The 1983 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 18 and concluded on April 3 with USC winning the title.

Defending national champion Louisiana Tech beat long time powerhouse Old Dominion by sixteen points, handing them their 30th consecutive victory.

USC beat the Lady Techsters in Louisiana, 64–58, giving the La Tech team their only loss for the year.

USC had a two-point lead with six seconds left in the game, and freshman star Cheryl Miller at the line for a one-and-one attempt.

The Lady Techsters ran up the court, where Kim Mulkey took the final shot, but it failed to go in, and USC won their first national championship.

The NCAA did not officially start keeping track of blocked shots in women's basketball until 1998 (it had begun doing so in the men's game in 1986).

However, Anne Donovan of Old Dominion had twelve blocked shot in a regional game, two more than the official record of ten.