The First Round of the 2022 Women’s NCAA Tournament wrapped up on Saturday night. There were some upsets and some near-upsets that made the day exciting. No. 12 seed Belmont was the biggest surprise, dragging No. 5 seed Oregon to double-overtime and winning 73-70. No. 11 seeds Princeton and Villanova won their respective games against No. 6 seed teams Kentucky and BYU.
Higher up the seeding line, the usual suspects took care of business, with all four No. 1 seeds and all four No. 2 seeds cruising to double-digit wins in the first round.
The Bridgeport region took center stage with all eight of the first round matchups there, along with each of the other three regions wrapping up the round of 64.
- No. 14 seed Jackson State had No. 3 seed LSU on the verge of what would’ve been the first 14-3 upset in the women’s NCAA Tournament history, leading by 10 with only 4:54 remaining. Coach Kim Mulkey’s LSU squad responded with a 13-0 run, however, to sneak by the Lady Tigers with a 83-77 win. If the results were flipped, it would’ve been Mulkey’s first opening-round loss since 2001, her first year at Baylor, and Jackson State’s first ever NCAA Tournament victory.
- No. 12 seed Belmont stunned No. 5 seed Oregon 73-70 in a double-overtime thriller, the women’s tournament’s first double-overtime game since 2013. Belmont guard Tuti Jones was sensational in the upset, scoring 22 points to go along with four steals and six rebounds.
- No. 2 seed UConn opened the first round with a confident 83-38 victory over No. 15 seed Mercer. The Huskies had four players in double digits and made 44% of their 3-pointers.
- NC State, the final No. 1 seed to play in this year’s tournament, put on an offensive masterclass against No. 16 seed Longwood. The Wolfpack had five players reach double figures in scoring in their 96-68 win, and senior guard Raina Perez led the way with 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting.
- Tennessee — a No. 4 seed in the Wichita Region this year — extended its run as the only school to appear in every Women’s NCAA Tournament. The Lady Vols opened their 40th straight tourney against Buffalo, winning 80-67 behind an 18-point, 11-rebound performance from senior forward Alexus Dye.
- No. 4 seed Arizona battled a close game against No. 13 seed UNLV. The Wildcats came out on top thanks to a 30-point performance by senior guard Shaina Pellington.
2022 Women’s NCAA Tournament TV schedule
(All times eastern)
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(9) Kansas State 50, (8) Washington State 40 | Bridgeport Region |
(7) UCF 69, (10) Florida 52 | Bridgeport Region |
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(2) UConn 83, (15) Mercer 38 | Bridgeport Region |
(11) Princeton 69, (6) Kentucky 62 | Bridgeport Region |
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(11) Villanova 61, (6) BYU 57 | Wichita Region |
(3) LSU 83, (14) Jackson State 77 | Spokane Region |
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(3) Indiana 85, (14) Charlotte 51 | Bridgeport Region |
(12) Belmont 73, (5) Oregon 70 | Wichita Region |
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(1) NC State 96 (16) Longwood 68 | Bridgeport Region |
(5) North Carolina 79, (12) Stephen F. Austin 66 | Greensboro Region |
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(6) Ohio State 63, (11) Missouri State 56 | Spokane Region |
(5) Notre Dame 89, (12) UMass 78 | Bridgeport Region |
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(4) Tennessee 80, (13) Buffalo 67 | Wichita Region |
(4) Arizona 72, (13) UNLV 67 | Greensboro Region |
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(3) Michigan 74, (14) American 39 | Wichita Region |
(4) Oklahoma 78, (13) IUPUI 72 | Bridgeport Region |
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