A blowout loss to Texas dropped the UConn Huskies to No. 17 in the AP Top 25 this week -- their lowest ranking in 30 years. They had spent 357 weeks in the top 15, the second-longest streak in women's basketball history.
That was the Longhorns' first game against a ranked opponent this season and they certainly delivered. Their 80-68 result was the program's first ever win over UConn. Texas climbed five spots to No. 5.
Meanwhile, South Carolina and UCLA continued to take care of business and remain in the top two spots. NC State has been steadily moving up, and this week the Wolfpack made it to No. 3.
Sunday was a day of upsets, not just for UConn. Tennessee suffered a 20-point loss to Ohio State and has now dropped from the Top 25. Stanford struggled while star player Cameron Brink sat out most of the game against Gonzaga with an apparent illness. The Cardinal had to swallow a 96-78 loss to Gonzaga but remained in the top 10. Sunday became the Zags biggest win in program history, and earned them the No. 23 spot this week.
UConn, Tennessee and Stanford are historical powerhouses in women's basketball and had not lost on the same day since Dec. 29, 2004.
Virginia Tech also dropped significantly to No. 15 after an 82-64 loss to LSU. The Tigers got the job done in the return of Angel Reese, who had missed four straight games for unspecified reasons. It was also head coach Kim Mulkey's 700th win.
Florida State fell five places to No. 20 because of a 71-58 loss to Arkansas on Thursday. Meanwhile, Marquette is seeing the best start in program history with an 8-0 record, which helped the Golden Eagles move up to No. 19.
AP Women's Basketball Top 25
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' women's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Sunday, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last week's ranking:
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Prev. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Carolina (35) | 7-0 | 875 | 1 |
| 2 | UCLA | 7-0 | 836 | 2 |
| 3 | North Carolina State | 9-0 | 769 | 5 |
| 4 | Iowa | 8-1 | 740 | 4 |
| 5 | Texas | 9-0 | 689 | 10 |
| 6 | USC | 7-0 | 682 | 6 |
| 7 | LSU | 8-1 | 670 | 7 |
| 8 | Colorado | 8-1 | 639 | 7 |
| 9 | Stanford | 8-1 | 584 | 3 |
| 10 | Baylor | 7-0 | 546 | 13 |
| 11 | Utah | 7-1 | 513 | 12 |
| 12 | Ohio State | 6-1 | 463 | 16 |
| 13 | Kansas State | 7-1 | 453 | 14 |
| 14 | Notre Dame | 6-1 | 439 | 18 |
| 15 | Virginia Tech | 5-2 | 409 | 9 |
| 16 | Indiana | 7-1 | 380 | 17 |
| 17 | UConn | 4-3 | 326 | 11 |
| 18 | Louisville | 8-1 | 288 | 22 |
| 19 | Marquette | 8-0 | 232 | 23 |
| 20 | Florida State | 6-2 | 203 | 15 |
| 21 | Washington State | 9-1 | 119 | NR |
| 22 | Creighton | 6-1 | 112 | NR |
| 23 | Gonzaga | 8-2 | 104 | NR |
| 24 | North Carolina | 5-3 | 79 | 24 |
| 25 | Penn State | 7-1 | 44 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Miami 40, UNLV 25, Oklahoma 21, Tennessee 20, Arkansas 18, Mississippi St. 12, Mississippi 8, TCU 7, Michigan St. 7, Texas A&M 4, Texas Tech 4, Green Bay 4, Florida Gulf Coast 4, Syracuse 2, Southern Miss 2, Davidson 2, West Virginia 1.
