Technologies

March Madness 2023: Women’s NCAA Tournament Schedule, First Four, Bracket, How to Watch and Stream

The women’s college basketball tournament starts Wednesday with a pair of First Four games on ESPN.

If you’re unfamiliar with Caitlin Clark, it’s time to get acquainted. The sensational Iowa point guard is third in the nation in points and first in assists and has led the Hawkeyes to a No. 2 seed in the women’s NCAA basketball tournament. The biggest obstacle standing in Clark’s way is Aliyah Boston and South Carolina. Boston is the reigning Naismith Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, and the Gamecocks are the defending champions. They have yet to lose a game this year.

The women’s March Madness bracket is set with South Carolina, Indiana, Stanford and Virginia Tech as the top seeds in each region. The tournament gets underway on Wednesday with 68 teams in the field and will crown a champion on April 2.

Here’s everything you need to know to watch the women’s NCAA tournament on ABC and a host of ESPN channels without cable (and here’s how to watch the men’s tournament).

Iowa's Caitlin Clark — Iowa’s Caitlin Clark is one of the most exciting players in college basketball.

David Berding/Getty Images

When does the women’s NCAA tournament start?

The women’s March Madness tournament tips off on Wednesday with two play-in games followed by two more play-in games Thursday night. After these First Four games, the field of 68 is trimmed to a more mathematically manageable 64 and the tournament begins in earnest on Friday, March 17, with a full slate of games.

What is the NCAAW tournament schedule?

Here’s the schedule, round by round:

First Four: March 15-16
First round: March 17-18
Second round: March 19-20
Sweet 16: March 24-25
Elite Eight: March 26-27
Final Four: March 31
Women’s NCAA championship game: April 2

Which teams are in the First Four?

Wednesday, March 15:

(11) Mississippi State vs. (11) Illinois at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT); winner plays (6) Creighton
(16) Sacred Heart vs. (16) Southern at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT); winner plays (1) Stanford

Thursday, March 16

(11) St. John’s vs. (11) Purdue at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT); winner plays (6) North Carolina
(16) Monmouth vs. (16) Tennessee Tech at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT); winner plays (1) Indiana

How can I watch the women’s tournament?

The tournament will be shown on ABC and a variety of ESPN channels: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews and ESPNU.

Can I stream March Madness for free?

Go to the NCAA’s March Madness Live site or use its March Madness Live app and you’ll be able to watch games for free. You can watch March Madness Live on iOS and Android devices along with Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV and Xbox One. The app also supports AirPlay and Chromecast.

As with most things that are free, there’s a catch. Without proving you’re a pay-TV subscriber, you get only a three-hour preview, after which point you’ll need to log in to continue watching.

What are my other streaming options?

You can use a live TV streaming service to watch the women’s NCAA basketball tournament. All five of the major live TV streaming services offer the channels needed to watch every game, but keep in mind that not every service carries every local network, so check each one using the links below to make sure it carries ABC in your area.

Sarah Tew/CNET

YouTube TV

Carries ABC and ESPN channels for $65 a month

YouTube TV costs $65 a month and includes ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews and ESPNU. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area. Read our YouTube TV review.

See at YouTube TV

Hulu

Hulu with Live TV

Carries ABC and ESPN channels for $70 a month

Hulu with Live TV costs $70 a month and includes ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews and ESPNU. Click the «View channels in your area» link on its welcome page to see which local channels are offered in your ZIP code. Read our Hulu with Live TV review.

See at Hulu with Live TV

Sling/CNET

Sling TV

Carries ABC and ESPN channels for $70 a month

Sling TV’s $55-a-month Orange and Blue plan includes ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. Keep in mind, however, that Sling offers ABC carries ABC only in a handful of areas. With the $15-a-month Sports Extra add-on, you can also watch the games on ESPNews and ESPNU. Read our Sling TV review.

See at Sling TV

Fubo TV

FuboTV

Carries ABC and ESPN channels for $83 a month

FuboTV’s basic plan costs $75 a month and includes ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. The Fubo Extra add-on costs an additional $8 a month and includes ESPNews and ESPNU. Click here to see which local channels you get. Read our FuboTV review.

See at FuboTV

Directv stream

DirecTV Stream

Carries ABC and ESPN channels for $99 a month

DirecTV Stream’s basic $75-a-month plan includes ABC, ESPN and ESPN2, but you’ll need the $99-a-month plan to also get ESPNews and ESPNU. You can use its channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available where you live. Read our DirecTV Stream review.

See at DirecTV Stream

All of the live TV streaming services above offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live-TV streaming services guide.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Saturday, Feb. 28

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Feb. 28.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? As is usual for Saturday, it’s pretty long, and should take you longer than the normal Mini. A bunch of three-initial terms are used in this one. Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Rock’s ___ Leppard
Answer: DEF

4A clue: Cry a river
Answer: SOB

7A clue: Clean Air Act org.
Answer: EPA

8A clue: Org. that pays the Bills?
Answer: NFL

9A clue: Nintendo console with motion sensors
Answer: WII

10A clue: ___-quoted (frequently said)
Answer: OFT

11A clue: With 13-Across, narrow gap between the underside of a house and the ground
Answer: CRAWL

13A clue: See 11-Across
Answer: SPACE

14A clue: Young lady
Answer: GAL

15A clue: Ooh and ___
Answer: AAH

17A clue: Sports org. for Scottie Scheffler
Answer: PGA

18A clue: «Hey, just an F.Y.I. …,» informally
Answer: PSA

19A clue: When doubled, nickname for singer Swift
Answer: TAY

20A clue: Socially timid
Answer: SHY

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Morning moisture
Answer: DEW

2D clue: «Game of Thrones» or Homer’s «Odyssey»
Answer: EPICSAGA

3D clue: Good sportsmanship
Answer: FAIRPLAY

4D clue: White mountain toppers
Answer: SNOWCAPS

5D clue: Unrestrained, as a dog at a park
Answer: OFFLEASH

6D clue: Sandwich that might be served «triple-decker»
Answer: BLT

12D clue: Common battery type
Answer: AA

14D clue: Chat___
Answer: GPT

16D clue: It’s for horses, in a classic joke punchline
Answer: HAY

Technologies

Ultrahuman Ring Pro Brings Better Battery Life, More Action and Analysis

The company’s new flagship smart ring stores more data, too. But that doesn’t really help Americans.

Sick of your smart ring’s battery not holding up? Ultrahuman’s new $479 Ring Pro smart ring, unveiled on Friday, offers up to 15 days of battery life on a single charge. The Ring Pro joins the company’s $349 Ring Air, which boosts health tracking, thanks to longer battery life, increased data storage, improved speed and accuracy and a new heart-rate sensing architecture. The ring works in conjunction with the latest Pro charging case.

Ultrahuman also launched its Jade AI, which can act as an agent based on analysis of current and historical health data. Jade can synthesize data from across the company’s products and is compatible with its Rings.

«With industry-leading hardware paired with Jade biointelligence AI, users can now take real-time actionable interventions towards their health than ever before,» said Mohit Kumar, CEO of Ultrahuman.

No US sales

That hardware isn’t available in the US, though, thanks to the ongoing ban on Ultrahuman’s Rings sales here, stemming from a patent dispute with its competitor, Oura Ring. It’s available for preorder now everywhere else and is slated to ship in March. Jade’s available globally.

Ultrahuman says the Ring Pro boosts battery life to about 15 days in Chill mode — up to 12 days in Turbo — compared to a maximum of six days for the Air. The Pro charger’s battery stores enough for another 45 days, which you top off with Qi-compatible wireless charging. In addition, the case incorporates locator technology via the app and a speaker, as well as usability features such as haptic notifications and a power LED.

The ring can also retain up to 250 days of data versus less than a week for the cheaper model. Ultrahuman redesigned the heart-rate sensor for better signal quality. An upgraded processor improves the accuracy of the local machine learning and overall speed.

It’s offered in gold, silver, black and titanium finishes, with available sizes ranging from 5 to 14.

Jade’s Deep Research Mode is the cross-ecosystem analysis feature, which aggregates data from Ring and Blood Vision and the company’s subscription services, Home and M1 CGM, to provide historical trends, offer current recommendations and flag potential issues, as well as trigger activities such as A-fib detection. Ultrahuman plans to expand its capabilities to include health-adjacent activities, such as ordering food.

Some new apps are also available for the company’s PowerPlug add-on platform, including capabilities such as tracking GLP-1 effects, snoring and respiratory analysis and migraine management tools.