The Gamecocks were the top overall seed while North Carolina State, Stanford and Louisville joined them as No. 1 seeds.
Under the stretch of the season, the Connecticut Huskies have recovered, are whole and have gone about the business of trying to show they deserve a high seed that will keep them at home for the duration of the 2022 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. will allow him to stay. ,
In the end, the selection committee decided that he had.
And so the Huskies, with contributions from Minnesota-born Paige Buykers, Azzie Food and Nika Muhl, all rode a 10-game winning streak (and 16 of their last 17) to clinch a high No. 2 seed. They will begin their quest for their first title since 2016 in Stors, Conn.
"They're healthy and they're playing well," said NCAA selection committee chair Nina King on ESPN's selection show. "Their whole team is playing, and they're another team that's heading up. They dominated their conference tournament."
The Final Four will be held on April 1 and 3 at the Target Center in Minneapolis.
Connecticut has to play host to the first two rounds in its quest to be one of those last four teams. Should Yukon move into Sweet Sixteen, it would mean a move to Bridgeport, Conn., and a potential showdown with No. 1-seeded North Carolina state. The Wolfpack must wonder why 29 wins and ACC regular-season and tournament titles entitle them to potentially play a regional final that would roughly amount to a road game.
South Carolina, defending champion Stanford, North Carolina State and Louisville seeded No. 1. Baylor, UConn, Iowa and Texas grabbed the No. 2 seeds.
But the move gave Yukon a second seed and pulled them back home, indicating the committee's intent to reward a strong finish.
The same has happened with Iowa, who are on a winning streak in seven games. The Hawkeyes grabbed a portion of the Big Ten regular-season title, then raced through the conference tournament to earn the No. 2 seed in the Greensboro area.
It's a move that set up two potentially delicious matches. First, Iowa and No. 3 seed Iowa State could potentially meet in a Sweet 16 game. Second, should both Iowa and No. 1 seed South Carolina advance, the Greensboro regional finals will pit Iowa's Caitlin Clark and South Carolina's Aliyah Boston — the top two players for Player of the Year — against each other.
"Iowa is a team that is hot," King said. "Co-champion in the Big Ten and eventual Big Ten Conference tournament champion. We loved awarding him."
Ditto for Texas, who have won 11 games in a row and defeated Baylor in the Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship.
Baylor's tournament loss to the Longhorns appears to have saved the Bears from the No. 1 seed, giving it to Louisville.
It is the first women's tournament to be expanded to 68 teams. This is the first tournament that will use the term "March Madness".
The Big Ten fielded six teams. Indiana, which finished strong, and Michigan both got the No. 3 seed. Maryland got No. 4, Ohio State got No. 6 and Nebraska got No. 8.
For South Carolina, it is an opportunity to atone for last year's 66-65 loss to eventual champion Stanford.
With virtually the same team back, and Boston advancing, Gamecock wrapped up the top overall seed and set its eyes on Minneapolis.
"It's a heartbreaking experience," South Carolina coach Don Staley said at the selection event. "This team hasn't lost too many basketball games because they have that desire. They know what it's like to lose like we lost in the Final Four. They're back and faced all the challenges. But, As Kobe Bryant said, the job isn't done."