Women's NCAA Tournament 2013: Biggest Threats to Baylor's Title Bid

The women's NCAA tournament could be in for a surprise this season.

With only a few weeks remaining until the main event begins, Baylor is the odds-on favorite to win it all. The Lady Bears are 67-1 in the last two seasons, won the title last year and are led by the nation's best player in Brittney Griner. 

However, a second championship in a row is far from guaranteed. There are a number of teams looking to make an impact in the tournament and are more than capable of defeating Baylor in a head-to-head matchup.

Here are the squads that will challenge the Lady Bears the most in March.

Stanford

When thinking about teams that could beat Baylor, you have to start with the one that actually got it done this season.

The two teams faced each other in Hawaii in November, with the Cardinal coming away with a 71-69 victory.

In the matchup, Chiney Ogwumike showed why she is one of the best players in the country, as she finished with 18 points and eight rebounds. In addition, Mikaela Ruef played solid defense all game on Griner and finished with 12 rebounds herself.

Since that point, Stanford had a couple of stumbles, including the 61-35 loss to Connecticut. However, the talent and previous victory over the Lady Bears will give them a lot of confidence to do it again in March.

Connecticut

Although Notre Dame is currently ranked higher than Connecticut and owns a head-to-head victory between the two, the Huskies have a better chance of beating Baylor in the NCAA tournament.

Aside from Stanford, UConn is the only team to keep the No. 1 team within single-digits. In the 76-70 defeat, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis totaled 26 points and 15 rebounds.

If she can get some more help from her supporting cast, mainly Stefanie Dolson, it might be enough to overcome the intimidating opposing defenses. 

Additionally, Geno Auriemma has as much experience in big games as anyone in the sport. His personally experience will be able to carry over to his team to get them over the top. 

Delaware

It will be a bit of a long shot for Delaware to make a run in the NCAA tournament, but if the team has any chance of winning it will be due to Elena Delle Donne.

The senior is second in the nation with 25.1 points per game and can score from almost anywhere on the floor.

She missed six games at the beginning of the year (including losses to Georgetown and Duquesne) due to symptoms stemming from Lyme disease. Delaware lost to Maryland in her first game back.

Since that point, however, the Blue Hens have won 20 games in a row and are playing as well as any team in the country. 

Although defeating Baylor would still be an uphill battle, this is a sleeper to watch out for in March.

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