Great American Conference Women's Basketball

NCAA D2 Women's Basketball Tournament Central Region Preview

NCAA D2 Women's Basketball Tournament Central Region Preview

The NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Central Region features the defending champions in Minnesota State, who has a tough challenge to repeat.

Mar 13, 2025 by Joe Harrington

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If Minnesota State wants to become the first back-to-back Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament champion since Cal Poly Pomona in 2001 and 2002, they’ll need to escape the state of Kansas and the Central Region first.

Technically, Lubbock Christian won back-to-back titles in 2019 and 2021 since the 2020 tournament was canceled, but Minnesota looks to cut the down the nets in back-to-back years after a 24-7 season.

It’ll be an uphill battle though for the Mavericks as they enter the tournament unranked and the No. 5 seed in the Central Region at John Lance Arena in Pittsburg, Kan. The top seed is Pittsburg State, the No. 7-ranked team in the country and the No. 1 seed. The Gorillas are 29-3 and went 18-1 in MIAA play.

The region is quite loaded.

Not only is Pittsburg State and the defending champs in the field, but so are No. 8 Concordia-St. Paul (29-2), No. 11 Fort Hays State (27-4) and No. 18 Southwest Minnesota State (26-4).

Here’s what to know about the Central Region.

What Teams Are In The Central Region?

Pittsburg State is the highest-ranked, but this region features four ranked teams, including three in the top 11.

Here are the seeds:

No. 1 Pittsburg State
No. 2 Concordia St.-Paul
No. 3 Fort Hays State
No. 4 Missouri Western (20-9)
No. 5 Minnesota State
No. 6 Southern Nazarene (23-7)
No. 7 Southwest Minnesota State
No. 8 Harding (25-6)

NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament Central Region Schedule

Here is the schedule for March 14. All times ET.

1 p.m. No. 3 Fort Hays State University vs. No. 6 Southern Nazarene University
3:30 p.m.No. 2 Concordia University, St. Paul vs. No. 7 Southwest Minnesota State University
6 p.m. No. 1 Pittsburg State University vs. No. 8 Harding University
9:30 p.m. No. 4 Missouri Western State University vs. No. 5 Minnesota State University, Mankato

NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament Central Region Outlook

Is there a clear favorite? Pittsburg State and Concordia-St. Paul are No. 7 and No. 8 in the country and are certainly eyeing a Central Region Championship game. But for Concordia-St. Paul to get there, they might have to beat Fort Hays State, which has spent most of the season in the top 10 of the rankings.

How realistic is Minnesota State getting out of the region? If the Mavericks survive Missouri Western, then they’ll have to play Pittsburg State in the semifinals. The game of the first round will certainly be Concordia St. Paul and Southwest Minnesota State.

How To Watch The NCAA D2 Women’s Basketball Tournament Central Region

All the games will stream on NCAA.com via the Championship Pass.

How To Watch The NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Tournament On FloCollege

Although the Central Region is not available on FloCollege or the FloSports app, there are five regionals that will be streamed:

NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Rankings

Here are the WBCA rankings entering the tournament

No. 1 Texas Woman’s (31-1)
No. 2 Grand Valley State (32-2)
No. 3 Bentley (30-1)
No. 4 Cal State Dominguez Hills (31-1)
No. 5 Ashland (30-3)
No. 6 North Georgia (29-2)
No. 7 Pittsburg State (29-3)
No. 8 Concordia-St. Paul (29-2)
No. 9 Union, TN (29-3)
No. 10 Texas-Tyler (25-4)
No. 11T Fort Hays State (27-4)
No. 11T Lubbock Christian (29-4)
No. 13 Embry-Riddle (27-4)
No. 14 Cal Poly Pomona (25-5)
No. 15 Fairmont State (27-4)
No. 16 Alaska Anchorage (27-4)
No. 17 Lewis (26-3)
No. 18 Southwest Minnesota State (26-4)
No. 19 Gannon (25-6)
No. 20 Tampa (26-6)
No. 21 Coker (26-5)
No. 22 Colorado Mesa (25-5)
No. 23 Point Loma Nazarene (25-5)
No. 24 Nova Southeastern (25-6)
No. 25 Azusa Pacific (22-6)

Dropped out: No. 23 Seton Hill (23-6); No. 25 Montana State Billings (25-7).

Others receiving votes: Seton Hill (23-6) 37; Harding (25-6) 22; Minnesota State Mankato (24-7) 19; Montana State Billings (25-7) 19; Belmont Abbey (25-5) 15; Daemen (21-7) 15; Southern Nazarene (23-7) 14; Edinboro (24-6) 12; Holy Family (24-6) 12; Fayetteville State (21-7 10; Quincy (25-7) 5.

How To Watch The NCAA Div 2 Women's Basketball Tournament 2025

FloHoops will be the streaming home of the East, West, South, Midwest and South Central Regional Games, including the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals of each of the five regions. Archives, highlights and more news will be available to all FloHoops and FloSports subscribers for the duration of their subscription.

When Does the 2025 NCAA Division 2 Women’s Basketball Tournament Start?

The tournament begins on March 14 with regional games. The Elite Eight begins on March 24, the Final Four begins on March 26 and the National Championship is March 28 on ESPN+.

NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Brackets 2025

The 2025 #D2WBB Championship bracket is 🔒 in!

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📰 https://t.co/mPNcTH5A0y #MakeItYours pic.twitter.com/js8LclWWo6
— NCAA Division II (@NCAADII) March 10, 2025

NCAA Div 2 Women's Basketball Tournament Schedule

March 14,15 & 17

Atlantic - Regionals

No. 1 Edinboro vs. No. 8 Virginia St.
No. 4 Indiana (PA) vs. No. 5 Fairmont St.
No. 2 Gannon vs. Fayetteville St.
No. 3 Seton Hill vs. No. 6 Kutztown

Central - Regionals

No. 1 Pittsburg St. vs. No. 8 Harding
No. 4 Missouri Western vs. No. 5 Minnesota St.
No. 2 Concordia-St. Paul vs. No. 7 Southwest Minn. St.
No. 3 Fort Hays St. vs. No. 6 Southern Nazarene

East - Regionals

No. 1 Bentley vs. No. 8 New Haven
No. 4 St. Anselm vs. No. 5 Southern Conn. St.
No. 2 Daemen vs. No. 7 Jefferson
No. 3 Holy Family vs. No. 6 Assumption

Midwest - Regionals

No. 1 Grand Valley St. vs. No. 8 Quincy
No. 4 Wayne St. (MI) vs. No. 5 Lewis
No. 2 Ashland vs. No. 7 Ferris St.
No. 3 Northern Mich. vs. No. 6 Hillsdale

South - Regionals

No. 1 Union (TN) vs. No. 8 Miles
No. 4 Tampa vs. No. 5 Lee
No. 2 Embry-Riddle (FL) vs. No. 7 West Florida
No. 3 Nova Southeastern vs. No. 6 Alabama Huntsville

Southeast - Regionals

No. 1 North Georgia vs. No. 8 UNC Pembroke
No. 4 Francis Marion vs. No. 5 Columbus St.
No. 2 Coker vs. No. 7 Belmont Abbey
No. 3 Anderson (SC) vs. No. 6 Carson-Newman

South Central - Regionals

No. 1 Texas Woman's vs. No. 8 Adams St.
No. 4 Colorado Mesa vs. No. 5 Eastern N.M.
No. 2 Lubbock Christian vs. No. 7 UC-Colo. Springs
No. 3 UT Tyler vs. No. 6 West Tex. A&M

West - Regionals

No. 1 Cal St. Dom. Hills vs. No. 8 Azusa Pacific
No. 4 Alas. Anchorage vs. No. 5 Mont. St. Billings
No. 2 Cal Poly Pomona vs. No. 7 Chico St.
No. 3 Point Loma vs. No. 6 Central Wash.

Monday, March 24

Quarterfinals

Wednesday, March 26

Semifinals

Friday, March 28

National Championship

What Teams Are Playing In The NCAA D2 Basketball Tournament 2025?

How To Watch College Basketball On The FloSports Network

Basketball games are streaming all year long on FloHoops, FloCollege and the new FloSports streaming app. Game replays, highlights and more will be available on all platforms.

FloHoops Archived Footage

Video footage from all events will be archived and stored in a video library for FloHoops subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscription.

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