Dawn Staley and South Carolina picked up where they left off. She placed first in the Associated Press’ Women’s Basketball Top 25 Poll.
In a pre-season poll released Tuesday, a 30-member national media panel unanimously selected the defending national champions, the Gamecocks. This is the third season in a row that South Carolina has been the preseason frontrunner.
“This is where we wanted it to be and where we envisioned it in our program,” Staley said. “I had to give it to the players. We always get some of the best players in the country. I don’t know if they will come and say that I want to be number one.They are the No. 1 team in the country, but they say they want to be the national champion. It’s a step.”
Stanford, Texas, Iowa, and Tennessee rounded out the top five teams in preseason voting. This is Iowa’s best ranking since his 1994, when the Hawkeyes were his fourth at midseason.
Coach Lisa Bruder said: “I want the team to feel confident and proud of what they’ve achieved, regardless of how October’s standings are compared to March’s.” “We celebrate it and then forget it.”
South Carolina won back-to-back titles as the No. 1 team last season and has been the top team for 20 consecutive weeks. Since the 1994-95 season, when the top 25 became the writers’ vote, only UConn (4 times) and Baylor (1 time) have had longer winning streaks at No. 1.
The Huskies ranked sixth, not finishing in the top five in preseason polls since 2006. Louisville, Iowa, Notre Dame, and North Carolina made the top ten.
Hold That Tiger
Princeton earned its first preseason ranking at No. 24.
The Tigers ranked in the final two weeks of last season, returning four starters from a team that pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the NCAA Tournament, overthrowing Kentucky in the first round and winning the next game. Lost by one point to Indiana.
“It’s great for our program and the Ivy League, and lets us honor what we’ve done in the past,” said coach Carla Verbe. “I think it’s great for our team and to live up to the standards that we have set. Yes, but we have a lot of work to do.”
Velve increased the Tigers’ schedule to challenge them in games at Texas and her alma mater, UConn.
“I’ve learned that if your non-meeting schedule is tight, you might be ready for the Ivy League and beyond,” she said.
Cornhusker Run
Expectations are high in Nebraska. No. 21 Clayton was ranked for the first time in the preseason, while No. 22 Nebraska was his first since 2015. It was the first time in the history of the poll that both teams were ranked in the same week.
“It’s good to have Clayton and Nebraska in the top 25. It’s good for the state,” said Clayton coach Jim Flannery.
The Blue Jays are having a great season, beating No. 2 seed Iowa at home in the second round and Iowa State in the regional semifinals to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time in school history. I have high expectations for this year.
“I tell my players that they put the program in a better position than ever before,” Flannery said. “It’s good for them. We worked to get to the point. I don’t think it will change their approach.”
tip in
At number 13, Virginia Tech maintains its highest ranking since the final poll in 1999, when it also ranked 13th. … No. 23 South Dakota ranked in the preseason for the first time in school history.
conference watch
The Big Ten are number one in the nation with six ranked teams. Iowa comes in fourth, followed by Indiana at 11th, Ohio at 14th, Maryland at 17th, Nebraska at 22nd and Michigan at 25th.
The ACC has 5 teams participating in the voting, including the top 10 teams. Along with Louisville, Notre Dame, and North Carolina State University, North Carolina is ranked 12th and Virginia Tech is ranked 13th.
Four programs are ranked in the Big 12, led by Texas (3rd) and Iowa (8th). No. 15 Oklahoma and No. 18 Baylor also made the list.
The SEC and Pac-12 each have three teams on the ballot. No. 16, LSU joins SEC’s top-ranked South Carolina and he joins No. 5 Tennessee. No. 19 Arizona and No. 20 Oregon will join No. 2 Stanford in Pac-12.
No. 21 Clayton and UConn represent the Big East, No. 24 Princeton is the only Ivy League school, and No. 23 South Dakota State is the only Summit League team in the rankings.
