TCU women’s basketball is back in March Madness as a 3-seed and will open at Schollmaier Arena against UC San Diego with momentum and history on its side.
FORT WORTH - TCU women’s basketball is not sneaking into the NCAA Tournament anymore. The Horned Frogs are walking in through the front door with a top seed, home-court juice and real expectations.
The bracket dropped Sunday, and TCU women’s basketball earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, setting up a first-round matchup with No. 14 UC San Diego on Friday at Schollmaier Arena.
That means Fort Worth gets another March spotlight, and it means the Frogs get to start their postseason run in the building where they have turned opponents into roadkill.
TCU enters the tournament at 29-5 overall and 15-3 in Big 12 play, and this group has already proven it can stack wins at a national level.
The Horned Frogs captured a second straight outright Big 12 regular-season title, giving them one of the strongest resumes in the country.
They also picked up 10 wins over NCAA Tournament teams, which is not the profile of a squad hoping to get lucky. This is a team that has done real damage all season.
And now it gets another shot to push deeper into March.
Last season, TCU kicked down a door by reaching the Elite Eight, the furthest either the men’s or women’s basketball programs had ever gone in the NCAA Tournament.
This year’s team now has a chance to build on that and keep the climb going under Mark Campbell, who has turned the Frogs into one of the sport’s fastest-rising programs.
Since he took over, TCU has piled up 84 wins, putting the program among the national leaders in that stretch.
The matchup ahead is dangerous only if the Frogs let it be. UC San Diego comes in at 24-8 after a strong run through the Big West, but TCU has the more complete roster, the bigger stage experience and the better top-end talent.
The Horned Frogs also have a rotation loaded with players who have already been through March, including Olivia Miles, Taylor Bigby, Donovyn Hunter and Marta Suarez.
That experience could show up fast. If TCU wins on Friday, it would move one step closer to another 30-win season and keep alive the possibility of another run that makes Fort Worth loud.
The path is not easy, but the message from the bracket is clear: TCU is no longer a cute story.