NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament 2023: Odds, Predictions for Final Four

The Final Four of the 2023 women's NCAA basketball tournament possesses one of the most anticipated matchups in the history of the event.

The undefeated reigning champion South Carolina Gamecocks square off against Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in Dallas on Friday.

The 21-year-old enters the Final Four off a 40-point triple-double against Louisville in the Elite Eight, and she has the potential to post another huge stat line to take down Dawn Staley's side.

Clark is expected to go back-and-forth with teammate Aliyah Boston, and both are double-double machines. Clark is one of the best passers in college basketball, while Boston is a dominant paint presence.

The first game on Friday should also deliver fireworks as Angel Reese leads the LSU Tigers against Elizabeth Kitley and the Virginia Tech Hokies.

Virginia Tech is the biggest underdog left in the field, despite being one of the four No. 1 seeds. LSU has the best odds to advance to Sunday's final, but in order to get there, it has to pass one of its toughest tests of the season.

Women's Final Four Odds

To Win Championship

South Carolina (-330; bet $330 to win $100)

LSU (+700; bet $100 to win $700)

Iowa (+950)

Virginia Tech (+1100)

Predictions

South Carolina vs. LSU in National Championship

South Carolina and LSU are one win away from setting up the third national championship game between conference rivals since 2017.

The Gamecocks have been the best team in women's college basketball all season, and their ability to deal with threats of any kind should see them to get past Clark and the Hawkeyes.

The reigning champion can approach this game in two ways. It could try to double-team Clark every time she gets the ball and limit her direct impact on the contest, or it could allow her to go off and kill the production of the other four Iowa players on the floor.

South Carolina's defense has been one of the best in the country all season, and it's the top unit heading to Dallas. It has given up 51.1 points per game and holds opponents to 31.4 percent from the field.

Containing Clark will be a task unlike any other the Gamecocks faced this season, but they have the defensive group to determine how she affects the game.

Zia Cooke and other guards can meet Clark at mid-court and not give her any room to operate, and Boston can take away the interior in a few different ways. The 21-year-old could take away second-chance opportunities with her rebounding and clog the lane to make it tough for Clark to drive through.

Iowa isn't a one-person team, though. The Hawkeyes have the best offense in women's college basketball and three players who average over 11 points and six rebounds per game.

South Carolina can match Iowa's offensive output. The Gamecocks posted over 80 points in their last two battles with top-10 teams in wins over LSU and the UConn Huskies.

Iowa have failed to score over 70 points twice this season. One of those occurrences was a 96-68 loss to the Maryland Terrapins on February 21. The Hawkeyes shot 34.8 percent from the field in that defeat.

The Hawkeyes are capable of having a bad shooting day, but it does not happen often; and if South Carolina produces a strong defensive performance, it will move on to defend its title.

LSU can follow a similar strategy as South Carolina to reach the title game. The Tigers need Reese to again be phenomenal in the paint. She has four double-doubles in the NCAA tournament.

The 20-year-old has 32 double-doubles in this campaign, which is the best single-season total in SEC history.

Reese's rebounding output boosted LSU's totals on the boards all season. The Tigers average 9.7 more rebounds per game than Virginia Tech.

Kitley is also a double-double machine, but she averages a full five rebounds per game fewer than her Final Four counterpart.

The concern for the Hokies is they have struggled offensively in losses this season. They failed to reach the 60-point mark in three of those defeats.

LSU held three of its four NCAA tournament opponents to 50 points or fewer, and it hasn't allowed over 70 points since February 19.

Kim Mulkey's Tigers should make every shot difficult for the Hokies, and the ACC side may only get one shot per possession because of Reese's dominant presence down low.

The Miami Hurricanes and Utah Utes combined for 15 offensive rebounds against LSU in the last two rounds, but the Tigers had 16 offensive boards alone in the Elite Eight win over Miami.

LSU's significant rebounding edge will be the reason why it lands a spot in the title game over Virginia Tech.

Revenge will be on LSU's minds if it faces South Carolina on Sunday. The Gamecocks beat the Tigers by 24 points in their lone regular-season meeting on February 12.

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