2025 Women’s NCAA Tournament: JuJu Watkins, Hannah Hidalgo among the top 10 players in the Big Dance

The 2025 Women’s NCAA Tournament will get underway on Wednesday with the First Four, and conclude on April 6 with the national championship game in Tampa, Florida. Over the next three weeks, the stars of the sport will take center stage as they try to lead their respective teams to glory. 

As we wait for the action to begin, here is a look at the top 10 players in this year’s Big Dance. 

1. Paige Bueckers — G, UConn

• 2024-25 stats: 19 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 2 steals | 53.6% FG, 40.6% 3FG, 89.9% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 15 Arkansas State

Bueckers probably isn’t going to win Naismith Player of the Year this season, but there’s no one you’d rather have on your side come tourney time. The projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft is an elite scorer and playmaker who was one free throw away from a 50/40/90 season and led the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.9). Every season that she’s been healthy, she’s taken UConn to at least the Final Four. 

2. JuJu Watkins — G, USC

• 2024-25 stats: 24.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.2 steals, 1.9 blocks | 42.6% FG, 33% 3FG, 82% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 16 UNC Greensboro

Watkins is the likely Naismith Player of the Year, and for good reason. She’s a big guard who can do it all on both ends of the floor, and has shown a knack for stepping up in big games. So why doesn’t she get the top spot on this list? If there’s a critique to make with Watkins it’s that she was inconsistent this season. She’s still a streaky shooter and can be turnover-prone at times, and those are traits that can cost you in a single-elimination tournament. 

3. Lauren Betts — C, UCLA

• 2024-25 stats: 19.6 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.9 blocks | 63.4% FG, 62.3% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 16 UC San Diego/No. 16 Southern

Betts was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player as she led the Bruins to the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. At 6-foot-7 she is a dominant force in the paint on both sides of the ball. Most opponents simply don’t have the ability to contend with her size, which is why the Bruins are expected to reach the Final Four for the first time in school history. 

4. Hannah Hidalgo — G, Notre Dame

• 2024-25 stats: 24.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 3.7 steals | 46.6% FG, 40.7% 3FG, 86% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 14 Stephen F. Austin

Notre Dame was ranked No. 1 in the country not too long ago, but dropped to a No. 3 seed after a shaky final few weeks. They are still capable of making a Final Four run, however, especially if Hidalgo, the ACC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, can get back to her best. When Hidalgo has it rolling she is a wizard with the ball in her hands and a totally disruptive force in the defensive backcourt. 

5. Aneesah Morrow — F, LSU

• 2024-25 stats: 18.5 points, 13.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 2.6 steals | 49.5% FG, 74% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 14 San Diego State

Morrow re-aggravated a foot injury in LSU’s loss to Texas in the SEC Tournament semi-final, but is expected to be healthy for the NCAA Tournament. That’s great news for the Tigers, who will need her at 100% to make a deep run. Morrow led the nation in rebounding (13.6 per game) and double-doubles (27) this season and there are few players as productive as her on the college level. 

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6. Sarah Strong — F, UConn

• 2024-25 stats: 16 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.4 steals, 1.6 blocks | 57.5% FG, 36.5% 3FG, 73.4% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 15 Arkansas State

It didn’t take long for Strong to show why she was the No. 1 recruit in her high school class. She quickly established herself as one of the best players in the country as a freshman and looks like the next in a long line of UConn stars. Strong is an extremely efficient scorer around the basket and from the 3-point line, an underrated playmaker and an awesome defender. If the Huskies are able to win their first national title since 2016, Strong will be a big reason why. 

7. Madison Booker — F, Texas

• 2024-25 stats: 16.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.6 steals | 45.9% FG, 43.9% 3FG, 82.9% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 16 High Point/No. 16 William & Mary

Booker was named SEC Player of the Year after leading the Longhorns to a share of the regular season title, and now has her sights set on the Final Four. She has to carry a tremendous offensive load for a Texas team that has few reliable scoring options, and as a result often faces multiple defenders. Even so, she excels at creating her own shot and takes care of the ball. 

8. Olivia Miles — G, Notre Dame

• 2024-25 stats: 16.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 2.1 steals | 49.6% FG, 40.9% 3FG, 80% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 14 Stephen F. Austin

Miles will be a lottery pick if she declares for the 2025 WNBA Draft, but first she’ll try to lead the Fighting Irish on a deep tournament run. Like her team, she did not play well down the stretch in the regular season, but remains one of the best guards in the country. Her playmaking is on a different level to most of her peers and she shot over 40% from 3-point range this season, which was previously a big weakness. 

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9. Kiki Iriafen — F, USC

• 2024-25 stats: 18.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists | 49.9% FG, 82.5% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 16 UNC Greensboro

Iriafen transferred to USC after her breakout season for Stanford, and has helped Watkins turn the Trojans into national title contenders. While this has been a somewhat underwhelming campaign for Iriafen individually, she remains one of the best players in college basketball with a reliable interior scoring game. Come April she is a likely top-five pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft. 

10. Georgia Amoore — G, Kentucky

• 2024-25 stats: 19.1 points, 2.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists, 1 steal | 42.5% FG, 32.4% 3FG, 84.5% FT
• First-round opponent: No. 13 Liberty

Amoore followed former Virginia Tech coach Kenny Brooks to Kentucky and immediately turned the Wildcats back into a tournament team. Few players are more exciting to watch than Amoore, who is all action on the offensive end, whether that’s creating a shot for herself or dishing to a teammate. She finished third in the country in assists (6.9 per game) and is one the best point guard prospects in this draft class.