Top 5 women's SEC March Madness upset predictions for 2025 ft. South Carolina missing the Final Four

This is a waiting week in the world of SEC women's basketball. No games, just sitting around, resting up for an NCAA Tournament to remember. And about that tournament —the SEC seems as wide open as in recent memory. Here's an early rundown of some surprising NCAA Tournament events coming from the SEC.

5 March Madness upset predictions from the SEC

Dawn Staley and USC could come up short because of the lack of a clear top scorer this season. (Photo Credit: IMAGN)

5. Seven NCAA regional hosting bids

ESPN's bracketology has the SEC getting only six regional bids, but that feels low. Some are obvious: South Carolina, Texas, LSU, Kentucky and Oklahoma are certain. Ole Miss gets the final regional nod from ESPN, but their bracketology has Alabama and Tennessee as No. 5 seeds, just missing the regional hosting spot. Put Alabama in —they earned it.

4. LSU goes home early

This LSU team has been singularly underwhelming, despite a handful of star players. LSU has lost four of its last seven games entering the NCAA Tournament. The Achilles heel? Perimeter shooting. LSU lacks a certain, knockdown perimeter scorer. The team shot just 33.5% from 3-point range on the season. A shifty perimeter team will outscore the Tigers earlier than expected.

3. Oklahoma goes to Final Four

The SEC's big sleeper are the Sooners. Yes, they lost to South Carolina in the SEC Tournament. But heading into that game, Oklahoma had won nine in a row. Reagan Beers is a handful inside and despite a so-so perimeter attack, Oklahoma outrebounds its average opponent by 11.7 boards per game. Keep Payton Verhulst hot and the Sooners will go deep in the bracket.

2. Texas goes to title game

It's hard to be underrated as a top team all season, but Texas has just been very quiet in its pursuit of the SEC. Texas had won 15 in a row before losing the SEC Tournament title game to South Carolina. The Longhorns force 21 turnovers a game and their defense will take them all the way to the NCAA Tournament championship game.

1. South Carolina misses Final Four

South Carolina has certainly had some ups (like the SEC Tournament) but also plenty of downs this season. The Gamecocks just lack that pure scorer who could take this team to the next level. Maybe Dawn Staley can find one, but if not, the lack of the go-to player to get a basket feels fatal. Nobody plays more than 25.1 minutes or scores more than 13.2 ppg for this team.

Maybe that works out and USC can just shuttle the hottest hand in during the NCAA Tournament. But it feels like it's an attempt to camouflage an essential weakness. No big bucket scorer, no Final Four for USC.

What do you think about our SEC-based predictions? Share your take below in our comment section!