament. A big reason for that has been the recent play of junior guard Paige Bueckers.

In the Huskies' first-round game against No. 14 Jackson State, Bueckers had 28 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and three steals. She was even better in UConn's second-round win over Syracuse, as she played every minute of the game and finished with 32 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals.

The Huskies are a dangerous No. 3 seed, and they may have little trouble against No. 7 Duke on Saturday. Especially if Bueckers comes through with another big showing.

If Bueckers continues to play so well (and possibly even better), UConn may make another deep run through March Madness.

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