3 biggest women's March Madness tournament snubs

meghan l. hall, for the win

Sun, 16 Mar 2025, 9:30 pm·2-min read

Selection Sunday is the maker of dreams or the breaker of hearts.

The 2025 women's NCAA tournament bracket is final, and that means some folks are going dancing, and some teams will sadly be at home. Unfortunately, if a program finds itself on the losing end of the selection committee's decisions, there are probably more questions than answers.

SURVIVOR POOL: Free to enter. $2,500 to win. Can you survive the madness?

Those questions likely include: Where did we go wrong? What happened? Were we *checks notes and dramatically gasps* SNUBBED?! Here's the answer: Yes, you were snubbed. And, unfortunately, we have to address why. (Cover your eyes; this might not be pretty.)

Here are the 3 women's teams who were snubbed from March Madness:

Stanford Cardinal

No one expected head coach Kate Paye to be former coach and legend Tara Vanderveer, but not making the NCAA tournament after 36 straight appearances is as brutal as it gets.

Stanford was already on the bubble with a 16-13 overall record, but a loss to Clemson Tigers in the ACC tournament doomed them. (Maybe all that East Coast traveling caught up to them. Sorry, Cardinal fans. That might be too soon. *ducks*) Per SB Nation's Mitchell Northam, head coach Kate Paye recently said the team might be willing to play in another tournament like the Women's Basketball Invitation.

Virginia Tech Hokies

With former coach Kenny Brooks, guard Georgia Amoore and center Clara Strack off to Kentucky, the Hokies had a strenuous uphill battle to get back to the standard for Virginia Tech basketball. The losses started stacking up quickly, including four against ranked opponents. OUCH.

If they had made the tournament, it would have been by just a hair, and I didn't feel very confident in their ability to get past their first matchup.

James Madison Dukes

Dukes head coach Sean O'Regan questions a call during the Sun Belt Conference women's basketball championship game between James Madison and Arkansas State at the Bay Center in Pensacola on Monday, March 10, 2025.

James Madison not making it isn't a considerable snub; instead, it's just sad. Unfortunately, they were on the outside looking in despite winning 28 games during the regular season and going undefeated in conference play.

What kept them out? An ugly 86-79 overtime loss to Arkansas State in the Sun Belt tournament. WOOF. There went any hope of making the Big Dance. If you know a Dukes fan, hug them.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Biggest women's March Madness tournament snubs