The women's NCAA Basketball Tournament was first played in 1982, and since then, a couple of powerhouse schools have dominated the March Madness proceedings. That has led to plenty of repeat champions in a short amount of time, and now, LSU is looking to become the next team to go back-to-back.
LSU won last year's championship game over Iowa in what was arguably the biggest and most important game in women's basketball history. Angel Reese and company went on an impressive and memorable run last March, and they had to take down Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the championship game to do it.
Now, the two schools are set for a rematch in the Elite Eight of this year's tournament in what is the biggest revenge game in women's basketball history. LSU's hopes of repeating are still alive, and they are only three victories away from becoming the fourth different women's program to win back-to-back championships. Ahead of LSU and Iowa's game, we will look at every repeat champion in women's March Madness history.
Repeat champions in women's March Madness
- USC – 1983-84
- Tennessee – 1996-98, 2007-08
- UConn – 2002-04, 2009-10, 2013-16
UConn and Tennessee have been the powerhouse schools in women's basketball for a long time, but neither school was the first to be a back-to-back champion. That honor belongs to USC, who won both the second and third ever March Madness tournaments. Linda Sharp was the coach, but Cheryl Miller was the team's star. Miller, the sister of NBA legend Reggie Miller, was women's college basketball's first star.
Miller was the Naismith College Player of the Year three times, and she is top 10 all-time in both points and rebounds. Cynthia Cooper-Dyke was her co-star on the Trojans' roster, and the duo beat Louisiana Tech and Tennessee in their two championship victories. The team lost in the championship game two years later, and they have never been back since.
Pat Summitt was Tennessee's long-time coach, and she helped the team establish them as the first dynasty in women's college basketball. The team not only won back-to-back championships in the late '90s, but they three-peated from 1996 to 1998. Chamique Holdsclaw was the team's star player during that era, but the Volunteers' run of dominance didn't stop at the turn of the century. The team also repeated in 2007-08 with Candace Parker leading the way.
Summitt's Volunteers won eight championships, five of which came in consecutive stretches. The 1998 team even went 39-0 to become only the second undefeated women's team ever. Summitt even had five national runner-up campaigns.
Even with all of the success Tennessee has had, UConn is the greatest team in women's college basketball history. The Huskies have 11 championships to their name, and they had three different stretches that saw them win at least two championships in a row. The first time they did that was from 2002 to 2004, where they won three straight with stars including Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, and Swin Cash. The team lost only five combined games during this stretch.
Geno Auriemma is the mastermind behind UConn's success, and after his first cast of stars left for the WNBA, his dynasty continued with repeat championship teams in 2009 and 2010. Maya Moore was the team's star then, but she was succeeded by an even more dominant team.
From 2013-16, UConn won four straight championships. Breanna Stewart was a member of all four championship teams, and the Huskies established themselves as the pinnacle of success in women's basketball. Not only was this stretch the first time a women's college basketball team won four straight championships, but the team only lost five games over the four-year period and only one game in the final three years of that era.
No team has repeated since 2016, but LSU has a great chance to do it. Angel Reese and Flau'jae Johnson have championship experience, and they are now teamed up with Hailey Van Lith. Kim Mulkey is at the helm, and her four national titles (three with Baylor) are the third most for any coach in the history of the sport.
The team's path to the Final Four won't be easy, though. They narrowly won a thriller against UCLA, and now they have to take on an Iowa team that is not only looking for revenge but also has an even more so improved Caitlin Clark who is fresh off breaking the all-time NCAA scoring record. The whole basketball world was captivated by LSU vs. Iowa in the championship game last year, and the stakes are incredibly high in this rematch. If LSU can manage to get the win, they will have a clear path to potentially becoming repeat champions.
Follow Us
Subscribe