AP women’s college basketball poll reaction: What’s next for each Top 25 team?
Credit to Author: ESPN staff| Date: Tue, 12 Nov 2024 02:05:53 EST
Lauren Betts dominates down low for No. 5 UCLA as the Bruins get past Colgate with ease. (1:09)
The new AP Top 25 women’s college basketball poll is out.
The first eight teams stayed the same as in the preseason Top 25. The Oklahoma Sooners moved up one spot to No. 9, and the Kansas State Wildcats, who jumped three spots, round out the top 10.
The Maryland Terrapins were the big mover, up seven spots to No. 11.
The Illinois Fighting Illini, Stanford Cardinal and Oregon Ducks all broke into the Top 25.
What does it all mean for the AP Top 25? Let’s break down the rankings.
Stats courtesy of ESPN Research and The Associated Press.
All times Eastern
Previous ranking: 1
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: The Gamecocks went 38-0 last season and have won both games in 2024-25 — including Sunday’s Final Four rematch with NC State — to run the win streak to 40 (longest active streak in Division I). With two more victories they’ll match their school-record 42-game win streak from 2022-23.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Coppin State, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
Te-Hina Paopao and MiLaysia Fulwiley give thanks to the No. 1 Gamecocks’ coaching and talk about what makes a 40-game win streak possible after taking down No. 9 NC State.
Previous ranking: 2
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Paige Bueckers had 22 points in Sunday’s 86-49 win over South Florida for her 47th career 20-point game, which ranks fourth by a UConn player in the past 25 seasons. Bueckers is two shy of tying Napheesa Collier on the all-time list. (Maya Moore ranks first with 76, followed by Breanna Stewart’s 65.) Bueckers shot 9-for-10 from the field Sunday, the highest field goal percentage for a game in her career.
What’s next: Friday vs. North Carolina, 6 p.m., ESPN2
Paige Bueckers drops a game-high 22 points in Connecticut’s 86-49 win over South Florida.
Previous ranking: 3
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: JuJu Watkins scored 27 points in the season-opening victory over Ole Miss in Paris. She has scored at least 25 points in 24 of 36 career games.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Cal State Northridge, 10 p.m., B1G+
Previous ranking: 4
2024-25 record: 1-0
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Stat to know: On Sunday, Madison Booker became the only Texas player in the past 10 years to notch her second career game with at least 15 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Miami transfer Kyla Oldacre, a junior forward, became the first player in program history to notch a 20-point double-double (21 points, 14 rebounds) in their debut for the Longhorns. And in her first game in 11 months after a knee injury cut short last season, Rori Harmon returned and tallied 10 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. Lamar, 8 p.m., SEC Network+
Previous ranking: 5
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Lauren Betts shot 15-for-18 and set a career high with 31 points in Sunday’s 81-63 win over Colgate. The junior center’s previous high was 24 points. She also had nine rebounds and three blocks Sunday.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Pepperdine, 2:30 p.m.
Previous ranking: 6
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: In Sunday’s 44-point rout of Purdue, sophomore Hannah Hidalgo had 28 points, 7 rebounds and 6 steals, her ninth career games with 25-5-5. No other player in Irish since 1999-2000 has more than three such games.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. James Madison, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Olivia Miles marks her return from long-term injury with a triple-double in Notre Dame’s blowout win over Mercyhurst.
Previous ranking: 7
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Flau’Jae Johnson scored 25 points in a 95-44 season-opening win over Eastern Kentucky and 24 in Friday’s 95-36 victory over Northwestern State. Dating to last season, that’s six consecutive 20-point games for the junior guard. Johnson averaged 14.9 PPG last season.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Charleston Southern, noon, SEC Network+
Tune into a few of this year’s NCAA women’s basketball stars – Paige Bueckers, Flau’jae Johnson, JuJu Watkins, Hannah Hidalgo and Madison Booker in this retro VHS mixtape as they dominate the court.
Previous ranking: 8
2024-25 record: 3-0
Stat to know: Which program has won the most consecutive season openers? Iowa State beat Chicago State 96-56 on Nov. 4 for the Cyclones’ 30th straight season-opening victory, extending the longest active streak in Division I. The next best? UConn, at 29. Addy Brown has a pair of double-doubles and was a rebound short of making it 3-for-3 on the season.
What’s next: Thursday vs. St. Thomas-Minnesota, 7:30 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 10
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Raegan Beers, who transferred from Oregon State in the offseason, opened her Sooners career with two straight double-doubles. That gives her 32 for her career, including 18 since the start of last season. Beers’ 26 points and 14 rebounds helped power Friday’s 95-51 victory over Virginia — OU’s largest margin over a power-conference opponent since March 2014.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. Western Carolina, 11:30 a.m., SEC Network+
Previous ranking: 13
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Senior transfers led the way in the Wildcats’ two games. Temira Poindexter (Tulsa) scored a combined 38 points and Kennedy Taylor (Missouri State) totaled 34 points in Kansas State’s pair of victories. Poindexter shot 5-for-10 on 3-pointers in Thursday’s 82-56 win over Belmont.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Creighton, 6:30 p.m., ESPN2
Previous ranking: 18
2024-25 record: 3-0
Stat to know: In their first game against former ACC rival Duke since 2015, the Terps upended the then-No. 11 Blue Devils 85-80 on Sunday. It’s Maryland’s second straight win against an AP-ranked team dating to last season, but the Terps had lost nine consecutive games against ranked teams prior to that.
What’s next: Wednesday at Syracuse, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: 14
2024-25 record: 1-0
Stat to know: Freshman Jaloni Cambridge, ESPN’s no. 2-rated prospect in the 2024 recruiting class, scored 31 points (on 12-for-14 shooting from the field) and had 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals in her college debut. The 5-foot-7 guard’s 31 points were the most by a Big Ten player in their collegiate debut over the past 25 years.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Charlotte, 6 p.m., B1G+
Previous ranking: 9
2024-25 record: 1-1
Stat to know: NC State lost 71-57 to No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday, dropping to 2-3 against No. 1 teams under Wes Moore. But the past two losses were both against the Gamecocks, including in last season’s Final Four.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Kent State, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: 15
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Iowa State transfer Lexi Donarski scored 21 points and made five 3-pointers in Thursday’s 77-50 victory over UNC Wilmington. In two wins, the guard is 14-for-25 (56%) from the field and 7-for-17 (41.1%) on 3-pointers.
What’s next: Tuesday at North Carolina A&T, 7 p.m., FloSports
Previous ranking: 16
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Jordan Harrison had 23 points, 8 assists and 6 steals in the 85-41 season-opening victory over Towson, then added 21 points and 7 assists in a 110-41 rout of Niagara. The 110 points marked the third most in a game in program history, and the team’s most since December 2002.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Pitt, 7 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 11
2024-25 record: 2-1
Stat to know: Duke had 19 steals — the most in a game in coach Kara Lawson’s tenure — and scored 41 points off turnovers in a 89-36 season-opening win over Radford. Despite the loss to Maryland on Sunday, the Blue Devils are averaging 17.3 steals per game.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Dayton, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: 12
2024-25 record: 1-1
Stat to know: Although Baylor lost to unranked Oregon late Sunday, junior Darianna Littlepage-Buggs had 19 points and 10 rebounds for her fifth consecutive game in double-digit scoring. She’s the Bears’ leading scorer (22.0 PPG) and rebounder (8.0 RPG) through two games.
What’s next: Thursday vs. East Texas A&M, 8 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 17
2024-25 record: 1-1
Stat to know: In the Cardinals’ 66-59 season-opening loss to No. 5 UCLA in Paris, Tajianna Roberts (21 points, four 3-pointers) became the first Louisville freshman to score at least 20 points in their first career game since Hailey Van Lith in 2020.
What’s next: Tuesday at UT Martin, 7 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 20
2024-25 record: 1-1
Stat to know: Sunday’s 61-point, 85-24 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff tied for the third-largest win in program history, but were just two points off the Rebels’ all-time record. (The Rebels have a pair of other 63-point victories, one in 2004 and one in 1983).
What’s next: Thursday at Delaware State, 5:30 p.m.
KK Deans speaks on the key factors that impacted her performance on the court and expresses the excitement that came from the Rebels defeating Arkansas-Pine Bluff at home.
Previous ranking: 22
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: The Kenny Brooks era is off to a perfect start. Graduate transfer Georgia Amoore and 6-5 sophomore Clara Strack each have over 20 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds through the first two games. Prior to this season, only one Kentucky player in the last 25 seasons tallied 20 points, five rebounds and five assists through the opening two games.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Wofford, 6 p.m., SEC Network+
Previous ranking: 23
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: Natalie Potts, a 6-2 forward who was last season’s Big Ten Freshman of the Year, picked up where she left off, scoring 14 points in Nebraska’s first victory and a team-high 17 in a come-from-behind win over SE Louisiana on Saturday. She’s 12-of-17 (70.6%) from the field this season.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. Southern, 8 p.m., B1G+
Previous ranking: 24
2024-25 record: 3-0
Stat to know: Three games, three routs for the Crimson Tide. Graduate students Aaliyah Nye (18.3 PPG), Sarah Ashlee Barker (18.0 PPG) and Zaay Green (16.7 PPG) have taken turns leading Alabama in scoring in a game this season.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. Norfolk State, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
Previous ranking: NR
2024-25 record: 2-0
Stat to know: In one of only a handful of Top 25 upsets last week, the Illini held court to knock off then-No. 19 Florida State 83-74 on Thursday. Adalia McKenzie and Makira Cook each scored 20 points. It was Cook’s 25th 20-point game over the past three seasons (she transferred from Dayton before the 2022-23 campaign), the most of any active Big Ten player over that span.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Eastern Illinois, 7 p.m., B1G+
Previous ranking: NR
2024-25 record: 3-0
Stat to know: The Cardinal made a school-record 18 3-pointers in their season opener. They added 14 in their second game and 13 on Sunday, making Stanford 45-for-78 (57.7%) from beyond the arc on the season. Jzaniya Harriel (11 of 16), Elena Bosgana (8 of 15) and Chloe Clardy (7 of 10) lead the 3-point charge for the Cardinal, who shot 34.6% from downtown last season.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. UC Davis, 10 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: NR
2024-25 record: 3-0
Stat to know: The Ducks snapped a 14-game losing streak against ranked opponents Sunday with a 76-74 victory over then-No. 12 Baylor. After blowing a 16-point fourth-quarter lead, Oregon notched its first win over Baylor in program history (now 1-5 all-time). It marked the Ducks’ first win over a Top 25 team since February 2023. North Carolina transfer Deja Kelly leads the Ducks in scoring at 17.0 PPG.
What’s next: Tuesday vs. North Texas, 2 p.m., B1G+