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The 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament heads to the Sweet 16, starting Friday at 2:30 p.m. ET. Only 491 entries in USA TODAY’s NCAA Women’s Tournament Survivor Pool contest remain out of the 3,754 who signed up.
We’ll bid adieu to 8 more teams the next 2 days, too, as we head into the Elite 8. While things haven’t quite been as topsy-turvy as the men’s bracket, we’ve had our moments, especially with 7th-seeded Duke dumping No. 2 seed Ohio State.
After getting through the 1st round with 3 correct picks for 12 points, I stumbled in the 2nd round and was eliminated. No. 4 seed Indiana helped me out, but 4th-seeded Kansas State lost to 5th-seed Colorado, bumping me out of the pool.
As an employee, I wasn’t eligible to win anyway, but there’s no rule against me helping you win $2.5K.
Here is my strategy of which team to pick for the Women’s NCAA Basketball Tournament Survivor Pool in the Sweet 16 round.
A rules reminder: Remaining entries are required to pick 1 team in the Sweet 16, 1 in the Elite 8, 1 in the Final Four and then the National Championship Game winner — if you still have an eligible team to select.
Points are earned equal to your winning teams’ seeds.
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Sweet 16 pick
PICK 1: LSU TIGERS (30-5)
Who they play: UCLA Bruins (27-6)
When: Saturday, 1 p.m. ET (ABC)
Where: MVP Arena, Albany, N.Y.
The 3rd-seeded and defending champion Tigers have had a bit of a rocky road to get to the Sweet 16. Coach Kim Mulkey is battling the media, F Angel Reese continues to get into hot water with on-court antics, and the Tigers just haven’t played great in the 2 games.
LSU was very sluggish against 14th-seeded Rice in the 1st round, winning just 70-60. While the Tigers pulled away to win 83-56 against No. 11 seed Middle Tennessee in the 2nd round, LSU found itself down 36-32 at halftime before the alarm clock went off.
Still, LSU, No. 6 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, faces No. 8 UCLA in a clash of titans. The Tigers were seemingly unseeded on the 3 line, but the way they have played, perhaps not. The Bruins roughed up No. 15 seed Cal Baptist in the 1st round by an 84-55 score, while easing by 7th-seeded Creighton 67-63 in a game too close for comfort.
UCLA shot just 43.9% (25 of 57) from the field, while going a dismal 26.3% (5 of 19) from behind the 3-point line and turning it over 13 times against Creighton. If UCLA plays like that against LSU, it’s going to be lights out for the Bruins against a team with championship mettle like the Tigers.
Despite all of the distractions for LSU, I feel the best is yet to come for this team. It’s too talented to go home at this juncture.
Stream select live college basketball games and full replays: Get ESPN+
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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
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