Baylor Women's Basketball

Baylor Women's Basketball Earns No. 4 Seed, Hosts Grand Canyon in First Round

Baylor women’s basketball earned the No. 4 seed and a hosting bid in the 2025 NCAA Tournament
By SicEm365 Staff
March 16, 2025
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Baylor women’s basketball earned the No. 4 seed and a hosting bid in the Spokane Regional of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, as announced during the Selection Show on Sunday evening.

Head coach Nicki Collen’s Bears (27-7; 15-3 Big 12) are set to take on No. 13 seed Grand Canyon (32-2; 16-0 WAC) in the first round at Foster Pavilion on Friday, March 21; the time is yet to be determined. If Baylor were to win its Round of 64 matchup, the Bears would face the winner of No. 5 Ole Miss (20-10; 10-6 SEC) versus No. 12 seed Ball State (27-7; 16-2 MAC).

Baylor is making its 21st-straight NCAA Tournament appearance and 23rd appearance overall. The Bears are 57-19 all-time in the Big Dance and have made 16 trips to the Sweet 16, including last year when Collen’s squad narrowly fell to the No. 1 seeded USC Trojans. Baylor’s 21st-consecutive appearance is the third-longest active streak in the country behind Tennessee (43) and UConn (36).

The Bears will be back near full strength for March Madness, as star forward Darianna Littlepage-Buggs (Jr.), who missed seven straight games to close the season with a knee injury, will return.

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Nicki Collen Green & Gold Reports March Madness Foster Pavilion Selection Show Darianna Littlepage-Buggs Women's Basketball Baylor 2024
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Baylor Women's Basketball Earns No. 4 Seed, Hosts Grand Canyon in First Round

12,921 Views | 31 Replies | Last: 8 mo ago by Brusinbear2001
Delmar 2.0
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7:59p, 3/16/25
Just win Lady Bears!
I ain't quite as dumb as I seem
-- (P.C. 1974)
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Dcheetah
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8:46p, 3/16/25
https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/college/gcu/2025/03/16/gcu-womens-basketball-march-madness/82443282007/
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LTBear19
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9:00p, 3/16/25
Glad the committee got it right and we get to host over Ole Miss.

Now I think we're all hoping we get an evening start time on Friday.

The hosts that day consists of 5 schools in the Eastern Time Zone (South Carolina, Duke, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Kentucky), 2 schools in the Central Time Zone (Baylor, TCU), and 1 school on the West Coast (UCLA).

Assuming UCLA gets the late-late start, it stands to reason that both TCU and Baylor would be in the running for the regular prime time games.
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Jack Bauer
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9:18p, 3/16/25
Well....

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whitetrash
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10:14p, 3/16/25
2:30 Friday afternoon.

Ole Miss to follow at 5pm
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LTBear19
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In reply to whitetrash • 11:42p, 3/16/25
whitetrash said:
2:30 Friday afternoon.

Ole Miss to follow at 5pm
Garbage.

Could have at least put the Ole Miss game first.

And to boot, we'll be up against TCU and South Carolina at the same time.

From an unbiased standpoint, our game probably had one of the most intriguing storylines of the Friday matchups.
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blackie
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In reply to LTBear19 • 9:36a, 3/17/25
LTBear19 said:
whitetrash said:
2:30 Friday afternoon.

Ole Miss to follow at 5pm
Garbage.

Could have at least put the Ole Miss game first.

And to boot, we'll be up against TCU and South Carolina at the same time.

From an unbiased standpoint, our game probably had one of the most intriguing storylines of the Friday matchups.
I am not certain the "unbiased" standpoint would find it being any more intriguing than other matchup. The main thing that is "intriguing" here is because of this board going ga-ga over Miller 4 years ago.

The good thing here is that if we win on Friday we will have a Sunday game against possibly Ole Miss....when we really need the crowd. A Saturday - Monday scenario would not have been good for the 2nd game crowd.
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GarlandBear84
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10:05a, 3/17/25
My only complaint is why in the world didn't they put the "opening act" at 2:30 and the host at 5. NCAA stupidity never ceases to amaze me.
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blackie
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In reply to GarlandBear84 • 10:15a, 3/17/25
GarlandBear84 said:
My only complaint is why in the world didn't they put the "opening act" at 2:30 and the host at 5. NCAA stupidity never ceases to amaze me.
Don't know the answer to your question, but my memory seems to recall that it has been done both ways over the years when we hosted. I assume there is some criteria to it, but have never seen it stated. Seems like a good way to not have a crowd at the second game.....especially if the host team loses the first game.

I always enjoyed the years when we played the second game because we would come early to see the first game also.
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LTBear19
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In reply to blackie • 10:26a, 3/17/25
blackie said:
LTBear19 said:
whitetrash said:
2:30 Friday afternoon.

Ole Miss to follow at 5pm
Garbage.

Could have at least put the Ole Miss game first.

And to boot, we'll be up against TCU and South Carolina at the same time.

From an unbiased standpoint, our game probably had one of the most intriguing storylines of the Friday matchups.
I am not certain the "unbiased" standpoint would find it being any more intriguing than other matchup. The main thing that is "intriguing" here is because of this board going ga-ga over Miller 4 years ago.

The good thing here is that if we win on Friday we will have a Sunday game against possibly Ole Miss....when we really need the crowd. A Saturday - Monday scenario would not have been good for the 2nd game crowd.


What do you mean by 4 years ago?

There are folks here still going ga-ga over Miller today.
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GarlandBear84
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In reply to blackie • 10:40a, 3/17/25
After more thought it gives our players a few hours more rest and recovery than our next opponent. I bet Nicki would prefer a few extra thousand fans than the extra rest.
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ctxbear
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7:13p, 3/17/25
Alternate viewpoint here: Although the 2:30 tipoff is horrible for anyone out of town wanting to watch the game on television, it's actually not bad from a crowd standpoint. I'd wager that on a spring afternoon, a 2:30 start for a women's game is more likely to attract students and townies who want to play hooky from work--all folks who are starting to think about other things by the time 5:00 rolls around.
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blackie
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In reply to ctxbear • 9:34a, 3/18/25
ctxbear said:
Alternate viewpoint here: Although the 2:30 tipoff is horrible for anyone out of town wanting to watch the game on television, it's actually not bad from a crowd standpoint. I'd wager that on a spring afternoon, a 2:30 start for a women's game is more likely to attract students and townies who want to play hooky from work--all folks who are starting to think about other things by the time 5:00 rolls around.
It also gives the winning team a chance to dedicate their focus on scouting their upcoming opponent's game since they have already played. Perhaps this is an "added" perk given to the team hosting (if they win) as a reward for earning the hosting opportunity.
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ctxbear
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In reply to blackie • 11:53a, 3/18/25
blackie said:
ctxbear said:
Alternate viewpoint here: Although the 2:30 tipoff is horrible for anyone out of town wanting to watch the game on television, it's actually not bad from a crowd standpoint. I'd wager that on a spring afternoon, a 2:30 start for a women's game is more likely to attract students and townies who want to play hooky from work--all folks who are starting to think about other things by the time 5:00 rolls around.
It also gives the winning team a chance to dedicate their focus on scouting their upcoming opponent's game since they have already played. Perhaps this is an "added" perk given to the team hosting (if they win) as a reward for earning the hosting opportunity.
Agreed. When there is only a day between playing Game 1 and Game 2, those 2-3 hours extra to prepare for a game can't be underestimated.
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historian
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In reply to GarlandBear84 • 9:12p, 3/18/25
GarlandBear84 said:
My only complaint is why in the world didn't they put the "opening act" at 2:30 and the host at 5. NCAA stupidity never ceases to amaze me.

It's probably ESPN that made decision. I hate that the game is on ESPNU because I can't watch it.
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BBWCBear
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In reply to LTBear19 • 1:36a, 3/19/25
LTBear19 said:
blackie said:
LTBear19 said:
whitetrash said:
2:30 Friday afternoon.

Ole Miss to follow at 5pm
Garbage.

Could have at least put the Ole Miss game first.

And to boot, we'll be up against TCU and South Carolina at the same time.

From an unbiased standpoint, our game probably had one of the most intriguing storylines of the Friday matchups.
I am not certain the "unbiased" standpoint would find it being any more intriguing than other matchup. The main thing that is "intriguing" here is because of this board going ga-ga over Miller 4 years ago.

The good thing here is that if we win on Friday we will have a Sunday game against possibly Ole Miss....when we really need the crowd. A Saturday - Monday scenario would not have been good for the 2nd game crowd.


What do you mean by 4 years ago?

There are folks here still going ga-ga over Miller today.


Wasn't Miller a "potential" candidate for the Baylor job after Kim left? I don't think she ever had a true chance at an interview based on "small" school status, but she may prove to be a formidable coach opponent. If GC keeps it close or beats BU… she does have a nice resume.
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Bone Squad
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10:40a, 3/19/25
There has never been any evidence that Baylor considered her, or that she considered applying, but lots of fans around here wanted her.
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BearFan33
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12:00p, 3/19/25
I haven't watched GC but I would suspect we out athlete them at every position. If that's the case and we shoot reasonably well and don't get sloppy we should win.
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BU71
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In reply to BearFan33 • 12:11p, 3/19/25
BearFan33 said:
I haven't watched GC but I would suspect we out athlete them at every position. If that's the case and we shoot reasonably well and don't get sloppy we should win.
I agree but let's not forget the SD game a couple of years ago.
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BearFan33
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In reply to BU71 • 12:24p, 3/19/25
BU71 said:
BearFan33 said:
I haven't watched GC but I would suspect we out athlete them at every position. If that's the case and we shoot reasonably well and don't get sloppy we should win.
I agree but let's not forget the SD game a couple of years ago.
Anything could happen. We could definitely be cold from the outside and they could be on fire.
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blackie
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In reply to BU71 • 12:36p, 3/19/25
BU71 said:
BearFan33 said:
I haven't watched GC but I would suspect we out athlete them at every position. If that's the case and we shoot reasonably well and don't get sloppy we should win.
I agree but let's not forget the SD game a couple of years ago.
In that game, at least at the beginning when it got out of hand quickly, SD could have only shot 3/4 length of the court shots and they still would have had a great field goal percentage. At that time of the game just about everything they threw up went in.
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Bear3
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1:18p, 3/19/25
Baylor should soundly beat Grand Canyon. Baylor just has a lot more talent and very good depth. That being said, we absolutely cannot overlook them and I do not think we will.
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historian
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9:21a, 3/20/25
If Buggs is close to 100% and everyone else plays sound ball it should be a blowout victory.
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12au
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In reply to historian • 11:20a, 3/20/25
historian said:
If Buggs is close to 100% and everyone else plays sound ball it should be a blowout victory.
Buggs is not likely to play more than 15 minutes. Especially if we want her to play against Ole Miss as well
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blueeyedbear
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In reply to 12au • 11:36a, 3/20/25
12au said:
historian said:
If Buggs is close to 100% and everyone else plays sound ball it should be a blowout victory.
Buggs is not likely to play more than 15 minutes. Especially if we want her to play against Ole Miss as well
I agree sort of - I would not be surprised if it was less than 15 minutes.... 3 -4 minutes in each quarter.
I would be shocked if she started - I would not want to disrupt the currant starting lineup chemistry - work Buggs into the starting lineup slowly.
Big plus bringing Buggs in off the bench gives the fans an opportunity to roar their appreciation for her return and give Buggs a bit of an adrenalin rush.
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12au
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In reply to blueeyedbear • 12:10p, 3/20/25
Yes, with the minutes restriction it seems tricky to start her. I feel like even 10 minutes could be valuable if they're minutes Bella is sitting.

Grand Canyon does seem smaller too, so maybe our 4-guard lineups could be effective.
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Task Force 2015
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1:23p, 3/20/25
I enjoy our SWAGing so I will throw another idea in through the mix.When one is returning from an injury and playing limited minutes it might be better to play the minutes in say 2 stretches rather than being inserted and then pulled multiple times.My experience was that once warmed up it was better to keep playing for a while followed by a long rest .Then repeat after the rest.Do we have any sports medicine experts who would care to comment ?
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BUatbirth
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In reply to 12au • 3:20p, 3/20/25
12au said:
Yes, with the minutes restriction it seems tricky to start her. I feel like even 10 minutes could be valuable if they're minutes Bella is sitting.

Grand Canyon does seem smaller too, so maybe our 4-guard lineups could be effective.
Yep…or putting our two bigs lineup out there. Could be effective also
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WacoKelly83
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3:58p, 3/20/25
https://ftw.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/sports/ncaab/2025/03/17/grand-canyon-head-coach-molly-miller-photos-livvy-dunne-gcu/82487231007/
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historian
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In reply to 12au • 11:37p, 3/20/25
12au said:
historian said:
If Buggs is close to 100% and everyone else plays sound ball it should be a blowout victory.
Buggs is not likely to play more than 15 minutes. Especially if we want her to play against Ole Miss as well
I'm ok with that, especially since she is probably not 100%.
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Brusinbear2001
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In reply to 12au • 12:37a, 3/21/25
i think this will be helpful too more ball handlers and more space for Nette to work in the post if we space the floor properly
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