Women's Final Four 2026 picks, predictions: Why UConn, Texas will make national title game

Women's Final Four 2026 picks, predictions: Why UConn, Texas will make national title game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The 2026 Women's Final Four features four No. 1 seeds in another blockbuster Final Four. 

Will the Huskies achieve perfection again? 

No. 1 UConn (38-0) will try to win a 13th national championship under coach Geno Auriemma. The Huskies also will try to achieve their seventh perfect season under Auriemma since 1994-95. 

UConn advanced to the Women's Final Four with a 70-52 win over No. 6 Notre Dame in the Elite Eight on Sunday. The Huskies will face No. 1 South Carolina (35-3), which advanced with a 78-52 victory against No. 3 TCU Monday. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley has the Gamecocks in the Final Four for the sixth consecutive season. 

No. 1 UCLA (35-1) is making a second straight Final Four appearance under coach Cori Close. The Bruins defeated No. 3 Duke 70-58 to reach Phoenix. Meanwhile No. 1 Texas (35-3) completes this all-chalk group with coach Vic Schaefer. The Longhorns routed No. 2 Michigan 77–41 on Monday. 

This year's Women's Final Four is April 3-5 at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix.  

Here are our picks for the Women's Final Four matchups on Friday:

Women's Final Four odds 2026

Below are the opening March Madness odds for the Women's Final Four, including point spreads, money lines and over-under totals for each game. Odds courtesy of Caesars:      

Women's Final Four picks, predictions 

• No. 1 Texas (-1.5) vs. No. 1 UCLA (semifinal) 

Friday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN

UCLA is 13-1 against ranked teams this year; with the lone loss coming against Texas the Players Only Tournament in Las Vegas on Nov. 26, 2025. 

Texas guard Rori Harmon had a season-high 26 points in that matchup. Harmon controls the tempo on both sides for the Longhorns, and she has averaged 7.3 assists per game in the tournament. Texas hit its first nine shots in the blowout  Elite Eight victory against the Wolverines, and Harmon choreographed the offensive attack. 

A pair of two-time first-team Sporting News All-Americans are vying for a national championship shot. Texas forward Madison Booker hit just 6 of 17 from the floor in the first meeting with the Bruins, but she still had 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

UCLA's Lauren Betts -- a 6-foot-7 center had eight points and seven rebounds against Texas in that first matchup. Betts has five blocks in each of UCLA's last two games. Which marquee player will have the advantage? 

The Bruins play six seniors in their rotation, including guards Kiki Rice and Gianna Kneepkens and forwards Charlise Leger-Walker and Gabriela Jaquez. UCLA is shooting 29% from 3-point range in the tournament. Angela Dugalic had 15 points off the bench against Duke; and freshman Sienna Betts -- a 6-foot-4 freshman -- completes the rotation. 

The Longhorns had a 26-24 rebounding advantage in the first meeting. Forwards Breya Cunningham and Teya Sidberry are the starters, and 6-foot-6 center Kyla Oldacre could see more minutes in this matchup to combat the Bruins' height in the paint. UCLA will have to shoot better than 4-of-13 (31%) from 3-point range in the first meeting to avenge their only loss of the season, and neither team plays a deep bench.

Look for Harmon to control the tempo again -- and Booker to be a more effective scorer this time around. Texas gets its shot at a national championship. 

Pick: Texas 72, UCLA 68 

• No. 1 UConn (TBD) vs. No.  1 South Carolina (semifinal) 

Friday, 9 p.m. ET, ESPN

The Huskies and Gamecocks have split their last 10 matchups -- and this is a rematch of last year's national championship game. UConn won 82-59 behind a dominant 24-point, 15-rebound performance by Sarah Strong. 

Strong -- the Sporting News Player of the Year -- had 21 points, seven rebounds, five steals and three blocks in the Elite Eight against Notre Dame. Strong is the ultimate team player, and she ranks among the all-time leaders in career effective field-goal percentage (.655). 

Azzi Fudd also had 24 points and five rebounds in last year's game. She is averaging four assists and two turnovers in the tournament and hit 8-of-11 from 3-point range in a 34-point performance against No. 9 Syracuse in the second round. 

Serah Williams -- a 6-foot-4 forward -- could see more minutes in this matchup. Guards KK Arnold and Ashlynn Shade round out the starting five. The X-factor is freshman forward Blanca Quinonez -- a 6-foot-2 forward who is averaging 17.3 points per game and shooting 47.4% from 3-point range in the tournament. 

South Carolina faces a challenge in slowing down the Huskies. The Gamecocks are 5-2 S/U when they allow 70 points or more. Joyce Edwards -- a 6-foot-3 sophomore forward -- is the counter to Strong. She averages 19.6 points and 6.5 rebounds, and is part of a front-line that includes 6-foot-5 center Madina Okot. Edwards has to be a presence on both sides of the floor -- and look for the Gamecocks to get her touches early. 

The Gamecocks also have a balanced backcourt with Raven Johnson -- a fifth-year player who has won two national championships, along with Florida State transfer Ta'Niya Latson and guard Tessa Johnson. Agot Makeer is another scorer off the bench. South Carolina can slow the game down, but the 3-point shots will have to fall. The Gamecocks are 10-3 against ranked opponents. UConn is 6-0, and five of those victories are by double digits. 

MORE:What to know about Raven Johnson

Ultimately, Strong and Fudd will be the difference after a tight first half. The Huskies advance to another national championship game. 

Pick: UConn 77, South Carolina 70