Will USC women’s basketball raise another banner? Here’s what Barack Obama has to say
Ahead of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, former President Barack Obama shared his March Madness bracket.
His pick for the women’s championship? The University of South Carolina.
Obama predicts that the Gamecocks will defeat UCLA in the women’s title game. The Gamecocks lost to the Bruins 77-62 earlier this season, and lost the distinction of the top overall seed to the same team. Still, USC is the favorite of many to defend their title and win once again.
It’s the fourth year in a row that Obama has chosen the Gamecocks to win the women’s title. They’ve won two of the last three, in 2022 and 2024.
The Gamecocks are trying to become the first team since Connecticut (2013-16) to repeat as women’s basketball champions.
USC coach Dawn Staley was asked about the possibility of winning, and said what the Gamecocks have accomplished also is impressive — especially with the parity in the women’s basketball game.
“I think we created a legacy already, whether we win this one or not. I think it’s going to go down in history as our team, our program has done things that programs haven’t done in a very long time,” Staley said. “... this is the most competitive that women’s basketball has been in a long time.”
The South Carolina women’s basketball team begins its national championship defense in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at 4 p.m. on Friday. The Gamecocks will face No. 16 seed Tennessee Tech at Colonial Life Arena.
The Gamecocks are a 43.5-point favorite against Tennessee Tech, according to DraftKings. The winner of South Carolina-Tennessee Tech faces the Utah-Indiana winner on Sunday.
This story was originally published March 21, 2025 at 1:34 PM with the headline "Will USC women’s basketball raise another banner? Here’s what Barack Obama has to say."
