When college basketball players ride team buses to the NCAA tournament, many put on their headphones, listen to songs and soak up the atmosphere. Coaches also sometimes take a moment after poring over last-minute scouting reports to listen to the melody coming through their headphones.
These soundtracks may also have a subconscious purpose. Music can calm our nerves or cheer us up. Certain songs can provide a certain level of confidence. A sentimental song might remind us of our grander goals. “Music is shorthand for emotion,” Leo Tolstoy once wrote.
So with March Madness upon us, Competitor Wonder what these tournament stars listen to before taking part in some of the biggest games of their lives. We asked women’s and men’s championship players and coaches to share their pre-game playlists. Gamer tastes range from Nicki Minaj to Veeze and even Elvis Presley. Coaches range from Gospel to AC/DC.
You won’t be able to achieve the same jump shot as these athletes by listening to their hype music, but these playlists will help you prepare (from your couch).
Women’s NCAA Tournament Players’ Mixtape
Juju Watkins
Guard | No. 1 USC
The top freshman in women’s basketball, Watkins has taken the Trojans to new heights this season. The Los Angeles native, who ranks second in the country with 27 points per game, listens to hip-hop before games. But she always plays a song from the “Incredibles” soundtrack that may coincide with “Life’s Incredible Again,” USC’s theme song for the 2023-24 academic year. Definitely in Los Angeles.
“I always play this before games,” she said, “because I love ‘The Incredibles’ and it gets me excited.”
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guard | No. 3 Louisiana State University
Q: Who do you listen to before a game?
Flagger Johnson: Myself.
Now that’s the golfer. The athlete and rapper signed a publishing deal with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation label, so why wouldn’t she sing her own lyrics before the game? If the Tigers win another national championship, maybe she’ll create a “One Shining Moment” medley of her song “My Moment.”
“I don’t want to be an aggressive, publicity person, but these are my songs,” Johnson said. “I listen to mine before a game. I make music that’s really motivating and uplifting. When I listen to my songs, I feel like I can do anything.”
Paige Bueckers
Guard | No. 3 UConn
Bucs is trying to reach the Final Four for the third time in four seasons with the Huskies. She’s averaging 21.3 points per game, shooting nearly 54 percent from the field, and is enjoying a productive and healthy season. Her playlists are designed to inspire, filled with gospel and modern hip-hop. Bueckers often plays Marvin Sapp’s “Thank You For It All.”
“It’s a great gospel song,” she said. “It helps me find peace and gratitude before games.”
Retweet | 5 Utah
Pili, a 6-foot-2 forward, leads Utah back to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season. She is one of the best and most unique post players in the country, averaging 20.8 points per game and shooting 55% from the field, and she mainly enjoys listening to hip-hop music before games (from the early 2000s to the present).
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Her favorite pregame song is “Up All Night,” written by Drake (featuring Nicki Minaj). “It excites me,” Pili said, calling the 2010 hip-hop single “old school.”
Guard | No. 4 Virginia Tech
Amor, a senior from Australia, averaged 19.2 points and 6.9 assists per game. She is trying to lead the Hokies back to the Final Four. Amore is a dynamic defender on the court, so it’s no wonder she looks for songs to replenish her energy.
Flo Milli’s go-to pregame song, “Never Lose Me,” boosted her confidence. “I’m trying to adjust my mood,” Amor said. “Like, I’m that girl.” She loves Rihanna’s
“Like the way you lie” to be a little aggressive. “I love the feeling of heartbreak,” she said, “so I come out with clenched fists.”
Women’s NCAA Tournament Coaches’ Mixtape
There’s a fair amount of personal nostalgia sprinkled throughout these coaches’ playlists.
Louisiana State University’s Kim Mulkey included Brooks Jefferson’s “Callin’ Baton Rouge.” The former four-time high school state champion was born in the small town of Tickford, Louisiana, and clearly enjoys being reminded of his roots before leading the Tigers on the field. She also listens to Mel McDaniel’s “Louisiana Saturday Night,” Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn’s duet “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man” and New Orleans legend Fats Domino’s “Blueberry Hill.”
As Mulkey puts it: “I’m a small-town Louisiana girl.”
Ole Miss coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin fills her playlist with South African Amapiano music and West African Afrobeat artists because the rhythms remind her of similar music from her childhood. McPhee-McQueen was born and raised in Freeport, Bahamas, before coming to the United States to attend college. “I’m an island girl, so I love anything with a Caribbean feel.” The seventh-seeded Rebels hope to pull off some upsets like they did last season and advance to the Sweet 16.
Veteran coach Vic Schoolfer led Texas to the Big 12 Championship and is aiming to win the top-seeded Longhorns’ first national title since 1986. A small part of his heart still appears to be tied to Mississippi State, where he previously coached for eight seasons before moving to Austin. My favorite song to listen to before a game is “Starkville City Jail” by Johnny Cash.
Mixtape of Men’s NCAA Tournament Players
Wing | No. 1 in North Carolina
You need strengths at multiple positions to win the NCAA Tournament, and Ingram’s playlist resembles a full roster. His work hails from multiple eras and genres: a 2023 Veeze hit, a 2004 Snoop Dogg familiar, and a 1972 Elvis Presley classic. “I just play it randomly, and whatever comes on, I resonate with,” he said.
Ingram, who is averaging 12.1 points and 9 rebounds per game, will try to bring the storied program back to the Final Four.
Chance McMillian
Guard | No. 6 Texas Tech
The junior is one of five players averaging double figures for the Red Raiders, averaging 10.6 points per game. McMillian hopes to help Texas Tech return to the Sweet 16 after losing in that round last season. If you want to dive into the competition in March, you won’t be intimidated, and his musical choices reflect that understanding. Listening to Youngboy’s “War With Us,” he says, “makes me ready to go out and be fearless.”
Center | No. 4 Auburn
The SEC Tournament MVP hopes to keep the good vibes going.arrive yes Best of all, the music he listens to makes him Feel Like the best. It’s no surprise that at 6-foot-10, he loves the song “The Biggest.”
“He was just talking about being one of the biggest and the best and basically just popping your stuff,” Bloom said. “It gets you hyped and the pace is really good.”
Men’s NCAA Tournament Coaches’ Mixtape
Boy, do these coaches love the 80s.
Connecticut’s Dan Hurley will once again win the NCAA Tournament. Maybe one of his favorite pregame songs — Aerosmith’s “Dream On” — could be dedicated to the underdogs dreaming of beating his No. 1-seeded Huskies?
Hurley said there was another reason he actually heard the sound as the report approached. “Getting my energy going,” he said.
Once Baylor players take the field to warm up, Scott Drew listens to Christian-themed music in the locker room and enjoys a moment of pregame solace. But don’t get him wrong; he gets pissed off too. Like Texas women’s coach Vic Schoolefer, the AC/DC Thunderstrucks are a game day favorite.
A line from Scandal’s 1984 hit “The Warriors” in particular ignited Drew’s heart: “Victory is mine.”
(Photo: Dan Goldfarb/ Competitor; Photos of Paige Bueckers and Harrison Ingram: Paige: Jessica Hill/AP, Grant Halvorson/Getty Images)
