Big Ten women’s basketball tournament bracket: Matchups, schedule, and more revealed

The 2026 Big Ten Conference women’s basketball tournament is underway, Some of the best teams in the conference are playing for the championship and a spot in the NCAA Tournament. The event will take place at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis from March 4 to March 8.

A total of 15 teams out of the conference’s 18 members qualified for the tournament this year, with the top four seeds earning double-byes directly into the quarterfinal round. The tournament will feature 14 games, culminating in the championship game on March 8 at 2:15 p.m. ET, which will be broadcast on CBS channel.

Top seeds and tournament favorites

The UCLA Bruins are the top seed in the tournament following a great regular season. The Bruins, led by standout players like Lauren Betts and Kiki Rice, dominated conference play and will begin their tournament journey in the quarterfinals.

Joining UCLA with double-byes into the quarterfinal round are:

• No. 2 Iowa Hawkeyes
• No. 3 Michigan Wolverines
• No. 4 Minnesota Golden Gophers

These teams will start play on March 6, giving them a shorter path to the title.

Several other ranked programs are also in contention, including the Ohio State Buckeyes, who finished fifth in the standings and entered the tournament with one of the highest-scoring offenses in the conference.

First and second round results

The tournament opened with three first-round games on March 4. The Indiana Hoosiers pulled off a comeback win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers, while the Illinois Fighting Illini defeated the Wisconsin Badgers. The Oregon Ducks also advanced after beating the Purdue Boilermakers.

The second round on March 5 featured notable results: The Washington Huskies defeated the USC Trojans, while Ohio State advanced with a convincing victory over Indiana. Illinois continued its impressive run with an upset over the Michigan State Spartans, and Oregon stunned the Maryland Terrapins to move on to the quarterfinals.

Quarterfinal matchups and schedule

The quarterfinal round begins on March 6 with several key matchups:

• No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 8 Washington
• No. 4 Minnesota vs. No. 5 Ohio State
• No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 10 Illinois
• No. 3 Michigan vs. No. 11 Oregon

The winners of these games will advance to the semifinals on March 7, which will also be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.

The final two teams will compete for the conference title in the championship game on CBS on March 8 at 2:15 p.m. ET.

The 2026 Big Ten women's basketball tournament will be very exciting because there are strong teams and emerging contenders, who will be fighting for postseason glory and momentum going into March Madness.



Get the latest ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, IND vs ENG Live Score updates, including the full schedule, teams, points table, and key series stats such as top run-scorers and wicket-takers.