Six players not named Caitlin Clark to watch in the 2024 women's NCAA Tournament

The women's NCAA Tournament's Round of 64 tips off on Friday, and the game has arguably never been stronger. While Iowa's Caitlin Clark is rightfully the headliner, she's not the only player deserving your attention.

Here are six others to watch this March.

Note: NCAA Tournament region and seed number are in parentheses.

Cameron Brink, Stanford (Portland 4, No. 2)

The Cardinal's 6-foot-4 forward is in the conversation for the best defensive player in the tournament. This season, Brink led the country in blocks per game (3.5). Per Her Hoop Stats, among 2,081 players who average at least 20 minutes per game, her 24.4 percent total rebound rate is the best in the country. The Associated Press First-Team All-American forward also averaged 17.8 points per game on 51.2 percent shooting, leading to Brink posting the highest player efficiency rating (46.7) this season. 

Paige Bueckers, UConn (Portland 3, No. 3)

Bueckers returned for the 2023-24 season like she never left. After suffering a torn ACL that forced her to miss the entire 2022-23 season, Bueckers led UConn in scoring this season and ranked 12th in the country (21.3 points per game). The 2021 AP Player of the Year is shooting 42.4 percent from beyond the arc, entering March Madness. In the Big East Tournament, Bueckers shot 12-of-24 from deep (50 percent) and averaged 27.7 points per game.

Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame (Albany 1, No. 2)

Outstanding freshman guard Hidalgo wasted no time acclimating to the college game. She scored 31 points in her debut against South Carolina on Nov. 6 and 20 or more points in 21 of her first 23 games, including a 10-game stretch in conference play from Jan. 11-Feb. 11. As strong as Hidalgo has been offensively, her disruptiveness on the defensive end truly makes her special. Hidalgo leads the NCAA with 4.6 steals per game this season, propelling her to claim the ACC's Defensive Player of the Year hardware.

Aneesah Morrow, LSU (Albany 2, No. 3)

Angel Reese rightfully gets the headlines for the Tigers, but overlook Morrow at your own peril. Having proved herself as one of the game's top scorers at DePaul during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, Morrow transferred to LSU this past offseason for a chance to lead the program to consecutive NCAA titles. She's masterfully fit into LSU's second-ranked scoring offense, picking and choosing her moments to be aggressive. Morrow is a double-double machine with 20 this season, including four in her past five games. In her one previous NCAA Tournament appearance, Morrow had 28 points, 17 rebounds, four blocks and two steals in an 88-57 loss to Dayton in 2022. 

Te-Hina Paopao, South Carolina (Albany 1, No. 1)

It speaks to how talented the Gamecocks are that it's difficult to single out just one player on the only undefeated team in the country. Center Kamilla Cardoso is a difference-maker at center, guard Raven Johnson is an excellent perimeter defender, and freshman MiLaysia Fulwiley carved out a vital role for herself in the rotation despite only playing 18.7 minutes per game. However, when a player makes nearly 50 percent of her three-point attempts, as Paopao does, it's impossible not to pay attention.

After three seasons at Oregon, Paopao transferred to South Carolina during the offseason and has shot 47.1 percent from deep on five attempts per game. Per data from Her Hoop Stats, 55.4 percent of her shot attempts are from beyond the arc. The Gamecocks should be in great shape if those shots continue to fall.

JuJu Watkins, USC (Portland 3, No. 1)

Another outstanding freshman, Watkins led the Pac-12 with 27 points per game, including a 51-point effort at Stanford on Feb. 2. She's excellent at drawing contact, with her 8.2 free throw attempts per game the most in the country. At 6-foot-2, Watkins has the length to be a factor on the glass, with seven 10-rebound games. Her size also helps on the defensive end; this season, Watkins is averaging 2.4 steals and 1.5 blocks per game.