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Michael Voepel
Multiple Authors
Five Division I women’s teams are shooting 50% or better from the field this season. Three are in the SEC, and two meet Thursday in the second game of a blockbuster doubleheader on ESPN: No. 4 Texas and No. 5 LSU, which both maintain their spots this week in ESPN’s women’s college basketball Power Rankings.
The Longhorns and Tigers will be preceded by Duke at Louisville (7 p.m. ET), in a battle of the ACC’s leaders. The Blue Devils are riding a 13-game winning streak and have moved back into the rankings at No. 12. The Cardinals have won 14 in a row. Both teams are 11-0 in conference play.
But all eyes will be on the LSU-Texas game (9 p.m. ET), particularly given both teams are within 1½ games of the lead in the SEC. South Carolina, 8-1 in conference play, holds that spot.
After losing their first two SEC games, the Tigers have won seven in a row, the longest current winning streak in the conference that includes a 70-65 victory at home over Texas on Jan. 11. For the Longhorns to deliver payback on their home court, they must slow down an LSU offense that leads Division I in scoring average (98.9) and ranks second in field goal percentage (52.22%), trailing only No. 1 UConn (52.96%).
The others in the top five in shooting percentage are UCLA (51.85%), Texas (51.99%) and South Carolina (50.96%). The Huskies, Bruins, Longhorns and Gamecocks are all projected NCAA tournament No. 1 seeds, and competed in the Final Four last season.
Right now, LSU is a projected No. 2 seed in Bracketology, with the next two weeks bringing the Tigers’ biggest challenges of the season: at Texas on Thursday, then hosting South Carolina on Feb. 14 (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC).
The Tigers’ scoring average is, of course, skewed by a soft nonconference schedule, during which they reached 100 or more points 11 times. Their average in nine SEC games is 84.7. Still, they are coming off their first century mark of this SEC season: a 103-63 thumping of Alabama on Sunday, in which eight LSU players scored at least eight points.
Previous ranking: 1
Next seven days: @ DePaul (Feb. 4), vs. Butler (Feb. 7)
The Huskies beat Xavier 97-39 last Wednesday, with sophomore guard Allie Ziebell hitting 10 3-pointers on the way to 34 points. Sunday, they faced their final nonconference foe of the regular season, beating Tennessee 96-66. Though the score was tied at halftime, UConn took over in the second half. Forward Sarah Strong had a combined 51 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists in the two victories. UConn has won 39 consecutive games, and 18 in a row by at least 25 points.
Previous ranking: 2
Next seven days: vs. Rutgers (Feb. 4), @ Michigan (Feb. 8)
UCLA is alone atop the Big Ten at 11-0, after beating Illinois (80-67) and Iowa (88-65) last week. The Bruins’ offense was particularly impressive against fellow top-10 team Iowa on Sunday. They shot 58% from the field — 50% from beyond the arc — and had 29 assists. The Bruins’ last trip of the season is coming up, as they play at Michigan and Michigan State, both ranked teams, back-to-back on Feb. 8 and 11, respectively. We will see if either can challenge UCLA, which has won 15 in a row.
Previous ranking: 3
Next seven days: vs. Mississippi State (Feb. 5), vs. Tennessee (Feb. 8)
The Gamecocks had no trouble winning road games at Auburn (81-51) on Thursday and Texas A&M (71-56) on Monday. Sophomore forward Joyce Edwards took over both with a combined 48 points on 69.2% shooting and 16 rebounds. Guards Ta’Niya Latson and Agot Makeer, who are both dealing with leg injuries, appeared briefly against the Tigers but didn’t play against the Aggies. But South Carolina has solid depth on which to rely.
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Gamecocks’ Joyce Edwards shares mindset in win over Texas A&M
Edwards, who scored 14 of her 28 points in the fourth quarter, discusses how attention to detail helped propel South Carolina past Texas A&M.
Previous ranking: 4
Next seven days: vs. LSU (Feb. 5), vs. Kentucky (Feb. 9)
Last week, the Longhorns won 88-68 at Florida and then beat longtime rival Oklahoma at home 78-70. Facing the up-tempo Sooners was good preparation for facing LSU next. Taking into consideration the high quality of the opponent, Texas sophomore forward Justice Carlton had her best game of the season Sunday against Oklahoma: 16 points, eight rebounds, two steals.
Previous ranking: 5
Next seven days: @ Texas (Feb. 5), @ Auburn (Feb. 8)
LSU’s 40-point win over then-No. 24 Alabama on Sunday was the largest margin of victory against a ranked foe for any team this season. Yet the Crimson Tide still climbed three spots in this week’s AP poll, thanks to their win over Georgia. That tells you how tough the SEC is — and how respected LSU is. Everyone knows the Tigers can run even good opponents off the court. That might be harder to do against Texas, which leads the SEC and is second among Power 4 conference teams in scoring defense, giving up only 54.4 points per game.
Previous ranking: 6
Next seven days: vs. Duke (Feb. 5), @ Syracuse (Feb. 8)
Louisville aced its trip to the Bay Area last week, beating Stanford 84-66 and California 71-59. With seven players averaging at least 8.0 points, the Cardinals have been able to wear down most defenses they’ve faced. They’re the top scoring team in the ACC (82.6), led by sophomore guard Tajianna Roberts (12.5). But they’re also fifth in the conference in scoring defense (59.7), just behind upcoming foe Duke (59.3).
Previous ranking: 9
Next seven days: vs. Nebraska (Feb. 4), vs. UCLA (Feb. 8)
After UConn’s blowout win against Tennessee, it’s worth mentioning again that the only team to come close to taking down the Huskies this season is Michigan — the Wolverines narrowly lost 72-69 on Nov. 21. Last week, the Wolverines defeated Indiana 95-67, then prevailed against archrival Michigan State 94-91 in overtime. Sophomore guard Olivia Olson had a combined 50 points on 60% shooting in both games. Currently in second place in the Big Ten, Michigan gets its shot at conference leader UCLA on Sunday.
Previous ranking: 12
Next seven days: @ Washington (Feb. 5), @ Oregon (Feb. 8)
After their seven-game winning streak ended at Iowa on Jan. 25, the Buckeyes regrouped last week with two dominant wins at home. They beat Wisconsin 81-58 and Nebraska 90-71 behind a combined 59 points from sophomore guard Jaloni Cambridge.
Previous ranking: 7
Next seven days: @ Kentucky (Feb. 5), vs. Oklahoma (Feb. 9)
The Commodores followed their first loss of the season, at South Carolina on Jan. 25, with a second — 83-75 to Ole Miss on a neutral court in Birmingham, Alabama, last Friday. (The game was moved because of weather issues in Oxford, Mississippi.) Vanderbilt then bounced back with an 82-66 victory at home against Florida on Sunday. Sophomore guard Mikayla Blakes combined for 59 points and 12 assists in the games against Ole Miss and Florida. The Commodores now face a tough stretch to end the regular season, with six of their remaining seven games against currently ranked teams.
Previous ranking: 10
Next seven days: @ Vanderbilt (Feb. 9)
The Sooners have some time to prepare for their matchup at Vanderbilt on Monday (9 p.m. ET, ESPN2). Last week, they defeated Texas A&M for the second time this season 85-58 but couldn’t recover from a 16-point halftime deficit at Texas in a 78-70 loss. Senior guard Payton Verhulst’s offense has solidified in recent weeks. She has scored in double figures in five of the past six games.
Previous ranking: 16
Next seven days: @ Alabama (Feb. 5)
For the second time this season, the Rebels beat a team ranked No. 5 in the AP poll. They did it at Oklahoma on Jan. 8 and then against Vanderbilt 83-75 on Friday. Ole Miss followed that with a 71-45 victory over Auburn on Monday. Both those games were played on a neutral court in Birmingham, Alabama, because of weather conditions. Junior forward Cotie McMahon had a combined 60 points in the wins.
Previous ranking: Not ranked
Next seven days: @ Louisville (Feb. 5), vs. SMU (Feb. 8)
Duke lost six of its first nine games, four of them to ranked foes. It was an ambitious schedule that cost the Blue Devils in November and early December. But they learned from it and have climbed back. They now have the chance to get a leg up on a possible ACC regular-season title if they can beat Louisville. But they still have both meetings against archrival North Carolina remaining.
Previous ranking: 8
Next seven days: vs. Minnesota (Feb. 5)
It was a rough week for the Hawkeyes. They lost starting guard Taylor McCabe, their top 3-point shooter, for the season to an ACL injury on Jan. 25. Her absence took a toll on their offense, as Iowa fell 81-69 at USC and 88-65 at UCLA. Those losses ended the Hawkeyes’ eight-game winning streak and dropped them into a tie for third in the Big Ten at 9-2.
Previous ranking: 15
Next seven days: vs. Maryland (Feb. 4), @ Penn State (Feb. 7)
The Spartans won 86-65 at Purdue last Thursday, setting up the first of two showdowns vs. Michigan. That intense rivalry game didn’t disappoint, as the Wolverines battled to a 94-91 victory in overtime. Sophomore guard Kennedy Blair has a combined 36 points, 18 rebounds, 11 assists and eight steals in the two games. Michigan State’s second chance against Michigan comes Feb. 15, but the Spartans also still must face two other top-10 teams, UCLA and Ohio State.
Previous ranking: 13
Next seven days: vs. Houston (Feb. 4), @ Colorado (Feb. 8)
TCU and Baylor remain tied atop the Big 12, but both teams lost games last week. The Frogs escaped against Kansas 79-77 behind 20 points and six assists from senior guard Olivia Miles. But then they fell 62-60 to a Texas Tech team that held them to their second-lowest point total of the season.
Previous ranking: 11
Next seven days: @ Cincinnati (Feb. 4), vs. Arizona State (Feb. 7)
Baylor was the Big 12’s hottest team entering last week, with eight victories in a row. But going to West Virginia has been known to cool down teams. It happened to the Bears in a 70-60 loss to the Mountaineers, who forced 30 Baylor turnovers and scored 38 points off them. Baylor and TCU are each 8-2 in the Big 12 and have both their regular-season meetings still to come.
Dropped out: Tennessee Lady Vols
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