The NCAA women’s basketball Sweet 16 is must-see TV

The GIST: The women’s Sweet 16 tips off with four games today before another four tomorrow, and either team could win in every one of these must-watch matchups…but these look especially unpredictable:

No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (28-6) vs. No. 3 Oregon State Beavers (26-7), today at 2:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): Thanks to a season in the brutal Pac-12, the Beavs are battle-tested and ready for a fight. But Notre Dame and their freshman phenom, Hannah Hidalgo, are on a scorching 10-game win streak with no signs of slowing down.

No. 2 Stanford Cardinal (30-5) vs. No. 3 NC State Wolfpack (29-6), today at 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): This one pits Stanford’s stellar post play, led by forwards Cameron Brink and Kiki Iriafen, against NC State’s tough D. Both squads were pushed to their limits in the second round, so maintaining poise to capture control will be crucial to becoming Elite.

No. 2 UCLA Bruins (27-6) vs. No. 3 LSU Tigers (30-5), tomorrow at 1 p.m. ET (ABC): LSU struggled with slow opening-round starts, a trend they absolutely cannot afford to continue against this young, yet lethal UCLA team. The battle on the blocks between Bruins center Lauren Betts and Tigers forward Angel Reese could decide the dub.

No. 1 Iowa Hawkeyes (31-4) vs. No. 5 Colorado Buffaloes (24-9), tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC): In arguably the tourney’s most brutal bracket quadrant, some doubt whether the Caitlin Clark–led Hawkeyes have the juice to go all the way, and Colorado poses their most serious threat yet. Will the Buffs oust the GOAT, or will Iowa keep finding ways to win?