UCLA vaults past UConn, into No. 1 spot in AP rankings

After a tumultuous week of upsets rocked the top-ranked teams, the UConn women’s basketball team held steady at No. 2 in the AP Top 25 poll entering Week 4 but received nine of a possible 32 first-place votes.

Reigning national champion South Carolina, which had maintained the No. 1 ranking in the AP poll since the first week of the 2023-24 season, had its 43-game winning streak snapped by UCLA, 77-62 on Sunday. The Bruins climbed from No. 5 to No. 1 with the statement victory, marking their first No. 1 ranking in program history and their highest ranking since a streak at No. 2 from Weeks 3-10 in 2023-24. The Gamecocks fell to No. 4 with the loss, their lowest regular-season ranking since they came in at No. 6 in the final poll in 2021.

Notre Dame didn’t jump the Huskies but received three first-place votes and climbed to No. 3 after routing USC on the road 74-61 on Saturday. The Trojans fell from No. 3 to No. 6 with the loss. UConn will go head-to-head with longtime rival Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., on Dec. 12, looking for redemption from an 82-67 loss to the Irish in Storrs last season. The Huskies host USC for a rematch of the 2024 Elite Eight at the XL Center on Dec. 21.

UConn could face its next ranked opponent as early as this week, positioned opposite No. 18 Ole Miss in the Baha Mar Women’s Championship bracket. The Huskies open the tournament in the Bahamas against Oregon State on Monday (7:30 p.m., FloHoops), and they will face Ole Miss on Wednesday if the Rebels win their first game against Boston College. UConn has four more ranked matchups on the schedule in December, including USC and Notre Dame, though No. 15 Iowa State dropped out of the top 10 after suffering a stunning upset to Northern Iowa last week.

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AP Top 25 women’s basketball poll: Week 4

1. UCLA
2. UConn
3. Notre Dame
4. South Carolina
5. Texas
6. USC
7. LSU
8. Oklahoma
9. Kansas State
10. Maryland
11. Ohio State
12. West Virginia
13. Duke
14. Kentucky
15. Iowa State
16. North Carolina
17. TCU
18. Ole Miss
19. Illinois
20. NC State
21. Oregon
22. Iowa
23. Alabama
24. Louisville
25. Nebraska

How UConn reporter Emily Adams voted in Week 4 AP Top 25

1. UCLA
2. Notre Dame
3. UConn
4. Texas
5. South Carolina
6. USC
7. Kansas State
8. LSU
9. Ohio State
10. Oklahoma
11. Maryland
12. West Virginia
13. Ole Miss
14. TCU
15. Kentucky
16. NC State
17. Iowa State
18. Duke
19. Illinois
20. Oregon
21. Michigan
22. Louisville
23. North Carolina
24. Florida State
25. Michigan State

Originally Published: November 25, 2024 at 12:40 PM EST