Live NCAA Women's Tournament Coverage & Expert Picks

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00:00Opening day at the Round of 64 in the Women's Big Dance as well.

00:05And a reminder, noon Eastern time, Bracket Central coverage live right here on SportsGrid.

00:10Wall-to-wall coverage all day long for the entirety of this Friday in the Round of 64 begins in that opening three-hour slot.

00:18It's myself, it's Mike Blewett, it's James Young, our coach, live from our Midtown Manhattan studios right here in New York City.

00:28Versa NYC inside the Renaissance Hotel, 35th and 7th.

00:32If you're in the area, you want to come by, great sports watching venue, grab a beer, heckle us, live bet with us, let's have some fun.

00:42Let's also set the stage for the Round of 64 in the Women's NCAA Tournament in what we will see.

00:48My Women's NCAA Tourney pick six.

00:51My champion is the championship bet that I made back in early January.

00:56I'm a big fan of this UCLA team.

00:58I really believe in what UCLA can do, led by one of the best bigs in college basketball.

01:04A 6-1 price, and maybe you are saying to yourself, well, Ben, they're the number one overall seed.

01:09That's a little bit chalky.

01:10Correct.

01:11Number one overall seed, but third best number to win a national championship.

01:14South Carolina, who has won two titles in three years, a 2-1 price.

01:18Connecticut, the second best number at plus 240.

01:23We'll talk about the Huskies in just a moment.

01:26I really believe in Lauren Betts, but of course, you have to have great guard play to win in the month of March.

01:32Kiki Rice for UCLA does a fantastic job of running the show.

01:37UCLA in its first year in the Big Ten, exacting some revenge against its crosstown rival in USC to win that Big Ten tournament title.

01:45Only two losses for the Bruins this year, both against the Trojans in the regular season.

01:51Giving UCLA a plus 600 to win a national championship.

01:55The number one overall seed in the tourney, the top team in a regional one in Spokane.

02:01Who does UCLA beat to cut down the Nets?

02:04Still have a lot of belief in this Don Staley-led team.

02:07When you've won three national championships in the last seven years, you are embarking on dynastic type of consideration.

02:14And of course, the Gamecocks do have that.

02:16South Carolina had an interesting year.

02:18They had their 54-game SEC win streak snapped by Texas.

02:22They had their 71-game home win streak snapped by nearly 40 against UConn in Columbia.

02:28But still, the second team on that one line.

02:32I do believe South Carolina has a very solid bracket.

02:35Birmingham, Region 2.

02:37The two seed is Duke.

02:38Kara Lawson and the Blue Devils have done some great stuff.

02:41I think South Carolina will be in the women's Final Four and eventually face off in the national championship game.

02:47So elsewhere, where do I go?

02:49A little bit chalky here as well.

02:51There are lines of delineation in women's college basketball.

02:54We don't see madness nearly as much.

02:57We have started to see it more.

02:58We have started to see more parity.

03:00You used to have teams like UConn win four consecutive national championships.

03:05Or under Pat Summitt, Tennessee win three, four in a row.

03:09There is more parity, but there is still those lines of distinction.

03:14For instance, when you look at the national championship odds, you have five teams at an 8-1 number.

03:19South Carolina, UConn, UCLA, Texas, USC in that order.

03:24Before you even drop all the way off to Neal Ivey and Notre Dame at 43-1.

03:31And the Irish are a great basketball team and a three seed in Regional 3 in Birmingham.

03:37That of Texas.

03:39Could Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles cause some chaos?

03:43For sure.

03:44I'm still going to go chalk.

03:45Give me Texas.

03:46I have a national championship bet on the Longhorns.

03:49And out of the other region in Spokane, where USC is the top team,

03:53I'll take the favorites to win that region in UConn.

03:56Paige Beckers is absolutely sensational.

03:59The pedigree led by Gino Auriemma, of course, can hardly be rivaled in women's college hoops.

04:05But I think the difference right now is a healthy AZ FUD for Connecticut.

04:09That's why they get to the Final Four.

04:11Like in men's college basketball, if I'm picking a national championship winner to cut down the nets,

04:16I'm going to go to the best player to win MOP.

04:19That's Lauren Betts, one of the best bigs in college hoops.

04:226'7", dominant in the post.

04:25A sleeper.

04:26Regional 4 in Spokane.

04:28Iowa, playing much better basketball.

04:31On the sixth line in that portion in the final month and a half of this women's college basketball season.

04:38And how about a round one best bet?

04:40South Dakota State, the champions of the Summit.

04:43They've been dominant in that league.

04:45Great three-point shooting team.

04:47They knock off Oklahoma State in the opening round.

04:50Have a great weekend. How could you not?

04:52It's a great day.

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