For the second week in a row, the No. 1 team in women’s college basketball took it on the chin.
Two weeks ago, UCLA suffered its first loss of the season, falling to rival USC. On Sunday, Notre Dame, which replaced the Bruins atop the Associated Press rankings, lost a double-overtime thriller to NC State, which snapped the Irish’s 19-game winning streak.
This week is Texas’ turn at No. 1, making the Longhorns the fourth team to carry that mantle this season (Notre Dame, UCLA and South Carolina were the others). That matches the most different No. 1s in a season since the women’s AP poll began in 1976-77. It has happened five previous times: 1987-88 (Iowa, Tennessee, Texas, Auburn), 2003-04 (UConn, Duke, Tennessee, Texas), 2004-05 (LSU, Duke, Tennessee, Stanford), 2019-20 (South Carolina, Oregon, UConn, Stanford) and 2020-21 (Stanford, UConn, Louisville, and South Carolina).
What does it all mean for the AP Top 25? Let’s break down the new rankings.
New this week: Florida State, Louisville
Out: Georgia Tech, Illinois
Stats courtesy of ESPN Research and The Associated Press.
All times Eastern
Previous ranking: 2
2024-25 record: 26-2
Stat to know: Texas is No. 1 for the first time since Feb. 16, 2004, the second of back-to-back weeks at No. 1. Before that, the Longhorns hadn’t been No. 1 in more than 16 years (Dec. 28, 1987).
What’s next: Monday at Georgia, 7 p.m., SECN
Previous ranking: 3
2024-25 record: 26-1
Stat to know: Two of the Bruins’ three wins since suffering their first loss of the season have come by single digits, including Sunday’s 67-65 squeaker at Iowa. Prior to that, UCLA had won 22 straight by at least 10 points.
What’s next: Wednesday at Wisconsin, 8 p.m., Peacock
Previous ranking: 1
2024-25 record: 24-3
Stat to know: The 104 points allowed by Notre Dame in Sunday’s loss to NC State were the most allowed by an AP No. 1 team over the last 25 seasons.
What’s next: Thursday vs. No. 24 Florida State, 8 p.m., ACCN
Previous ranking: 4
2024-25 record: 25-2
Stat to know: USC posted its eighth win over a ranked opponent by beating Illinois (then No. 25) on Sunday.
What’s next: Saturday at No. 2 UCLA, 9 p.m., Fox
Previous ranking: 5
2024-25 record: 26-3
Stat to know: In Saturday’s win at Butler, Paige Bueckers had 23 points and 10 assists. It was her third career game with at least 20 points and 10 assists, most by UConn player in the last 25 seasons.
What’s next: Thursday vs. No. 22 Creighton, 7 p.m., CBSSN
Previous ranking: 6
2024-25 record: 25-3
Stat to know: South Carolina outscored Vanderbilt 48-16 in the paint in Sunday’s win. The Gamecocks entered the day fourth in Division I with 41.5 paint points per game.
What’s next: Thursday at Ole Miss, 9 p.m.
Previous ranking: 7
2024-25 record: 27-2
Stat to know: LSU rallied from a 16-point deficit to beat Kentucky on Sunday. It was the Tigers’ largest comeback win under Kim Mulkey (since 2021-22) and their third comeback of 15 or more points this season, tied for the most in Division I (Texas State).
What’s next: Thursday at No. 20 Alabama, 9 p.m.
Previous ranking: 9
2024-25 record: 25-4
Stat to know: By winning at Louisville on Sunday, North Carolina improved to 9-0 in true road games this season and is the only Division I team without a road loss.
What’s next: Thursday at No. 16 Duke, 7 p.m., ESPN
Previous ranking: 13
2024-25 record: 22-5
Stat to know: Sunday’s win over Notre Dame was the Wolfpack’s fifth all-time win against the AP No. 1 team. Three of those have come over the last five seasons, most in Division I.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Wake Forest, 7 p.m., ACCX
Previous ranking: 10
2024-25 record: 26-3
Stat to know: With Sunday’s 71-50 win over West Virginia, TCU set school records in overall wins (26), home wins (18) and Big 12 wins (12) and posted its largest margin of victory against a ranked opponent since a 34-point win over No. 20 Oklahoma State in Dec. 2007.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. Houston, 7:30 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 15
2024-25 record: 21-6
Stat to know: After trailing 37-28 at halftime Sunday, Tennessee outscored Florida 37-20 in the third quarter. It was the most points in a quarter by an SEC team in conference play this season.
What’s next: Thursday vs. No. 15 Kentucky, 7 p.m., SECN
Previous ranking: 8
2024-25 record: 23-4
Stat to know: Ohio State’s 52-point rout of Purdue on Sunday was its largest margin of victory against a Big Ten opponent since a 54-point win Jan. 8, 2015 at Indiana.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. No. 23 Michigan State, 7 p.m., B1G+
Previous ranking: 16
2024-25 record: 21-6
Stat to know: In Sunday’s win over Arkansas, Raegan Beers became the first Sooner to reach 30 points in back-to-back games since Courtney Paris did it in 2007.
What’s next: Thursday at Florida, 7 p.m., SECN+
Previous ranking: 12
2024-25 record: 25-4
Stat to know: Serena Sundell set a K-State record with 15 assists Saturday against Kansas and became the third player in program history to reach the 200 mark in a season (211).
What’s next: Monday vs. No. 17 Baylor, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Previous ranking: 14
2024-25 record: 21-5
Stat to know: Kentucky was outscored 23-6 in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss to LSU as the Wildcats squandered a 16-point lead.
What’s next: Thursday vs. No. 11 Tennessee, 7 p.m., SECN
Previous ranking: 11
2024-25 record: 21-7
Stat to know: After dropping two straight games, Duke held Syracuse to 49 points in Sunday’s win. It was the Blue Devils’ eighth game in ACC play holding its opponent under 50. No other ACC team has more than three such games this season.
What’s next: Thursday vs. No. 8 North Carolina, 7 p.m., ESPN
Previous ranking: 19
2024-25 record: 24-5
Stat to know: Baylor has won eight in a row after losing back-to-back games to top-10 teams UCLA and TCU.
What’s next: Monday at No. 14 Kansas State, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Previous ranking: 17
2024-25 record: 21-6
Stat to know: West Virginia shot a season-low 31% in Sunday’s 71-50 defeat at TCU, its biggest loss of the season.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. Utah, 7 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 21
2024-25 record: 21-6
Stat to know: In Thursday’s 85-79 win at Northwestern, Maryland was outshot from the field 47.4% to 38.0% and both teams made 27 field goals, but the Terps had nine 3-pointers to the Wildcats’ one.
What’s next: Thursday at Indiana, 7 p.m., Peacock
Previous ranking: 18
2024-25 record: 22-6
Stat to know: Aaliyah Nye had six 3-pointers in Sunday’s win over Auburn, bringing her career total in three seasons at Alabama to 278 and snapping a tie with Betsy Harris for most in program history.
What’s next: Thursday vs. No. 7 LSU, 9 p.m.
Previous ranking: 24
2024-25 record: 22-5
Stat to know: Oklahoma State shot 53% from the field, including 4-for-9 from 3-point range, in the first half of Saturday’s win over Colorado.
What’s next: Wednesday vs. Cincinnati, 7:30 p.m., ESPN+
Previous ranking: 23
2024-25 record: 23-4
Stat to know: Creighton has won seven in a row since losing to UConn on Jan. 25. The rematch is set for Thursday with the Bluejays one game behind the Huskies for the Big East lead.
What’s next: Thursday at No. 5 UConn, 7 p.m., CBSSN
Previous ranking: 22
2024-25 record: 20-7
Stat to know: Michigan State bounced back from an 0-2 Western swing against UCLA and USC to beat Indiana on Sunday.
What’s next: Wednesday at No. 12 Ohio State, 7 p.m., B1G+
Previous ranking: NR
2024-25 record: 22-6
Stat to know: Sydney Bowles scored 32 points in Sunday’s win at Georgia Tech, becoming the fourth Florida State player to have a 30-point game this season. Four different 30-point scorers in a season is tied for the most by a Division I team over the last 25 seasons.
What’s next: Thursday at No. 3 Notre Dame, 8 p.m., ACCN
Previous ranking: NR
2024-25 record: 19-8
Stat to know: Louisville handed Duke its first home loss of the season Thursday. The Cardinals are 7-1 in their last eight games against Duke, including three straight wins with the Blue Devils in the Top 25.
What’s next: Thursday vs. Clemson, 6 p.m., ACCN
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