Women’s College Basketball National Championship Odds: Early Odds Already Liking Gamecocks

Fresh off winning this year's title, the South Carolina Gamecocks are favored in the early Women's March Madness National Championship odds for next season. 

The Gamecocks wrapped up the 2023-24 season with a spotless 38-0 record, 87-75, taking down Caitlin Clark's Hawkeyes in the National Championship matchup.

Drawing in 18.7 million viewers, sportsbooks understand the demand for women's hoops. Here are the super early odds for next season:

To put this in perspective, this game drew more than:

• All but four college football games in 2023.
• Every World Series game since Game 7 of the 2019 WS.
• Every NBA Finals game since G5 of 2017 NBA Finals.
• Every Daytona 500 since 2006.
• Every Masters final round… https://t.co/x2Yn5bbxJM

— Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) April 8, 2024

Gamecocks Favored In early WNCAAB National Championship Odds

Odds as of April 10, 2024

Without Caitlin Clark, whose 18 points was the most scored in an NCAA championship quarter, Iowa disappears off the board.

dawn staley's dynasty with south carolina 

Last offseason, Dawn Staley had to bring in a brand new group with her previous starting five graduating. Some worried whether South Carolina could top that season, where it held an undefeated regular slate record and eventually eliminated in the Final Four. 

This year, Staley proved that she can handle overturn and make any roster of hers unstoppable. 

South Carolina Women’s 🏀 L5 Years:
• 2 National Championships
• 4 Final Fours
• 1 Undefeated Season
• 32-1 in Covid shortened season
• 167-9 (.949) overall record
Dawn Staley has built a dynasty. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/8aK8xU2PJQ

— Sam Block (@theblockspot) April 7, 2024

With ladies like Kamilla Cardoso, the National Championship MVP, declaring for the WNBA Draft -- Staley will have to work her magic again. 

paige bueckers final season incoming

Blue Bloods will always be contenders. But, with Paige Buckets returning for her final season -- she's the new certified veteran of the league. UConn remains one of the few benches without too much expected overturn this season.

The 6-foot guard averaged 25.8 PPG throughout her recent Women's March Madness appearance. After managing injuries early in her collegiate career, Bueckers will want to wrap up on a high note. 

People ready to admit Paige Bueckers is the best player in women's college basketball yet? Even w/ the injuries, she's a better overall player than CC. 🤷🏽‍♂️

Better defender, better off ball, better post game, footwork & can play 4 positions on the court ☑️pic.twitter.com/xBbnqa955L

— Joshua Sánchez (@jnsanchez) April 4, 2024

Value Pick: Watch out for the growth of these freshman 

Sitting side-by-side on the oddsboard, Notre Dame and USC both get a helpful boost from its respective freshman performance. 

The Fighting Irish is sitting pretty with Hannah Hidalgo. At 5-foot-6, Hidalgo is speedy and has insanely quick instincts. In her first NCAA season, she finished averaging an elite 22.6 PPG (ranked sixth) and 5.5 assists per game (ranked 24th).

USC's Juju Watkins got plenty of nods -- but she deserved even more. She averaged a whopping 27.1 PPG, sitting behind Clark in the standings. However, that average is higher than Clark's when she was a freshman. 

Juju Watkins now has the most points in a single season by a freshman in women's DI history! pic.twitter.com/jbKCjlw8p8

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 2, 2024

Another year of experience makes both these girls better. Both Notre Dame and USC are promising long-shot bets to consider.

Last 10 Women’s College Basketball National Champions

*2020 season canceled due to COVID-19

The Connecticut Huskies own a full trophy case with 11 national championships, the most of any school. They have won the title in three or more consecutive years twice (2002-2004, 2013-2016) in the last two decades. Between 2014 and 2017, the Huskies recorded a 111-game winning streak that was kept alive for 867 days.

How To Bet NCAA Women’s Basketball National Championship

If you’re a first-time bettor in women’s college basketball odds to win the championship, welcome! Typically, you’ll visit a sportsbook and see the NCAA championship odds listed like this:

The odds indicate what it would pay out if one of these teams were to win a national championship. Unlike a straight-up bet, or a moneyline bet, where there is a clear favorite represented by a minus sign (-), the team with the lowest odds would be the favorite.

In this case, it’s South Carolina, and the rest are underdogs even though each team has a plus sign (+) prefacing its odds. For American odds, all potential payouts are predicated on $100 bets.

Using American odds, if you were to bet $100 on the Gamecocks and they win, your sportsbook would return your original $100 investment and reward you with $100 in profit for your winning pick, which is $200 in total return to the bettor.

College basketball is notorious for long shots and underdogs going far in the NCAA Tournament or even winning it all. So, a team like LSU may entice a bettor to consider the Tigers with +850 odds to win the tournament (10.5 percent implied probability).

If LSU was to defy the odds and go on to win the title with bettors placing a $100 bet on the Tigers, they would be rewarded with a $950 return – the original $100 is returned along with $850 in profit.

If you’re ever unsure about numbers, check out our odds calculator. It’ll show you what your payout would be based on the odds and amount wagered.