The first two rounds of the women’s NCAA tournament are really for zealots only. Unlike in the men’s tourney, all four no. 2 seeds are still standing, as are all four no. 1’s, and three of the four no. 3’s. Only one team, Jerry Fallwell’s Liberty University, can claim Cinderella status.

The first two rounds featured far too many 30-point blowouts, underscoring the fact that there really aren’t 64 tournament-worthy teams in the land. There are, however, 16 playoff-caliber teams left in the field and at least 12 of them present a credible case for being the last team standing in Indianapolis on April 5. Let’s look at the games beginning this weekend.

(NO. 3) UCONN VS. (NO. 2) STANFORD
KANSAS CITY, SUNDAY, 9:30 P.M.

The Huskies have struggled mightily with post-Diana Taurasi syndrome. Their offense is down five points per game from last year, and at times they resemble a bunch of shooters in need of a point guard. UConn is 5-6 against ranked teams this season, winning just one of those on the road.

That will spell trouble against Stanford, a balanced and multifaceted team that rides into Kansas City on a 22-game winning streak. Their no. 2 seeding owes to their weak schedule; the Cardinal played only five ranked teams all season, winning four and losing on a last-second shot at Tennessee.

Led by freshman forward Candace Wiggins (17 points per game, 5 rebounds per game) and senior forwards Kelley Suminski and Susan King Borchardt, Stanford finished in the top 10 in points and field goal percentage while holding its opponents to 34% shooting. This should spell doom for UConn’s dynasty.

(NO. 1) MICHIGAN STATE VS. (NO. 5) VANDERBILT
KANSAS CITY, SUNDAY 7:30 P.M.

Michigan State’s ferocious interior defense (57 ppg allowed) should enable them to squeak by Ashley Early, Carla Thomas, and Vanderbilt’s formidable fast break. However, neither team is a match for Stanford in the regional final.

Kansas City Regional Pick: Stanford

(NO. 1) TENNESSEE VS. (NO. 4) TEXAS TECH
PHILADELPHIA, SUNDAY, 12 P.M.

All the attention focused on Pat Summitt breaking Dean Smith’s career victory record obscures one essential fact: her Lady Vols are not very good. Tennessee has been hit very hard by injuries this season and lost two key players, Sidney Spencer and Sa’de Wiley-Gatewood, late in the year.

Like all of Summitt’s teams, the Vols are strong fundamentally – they harassed Purdue into sixteen first-half turnovers on Tuesday. This should be enough to get them by Texas Tech, a strong team offensively (72 ppg), but one that lacks depth and has struggled against physical opponents.

(NO. 3) RUTGERS VS. (NO. 2) OHIO STATE
PHILADELPHIA, SUNDAY, 2 P.M.

Rutgers survived starting the tournament on their archrival’s home floor in Connecticut and now they’re sort of the home team for the region. They should avenge a close road loss to Ohio State in what should be a classic great-defense versus great-offense game. Rutgers allowed only 51 points per game this season and is 8-4 against Top 25 opponents. Ohio State shoots 51% from the floor and has a strong inside and perimeter attack. The winner of this game should advance to the Final Four.

Philadelphia Regional pick: Rutgers

(NO. 1) LSU VS. (NO. 13) LIBERTY
CHATTANOOGA, SATURDAY, 12 P.M.

Get a good look at Liberty. The team won its first two NCAA games in school history this week after eight opening-round losses. Unfortunately, they won’t last long against powerful LSU. Liberty is led by 6-foot-8 Katie Feenstra, but they’ve struggled against top competition, getting routed by Duke and Ohio State. High-scoring LSU is led by All-American Simone Augustus and guard Tameeka Johnson. They went 14-0 in the tough SEC and boasted a 7-2 record against Top 25 teams.

(NO. 2) DUKE VS. (NO. 6) GEORGIA
CHATTANOOGA, SATURDAY, 2 P.M.

Duke has a balanced attack that should overwhelm Georgia, a young squad that has struggled against stronger opponents. But once they’ve won this game,the Blue Devils will be no match for the Lady Tiger juggernaut.

Chattanooga Regional pick: LSU

(NO. 1) NORTH CAROLINA VS. (NO. 5) ARIZONA STATE
TEMPE, SATURDAY, 11 P.M.

Arizona State enters this regional as the home team, but not even that should enable them to keep pace with North Carolina’s up-tempo pace. The players call it Tar Heel Time, a pace that could result in triple digits. The style is a good fit for their roster, which is deep, agile, and quick.

(NO. 2) BAYLOR VS. (NO. 3) MINNESOTA
TEMPE, SATURDAY, 9 P.M.

Baylor has been the hip choice to win this regional, and so far they’ve done little to prove the hipsters wrong. Led by their bigs, Sophia Young and Steffanie Blackmon, the Lady Bears went 7-2 against top 25 teams this season and excel at both ends of the court. Baylor should beat Minnesota, which boasts a great pivot player in Janel Mc-Carville, but lacks depth. Baylor’s deep roster and experience should enable them to best the Tar Heels in what could be the highest scoring game in tournament history.

Tempe Regional pick: Baylor.