Alabama A&M arrives at the SWAC Women’s Basketball Tournament as the undisputed No. 1 seed and regular-season champion, riding a dominant 17–1 conference record into Gateway Center Arena in Atlanta.
All 12 teams chase the league’s automatic NCAA bid in a single-elimination gauntlet that begins Monday and crowns a champion on March 14 at 1 p.m.
What the bracket looks like
First-round action tips off March 9 with No. 10 Texas Southern vs. No. 11 Bethune-Cookman at 11 a.m., followed by No. 9 Mississippi Valley State vs. No. 12 Prairie View A&M at 5:30 p.m.—both on ESPN+. Second-round matchups pit No. 8 Florida A&M against the TSU-BCU winner and No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. the MVSU-PVAMU survivor on March 10.
Top seeds enter the quarterfinals March 11–12: No. 1 Alabama A&M vs. the FAMU side at 11 a.m. March 11, No. 2 Alcorn State vs. UAPB’s bracket at 5:30 p.m. that day, No. 4 Southern vs. No. 5 Jackson State at 11 a.m. March 12, and No. 3 Alabama State vs. No. 6 Grambling State at 5:30 p.m. Semis run March 13, with the title game sealing the week.
THE BRACKET IS HERE
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— Southwestern Athletic Conference (@theswac) March 6, 2026
Alabama A&M is the favorite, though it will be challenged
Alabama A&M’s near-perfect run includes a 17-game conference win streak, showcasing elite defense that limited foes to under 55 points in eight straight outings.
Alcorn State (14–4) and the Alabama State-Southern duo (both 12–6) form a top-tier cluster, while three teams tied at 10–8 sorted via tiebreakers into seeds 5–7. Lower seeds like winless Prairie View A&M face do-or-die openers, injecting early chaos into an already tight bracket.
Top Players to Watch
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Kayla Walker, Alabama A&M (No. 1 seed): SWAC player of the Year on the 17–1 regular season champs, praised for high-efficiency shooting and carrying the top team’s pressure.
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Shaniah Nun, Grambling State (No. 6 seed): Grambling’s dominant force fuels upset potential.
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Key Contributors from Alcorn State (No. 2 seed): Road warriors from the 14–4 squad, blending scoring and rebounding for a deep run.
Which teams could knock off Alabama A&M?
Alabama A&M’s 17–1 dominance makes them heavy favorites, but tournament chaos favors gritty survivors.
Alcorn State (No. 2 Seed)
A 14–4 regular-season mark includes road-tested wins over top-half foes, with balanced scoring that matches A&M’s defense. Alcorn’s experience from last year’s deep run positions them to be the most real threat to the Bulldogs.
Southern (No. 4 Seed)
Southern thrives in close games (6–2 in one-possession contests). Their upset path: survive the first round, try to tough it out in the next round to reach the championship game.
Grambling State (No. 6 Seed)
Shaniah Nun’s rebounding dominance (conference leader) fuels Grambling’s fourth-ranked scoring and second-ranked boards. A physical Tigers team could give the Bulldogs problems.
Florida A&M (No. 8 Seed)
The Rattlers 7–11 in league play hides FAMU’s spoiler potential—second-round survival leads to an 11 a.m. March 11 quarterfinal trap against A&M, using guard speed to force turnovers in a 64–61 upset.
