Texas women’s basketball earns NCAA No. 1 seed, bringing opening-round tournament games to Austin

Austin selected to stage first- and second-round games at Moody Center

The University of Texas women’s basketball team has been awarded a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, positioning the Longhorns among the four top seeds in the 68-team bracket. Under the tournament format, the top 16 seeds host first- and second-round games on their home floors, sending the opening weekend of March Madness to campus sites across the country.

For Austin, the seeding decision means Moody Center will serve as a host venue for first-round and second-round matchups in the opening week of the tournament. The NCAA’s women’s tournament calendar places the First Four on March 18–19, followed by first- and second-round play from March 20–23, 2026.

How Texas reached a No. 1 seed

Texas entered Selection Sunday with a 31–3 record and secured the SEC Tournament championship, a result that strengthened its standing in the committee’s final evaluation. The Longhorns also posted an unbeaten home record at Moody Center this season, a factor that becomes relevant once a team earns a top-16 seed and the right to host.

The committee placed Texas on the No. 1 line alongside UConn, UCLA and South Carolina. The bracket also assigns each No. 1 seed to one of the two regional sites that stage the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, with Fort Worth, Texas and Sacramento, California hosting those rounds for the fourth consecutive year. The Final Four is scheduled for Phoenix on April 3, with the national championship game set for April 5.

What hosting in Austin means for the bracket

Hosting responsibilities extend beyond Texas games. A first- and second-round site typically stages a pod of multiple teams, creating two days of opening-weekend action in one arena. In practical terms, Austin will be the location for:

• First-round games involving Texas and other assigned teams in its pod
• Second-round games that determine which team advances to the Sweet 16
• Team travel, practice sessions and NCAA event operations centered at Moody Center

The women’s tournament uses a seeding structure in which top-16 teams host the first two rounds, with later rounds shifting to predetermined neutral regional sites and the Final Four.

What comes next

With the bracket set, Texas’ path now depends on its first- and second-round results in Austin before a potential move to the regional rounds. The opening weekend also carries high stakes for visiting teams, as campus environments have become a defining feature of early-round women’s tournament play under the current format.

Game times and opponent assignments are finalized as part of the official bracket and scheduling process for March 20–23, with advancement determining who remains in the field when play shifts to Fort Worth and Sacramento.