First look: What to know about TCU women’s matchup with UC San Diego and beyond
TCU women’s basketball didn’t land in one of the Fort Worth regionals for the NCAA Tournament like the Horned Frogs hoped, but they still received a favorable draw.
TCU (29-5) received a No. 3 seed in the second Sacramento regional and will begin its quest to reach the Final Four for the first time against No. 14 seed UC San Diego (24-8) at 11 a.m. Friday at Schollmaier Arena on ESPN.
If the Horned Frogs handle their business they’ll face the winner of No. 6 seed Washington (21-10) vs. No. 11 seed South Dakota State (27-6) in the second round Sunday, March 22, at Schollmaier.
TCU will be a heavy favorite in both games.
Here’s an early look at UC San Diego and TCU’s potential second-round matchup:
Key players to know
UC San Diego
Erin Condron: The Tritons’ best player is the 6-foot-4 junior forward who is leading the team with 15.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Condron is an old-school big who does most of her damage inside the paint and is shooting 53.6% from the floor.
Makayla Rose: The senior guard is the leader of a talented trio in the backcourt and is the Tritons’ second-leading scorer (12.8) and rebounder (4.7).
Sabrina Ma: Another senior in the backcourt, Ma is listed at 5-10 and is averaging 11.5 points and 4.5 rebounds. Ma is an aggressive long-range shooter, averaging nearly seven 3-point attempts per game (making 32.6%).
Rosa Smith: The 5-7 junior is the final piece in the backcourt and is the best shooter on the team, knocking down 35.9% of her 3-point attempts. She is averaging 11.0 points and 2.5 assists per game.
Washington
Sayvia Sellers: The 5-7 junior was one of the most dynamic guards in the Big Ten, averaging 18.5 points and 3.7 assists while shooting 35.9% from 3.
Avery Howell: The 6-foot sophomore guard may be the most impactful player. She averages 13.7 points per game and a team-high 8.3 rebounds and shoots 41.9% from 3.
South Dakota State
Brooklyn Meyer: If the Jackrabbits have a chance to pull off the upset, it’ll likely be because of a big game from the senior forward. The 6-2 Meyer leads the team with 22.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
Key results to know
The Horned Frogs will be much more battle-tested than Tritons, who have played only one Power Four conference team this season, a 67-50 blowout loss to Washington on Nov. 28. UC San Diego also lost to Sacramento State, Pacific and San Francisco.
Washington picked up a few quality wins this season, including defeating No. 9 Michigan on New Year’s Day and No. 17 Maryland on Jan. 28. The Huskies also defeated Utah 72-61 on Nov. 15. The Utes upset TCU 87-77 in overtime on Jan. 3. Washington went 9-10 in Quad 1 and Quad 2 games compared TCU’s 14-5 record.
The Jackrabbits played a number of elite teams during the regular season, with matchups against No. 3 Texas, No. 8 Duke and No. 15 North Carolina. South Dakota State lost all three games by an average of 32 points.
A legendary sibling
The Tritons are led by head coach Heidi VanDerveer. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because her older sister Tara previously held the record for most wins by a college basketball coach when she retired from Stanford after the 2023-24 season.
Tara VanDerveer ended her legendary coaching career with 1,216 career wins and three national championships. She now has the second-most wins by a college basketball coach behind UConn’s Geno Auriemma.
Heidi VanDerveer had a short tenure on Tara’s staff at Stanford as a video coordinator in 2003-04. This is the second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament for the Tritons after the program made the move up to Division I in 2020.
This story was originally published March 15, 2026 at 10:29 PM.
