The LSU women's basketball team is two wins away from the Final Four. Three other teams could prevent the Tigers from getting there.
The NCAA tournament finished off its round of 32 on Monday night, setting up this week's Sweet 16.
Four teams from each of the four regionals remain. No. 3-seeded LSU, fresh from its convincing win over Michigan on Sunday, is in the Greenville 2 regional with three other remaining teams — No. 9-seeded Miami, No. 4-seeded Villanova and No. 2-seeded Utah.
The Tigers face Utah at 4 p.m. Friday in the round of 16 in Greenville.
Here's a look at all four remaining teams in the Greenville 2 regional:
No. 9 Miami vs. No. 4 Villanova
1:30 p.m. Friday, ESPN
Records: Miami 21-12; Villanova 30-6
MIAMI
NCAA bid: At-large (sixth place, ACC).
Coach: Katie Meier (343–223, 18th year; 419–268 overall)
Scoring leaders: G Haley Cavinder (12.6 points per game), F Destiny Harden (12.1 ppg).
Rebounding leaders: F Destiny Harden (5.8 per game), G Haley Cavinder (4.9 per game).
Assist leaders: G Ja'Leah Williams (2.7 per game), G Haley Cavinder (2.5 per game).
3-point leaders: G Haley Cavinder (40.9%), G Jasmyne Roberts (37.7%).
Worth knowing: For the first time in the NCAA women's tournament since 1998, two No. 1 seeds failed to make it to the Sweet 16. The first No. 1 seed to fall this year was Stanford, which lost 54-49 to Ole Miss on Sunday. The second was Indiana, which was stunned at home 70-68 on Monday night by the Hurricanes. Miami finished sixth in the powerful ACC this season and didn't finish strong, dropping three of its final five regular-season games. But the Hurricanes got past No. 8 Oklahoma State 62-61 in the first round, then pulled another upset Monday. They never trailed Indiana. Longtime coach Katie Meier served under Lisa Stockton at Tulane for seven years, from 1994-2001.
VILLANOVA
NCAA bid: At-large (second place, Big East)
Coach: Denise Dillon (71–22, third year; 400–233 overall)
Scoring leaders: F Maddy Siegrist (29.5 points per game), G Lucy Olsen (12.5 points per game).
Rebounding leaders: F Maddy Siegrist (12.9 per game), F Christina Dalce (7.9 per game).
Assist leaders: G Lucy Olsen (4.6 per game), G Brooke Mullin (3.6 per game).
3-point leaders: G Maddie Burke (37.1%), F Maddy Siegrist (37.0%).
Worth knowing: Maddy Siegrist has lived up to her billing as one of the best players in the nation. Her 29.1-point average leads Division I. She had 35 points on 15-of-28 shooting in the Wildcats' first-round win over Cleveland State, then followed with 31 points on 13-of-24 shooting against Florida Gulf Coast in the round of 32. (Second-leading scorer Lucy Olsen had 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.) Villanova has been so successful partly because it takes care of the basketball. The Wildcats have averaged 10.0 turnovers per game, tied for second-fewest in the nation.
No. 3 LSU vs. No. 2 Utah
4 p.m. Friday, ESPN
Records: LSU 30-2; Utah 27-4
LSU
NCAA bid: At-large (second place, SEC).
Coach: Kim Mulkey (56-8, second season at LSU; 634-104 overall.
Scoring leaders: Angel Reese (23.8 points per game), Alexis Morris (14.7 points per game).
Rebounding leaders: Angel Reese (15.7 per game), LaDazhia Williams (6.1 per game).
Assist leaders: Alexis Morris (4.0 per game), Kateri Poole (2.4 per game).
3-point leaders: Kateri Poole (42.3%), Flau'jae Johnson (36.7%).
Worth knowing: After the Tigers' win over Michigan on Sunday, Kim Mulkey made it a point to note that reaching the Sweet 16 is an accomplishment in itself — one step farther than LSU had gone in her first year. Angel Reese met the moment in the second round with 25 points and 24 rebounds — all with a bleeding lip — as the Tigers cruised past Michigan 66-42. LSU wasn't sharp from the floor (35.3%) but held the Wolverines to their lowest point total of the season. A win against Utah would send the Tigers to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2008.
UTAH
NCAA bid: At-large (first place, Pac-12).
Coach: Lynne Roberts (360-278, eighth season at Utah; 546-448 overall)
Scoring leaders: F Alissa Pili (21.0 points per game), G Gianna Kneepkens (15.1 points per game).
Rebounding leaders: F Alissa Pili (5.6 per game), G Gianna Kneepkens (5.1 per game).
Assist leaders: G Ines Vieira (3.1 per game), G Isabel Palmer (2.8 per game).
3-point leaders: G Lani White (44.4%), F Alissa Pili (42.4%).
Worth knowing: Against Utah, the Tigers will face one of their toughest opponents yet. Utes forward Alissa Pili, 6-foot-2 junior, isn't quite the star that LSU's Angel Reese has become — but Pili is a formidable talent. She has averaged 21.0 points this season; she scored 28 in their second-round win over Princeton; she leads the team at 5.9 rebounds per game and will occasionally shoot a 3. If Friday's game against LSU is tight at the end, Utah might have at least one advantage — at the free-throw line. The Utes have the second-highest free-throw percentage (78.2) of all remaining teams in the Sweet 16. (LSU ranks 204th in the nation at 70.2.)