The Sweet 16 of the 2024 NCAA Women’s Tournament will continue this afternoon with action out of Albany Regional 2. These Regional semifinal matchups will take place at MVP Arena in Albany, NY, and both games will air on ABC. The winners will advance to face each other in the Elite Eight on Monday.
Below, we’ll offer our analysis and picks for both games. All odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
No. 3 LSU vs. No. 2 UCLA, 1 p.m. ET
Point spread: LSU -2.5
Total: 144.5
Moneyline: LSU -155, UCLA +130
LSU (30-5) is back in the Sweet 16 for a second straight year and got here by taking down No. 14 Rice and No. 11 Middle Tennessee last weekend. The Tigers ended up winning both games by double digits, but they weren’t forgone conclusions as they were close affairs deep into the third quarter. As expected, Angel Reese recorded a double-double in both games for the defending national champions while Aneesah Morrow has also stepped up in a big way.
UCLA (27-6) is also in the Sweet 16 for a second straight year and crushed No. 15 Cal Baptist in round one before surviving a close 67-63 affair against Creighton in round two. That game against the Bluejays was tied before a 9-2 run by the Bruins gave them just enough cushion to survive and advance. Kiki Rice has been the difference maker for UCLA so far in the tourney, averaging 22 points and 6.5 rebounds through two games.
Pick: LSU -2.5
The defending champions have overcome slow starts to get the job done in both of their tournament games so far and I think that they can do the same against UCLA. A particular place that LSU can gain an advantage is at the charity stripe as 23.5% of their points have come from free throws this year. The Bruins have been somewhat vulnerable in allowing free trips to the line this year, so I think the Tigers can exploit this and ultimately cover this afternoon.
No. 5 Colorado vs. No. 1 Iowa, 3:30 p.m. ET
Point spread: Iowa -7
Total: 157
Moneyline: Iowa -325, Colorado +260
Colorado (24-9) has made the Sweet 16 for a second straight year and did so by picking up a pair of double-digit victories over No. 12 Drake and No. 4 Kansas State last weekend. The Buffaloes put their foot down in the second half of their second-round matchup against the Wildcats as they held them to just 15 points combined in the final two quarters of action. The front court of Aaronette Vonleh and Quay Miller were imposing forces for CU through the first two rounds and will be players to watch in today’s showdown.
Iowa (31-4) is making its third Sweet 16 appearance in four seasons and is fresh off a blowout victory over No. 16 Holy Cross and a 10-point win over No. 8 West Virginia last weekend. The second-round matchup was a struggle for both teams on offense as they both shot under 37% for the night. The Hawkeyes, however, were able to take advantage of a glaring free throw disparity in the game, shooting 30 attempts to the Mountaineers’ five. Caitlin Clark has averaged 29.5 points through two games in the tourney but don’t sleep on Kate Martin, who is averaging a double-double in the Big Dance so far.
Pick: Over 157
Iowa boasts the top offense in the entire country with an average of 92 points per game. However, it hasn’t necessarily been the strongest on the defensive side of the floor as it has given up an average of 71.2 ppg. Colorado has enough offensive firepower to take advantage of this and with an impressive 12.4% steal rate, the Buffs can definitely put extra points on the board by stealing a few possessions from the Hawkeyes. That’s why I’ll take the over in this matchup.