Dean Etheridge
The Women’s NCAA National Championship has reached the Sweet 16 stage, and as things stand, South Carolina are still on course to defend their title and also to be crowned the champions women’s team for the third time in their history. Can the Gamecocks hold their nerve and do it? Here we look ahead with our latest NCAAB futures.
- The South Carolina Gamecocks came into March Madness as the -200 favorites. After the opening two rounds, they are now -275
- So far, two No.1 seeds have gone out of the women’s competition. They are Indiana and Stanford
- Alongside South Carolina, Virginia Tech are the remaining No.1 seeds left in the 2023 competition
- The Sweet 16 gets underway this Friday. The Gamecocks aren’t in action until Saturday, when they face UCLA at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena
Betting to win the 2023 Women’s NCAA National Championship
Yes, the Gamecocks are still the favorites to win the competition with the best college basketball betting sites. Despite the third and fourth favorites already exiting the competition, South Carolina haven’t seen their odds change much. They started out at -200, and have been cut to -275 after two comfortable wins.
Good morning, FAMS! Everyone feeling 𝙎𝙒𝙀𝙀𝙏? #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/doDfcgwdZc
— South Carolina Women's Basketball (@GamecockWBB) March 20, 2023
Dawn Staley’s team still have second favorites UConn to contend with. The Huskies were +750 at the start of the madness. And their odds haven’t changed much at all, as they are now at +700.
Two of the four betting favorites have already fallen by the wayside though. Third favorites, Indiana (+800) lost by two points to Miami FL (70-68) in Round Two. And Stanford (+850) were caught cold by the Ole Miss Rebels.
Like Indiana, Tara Ann VanDerveer’s Stanford team were also eliminated at the Round Two stage, losing 54-49 to the Rebels. The disappointing loss sees the 2021 champions failing to reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2007.
The loss of Indiana and Stanford has resulted in the best March Madness betting sites drastically cutting the odds on LSU and Iowa to win the championship. Having started the tournament at +2200, LSU are now +1000. As for Iowa, they’ve gone from pre March Madness odds of +1800, to fourth favorites at +1200.
More betting can be found in our below odds table. These odds are taken from some of the best betting sites for college basketball. More information about these sites can be found on our top US sportsbooks reviews page.
| 2023 NCAAB Women’s National Championship Odds |  |  |  |
| South Carolina | -275 | -275 | -275 |
| UConn | +700 | +700 | +700 |
| LSU | +1000 | +1000 | +1000 |
| Iowa | +1200 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Virginia Tech | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Tennessee | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
What’s next for South Carolina?
Next up for South Carolina is the UCLA Bruins on Saturday. The Bruins are No.4 seeds and they’ve got to this stage of the competition without too much trouble.
In the First Round, UCLA completed a comfortable 67-45 win over the Sacramento State Hornets. The Bruins won every quarter and cruised through the match against the No.13 seeds.
Following on from that win was a meeting with the No.5 seeds, Oklahoma, in Round Two. Things were going well for the Bruins at the halfway point as they held a 13 points lead. But a great fightback from the Sooners saw them finish the 3rd Quarter one point ahead, at 54-53. Normal service resumed in the 4th Quarter though, with the Bruins winning that period by 10 points. Eventually winning the match 82-73.
𝑩𝑹𝑼-𝑾𝑰𝑵𝑺 🔥@UCLAWBB takes down Oklahoma in an 82-73 battle and dances into their first Sweet Sixteen since 2019! #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/dOMtsNodVy
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 21, 2023
The two wins don’t appear to have convinced the top basketball betting sites that the Bruins can beat the Gamecocks though. BetOnline is giving the Bruins a 17 points start on the handicap. It would appear that the Bruins might be getting some attention with that head start though, as they are -115 to win with the advantage. The Gamecocks are -105.
This suggests that plenty of money is coming in for the Bruins with a 17 point start. So it might be time to wager on UCLA if you think they can win on the handicap. That line may well get moved before Saturday if this continues.
Can anybody else stop South Carolina?
Not in our view! UConn are the closest side to the Gamecocks in betting terms. The Huskies are +700, and they have reached the Sweet 16 with relative ease. The No.2 seed do have a tricky looking Sweet 16 clash with Ohio State on Saturday afternoon though.
The Buckeyes themselves are seeded three, but the top sportsbooks are giving them a 10 point start. So they clearly don’t see Ohio giving UConn many problems.
Another team who might fancy their chances against South Carolina is the LSU Tigers. The No.3 seeds have seen their odds slashed from +2200 to +1000 in just over one week. This makes them the third favorites. The Tigers have seen off Hawaii (73-50), and No.6 seeds Michigan (66-42) in their opening rounds.
LSU face Utah on Friday afternoon, with the Tigers giving the Utes a +4.5 points start. The Utes are seeded two, but despite their higher ranking, they are still the outsiders to win the clash at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
Our Pick
Whatever the qualities of the opponents, the bottom line is that we still don’t see any of them beating South Carolina.
The Gamecocks just look too strong, and we still make them our betting pick to win the 2023 Women’s NCAA National Championship.
