It would be hard to argue otherwise, though the Tigers’ schedule isn’t as strong as the other contenders. Knocking off the champion is the quickest way to be the champion, and if LSU protects what should be a packed home court against UConn, who will have a better resume?
Set the DVR for this one, as it could be the best regular season matchup of the year.
(Record through Monday) Points -- Last week's rank (first-place
votes)
1. Connecticut (24-1) 766 -- 2 (27)
After disposing of pretender Pittsburgh, the Huskies should have no problems with Marquette and St. John’s in the friendly confines. But that trip to LSU next Monday will be a different story.
2. North Carolina (24-2) 729 – 3 (3)
The only losses, it should be noted, are to Tennessee and UConn. There are wins over Duke and Maryland, but that signature victory that would cement the Tar Heels a top seed is so far MIA.
3. Tennessee (23-2) 698 – 1
The loss to LSU wasn’t that much of a shock – except that it came in Knoxville. Except that Tennessee was up 21-2. Except that the Volunteers relaxed instead of putting the hammer down. Except that LSU really looked like the better team.
4. Rutgers (20-4) 687 – 7 (1)
Notre Dame at home should be another win, as the Scarlet Knights are really more in danger from teams that can score than from teams that can defend. Forgive them if they’re already thinking about the trip to UConn March 3.
5. Maryland (27-2) 655 -- 4
So the Terrapins beat a solid Boston College team by 27, and go to Duke and win by seven – and then drop a spot. But no one’s too worried about that: Congrats to Brenda Frese on her expanded family.
6. LSU (22-3) 625 – 7
If not for the loss to Middle Tennessee State, the Tigers would have a bunch of first-place votes and a higher ranking. But what happened on Dec. 28 isn’t nearly as important as Connecticut on Monday in Baton Rouge. Win that one, and LSU could jump all the way to the top of the rankings.
7. Stanford (24-3) 626 – 6
After puncturing the pretensions of Arizona State over the weekend, the Cardinal has a week to get ready for the trip across the Bay to face Cal. For once, the men’s game will be of lesser importance.
8. California (23-3) 543 – 9
The Bears handily defeated long-time bete noire Arizona State, and now will focus on Stanford’s Saturday visit. Last year, Cal put 5,000 people in the stands and played terribly; this time, expect more fans and a better game.
9. Baylor (22-3) 533 – 8
The bipolar Bears got a lesson in humility from previously struggling Texas, and then slapped Oklahoma around, winning by 20. But will Baylor right itself at Iowa State, and snap that two-game road losing streak?
10. Oklahoma (18-5) 464 – 10
The Sooners can’t figure out Baylor, which has accounted for two of those five losses, and need a better effort at Kansas State or they’ll have two setbacks in a row. Then Oklahoma State visits – this is one tough conference.
11. Old Dominion (22-3) 416 – 14
Once again, teasing out the logic in the voting proves difficult. The Monarchs probably deserve this placement, but they jumped three spots by beating 8-15 Northeastern and a decent Towson team. Virginia Commonwealth will at least be more of a challenge.
12. West Virginia (20-4) 404 – 11
To be an elite program, teams must beat their lessers on their home court, and that’s exactly what West Virginia didn’t do against DePaul. It would be unwise to underestimate Villanova, or the same thing could happen again.
13. Duke (19-7) 426 – 12
So Duke loses to the number five team and West Virginia loses to an unranked team, and the Blue Devils fall behind the Mountaineers? Isn’t Duke supposed to lose to the better teams? The only bad loss, by the way, was at Penn State.
14. Notre Dame (20-5) 338 – 16
A solid win at Syracuse sets the stage for Notre Dame’s visit to Rutgers – and though the Irish will find it very hard to win in Piscataway, the game should be excellent preparation for what may be a long postseason run.
15. Kansas State (18-6) 323 -- 17
That’s 13 out of the last 14 for the Wildcats, who can settle all doubts about their legitimacy with a home win over Oklahoma Wednesday. The last big home test, though, didn’t work out so well: Baylor 63, Kansas State 49.
16. George Washington (20-5) 291 – 13
St. Bonaventure? UNLV? Top 25 teams can’t lose to this level of opposition, which leads to the conclusion that the Colonials aren’t really as good as advertised – and neither is the A-10.
17. Oklahoma State (20-4) 268 – 15
There’s no margin for error in the Big 12. After surviving Texas Tech on the road, the Cowgirls let Iowa State slip out of Stillwater with a five-point win. Texas at home and Oklahoma in Norman could make it 20-6 in a hurry.
18. Utah (21-3) 223 – 20
For those who haven’t been counting, it’s 16 in a row for the Utes, though archrival BYU (even at home) and New Mexico on the road are going to make it tough to make it 18. The Mountain West is much more difficult than casual fans, or poll voters, acknowledge.
19. Texas A&M (18-76) 181 – 19
The Aggies really don’t have a good win (at TCU?), and they lost to Wake Forest. In the confusing Big 12, though, that probably means they’ll sweep Iowa State and Texas this week.
20. Ohio State (19-6) 149 – 22
The Buckeyes are in the top 20, which is a pretty depressing piece of commentary on depth in women’s basketball this year. They should roll through the final four Big 10 games, thanks to marvelous freshman Jantel Lavender, but they’re really not that good.
21. Pittsburgh (18-7) 125 – 18
Speaking of sad commentaries, the Panthers have lost four of five – and are still 21st in the nation. Surely there are 25 teams who are playing better right now? Please, voters: If Pitt loses to Marquette or West Virginia, send the Panthers away.
22. Georgia (19-7) 116 – 24
The Bulldogs deserve some credit for beating a decent Florida team by 19, even at home, but it will be a lot more impressive if they beat Auburn Sunday. After all, the Tigers won by 30 the first time around.
23. Marist (25-2) 83 – 25
No one really expected the Red Foxes to lose last week, and the odds of St. Peter’s and Manhattan turning the trick this week are pretty low as well. St. Peter’s, though, is 17-9, and Marist must travel.
24. Syracuse (19-5) 72 – 23
The Orange will get their 20th win this week, and maybe their 21st. And there’s a very good chance they’ll finish with 25. Simply amazing ...
25. Texas El Paso (21-2) 61 – NR
The Miners haven’t lost since Dec. 1, and though they haven’t beaten anyone of consequence (best win is at 19-6 SMU and the strength of schedule is 90), that’s a long time to go without losing. Southern Mississippi might be a tough hurdle, though.
Dropped out: No. 21 Wyoming
Beating hapless Air Force by 28 rightfully didn’t impress anyone after TCU handed the Cowgirls their third loss in four games. It may be a while before Wyoming gets back in the rankings.
Others receiving votes: Vanderbilt (19-7) 59; Wyoming 59; Virginia (19-7) 29; Liberty (23-2) 27; Hartford (19-5) 17; DePaul (17-7) 15; Auburn (18-7) 14; Illinois State (20-3) 13; Texas (16-9) 13; Western Kentucky (19-7) 11; Iowa (18-8) 8; Arizona State (16-9) 5; Georgia Tech (19-7) 5; Louisville (18-7) 4; Nebraska (17-8) 4; Wisconsin-Green Bay (20-4) 3; Middle Tennessee (16-10) 1; Minnesota (18-9) 1; TCU (16-9) 1.
The voters have it right with Vanderbilt – if the Commodores beat Arkansas in Fayetteville, they should move into the top 25 .
The USA TODAY/ESPN Board of Coaches is made up of 31 head coaches
at Division I institutions. All are members of the Women's Basketball
Coaches Association. The board for the 2007-08 season: Agnus
Berenato, Pittsburgh; Pam Borton, Minnesota; Brian Boyer, Arkansas State; Beth Burns, San Diego State; Debra Clark, Florida A&M; Beth
Couture, Butler; Leslie Crane, Western Illinois; Dana Eikenberg,
Southern Illinois; Tricia Fabbri, Quinnipiac; Sharon Fanning,
Mississippi State; Brian Giorgis, Marist; Julie Goodenough,
Charleston Southern; Kellie Harper, Western Carolina; Mary Hegarty,
Long Beach State; Nate Kilbert, Mississippi Valley State; Melissa
McFerrin, American; Kevin McGuff, Xavier; Tina Martin, Delaware; Curt
Miller, Bowling Green; Dan Muscatell, Sacramento State; Paul Nixon,
Columbia; Rick Reeves, Gardner-Webb; Lee Ann Riley, Stephen F.
Austin; Jennifer Rizzotti, Hartford; Rhonda Rompola, Southern
Methodist; Julie Rousseau, Pepperdine; Brady Sallee, Eastern
Illinois; Cindy Stein, Missouri; LaVonda Wagner, Oregon State; Adrian
Wiggins, Fresno State; Kay Yow, North Carolina State.
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