Despite losing an SEC game for the first time this season, South Carolina women’s basketball is still projected to host in the NCAA Tournament.
The No. 4 Gamecocks (22-2, 10-1 SEC) lost to now-No. 3 Texas on Sunday, 64-62 which evened the home-and-home series between the teams.
South Carolina has two home games this week, beginning with unranked Florida on Thursday (7 p.m., SEC Network) then No. 7 UConn on Sunday (1 p.m., ABC).
Here’s where South Carolina stands in the latest NCAA Tournament projections.
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South Carolina projected as No. 1 seed
ESPN’s Charlie Creme’s latest projections have the Gamecocks as a No. 1 seed, hosting in Columbia. Creme has Illinois (No. 8), Richmond (No. 9) and the winner of a First Four game between UNCG and NC A&T (No. 16) in their bracket.
South Carolina would play UNCG or NC A&T, and the winner would face either Illinois or Richmond.
South Carolina’s basketball’s NCAA Tournament résumé, NET ranking
The Gamecocks are still at the top of the NCAA NET rankings even with two losses as both are a Quad 1 game.
The Gamecocks are 6-2 on the road, 5-0 on a neutral court, 11-0 at home, 10-2 in Quad 1 games, 3-0 in Quad 2 games, 3-0 in Quad 3 games and 5-0 in Quad 4 games.
UConn is second in the NET, which sets the stage for Sunday’s game.
South Carolina women’s basketball’s NCAA Tournament history
South Carolina has won three national championships since 2017 under coach Dawn Staley, most recently while going 38-0 in the 2023-24 season.
The Gamecocks have six Final Four appearances, seven Elite Eights, and have played in 14 Sweet 16 games. South Carolina has won the SEC tournament title eight times and is an eight-time SEC regular-season champion.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina women’s basketball March Madness bracket predictions
