Tennessee Returns to Top 10 of Women's Top 25; South Carolina Still No. 1

Tennessee is back in the top 10 of The Associated Press top 25 women’s basketball poll for the first time in nearly three years.

The Lady Vols, who moved up two spots to No. 9 on Monday, haven’t been in the top 10 since Dec. 31, 2018.

South Carolina remained a unanimous No. 1, garnering all 30 votes from a national media panel. NC State was second, breaking a tie with UConn. Stanford and Baylor rounded out the top five.

Duke, LSU and Colorado all returned to the rankings this week for the first time in a few years. The Blue Devils, who upset then-No. 9 Iowa in the Big Ten/ACC challenge, joined at No. 19. It’s the first appearance in the top 25 under coach Kara Lawson, who took over the program last season. Duke played just four games in 2020–21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tennessee's Jordan Horston drives to the hoop

Saul Young/News Sentinel/USA TODAY Network

The Blue Devils, who were last ranked on Nov. 1, 2018, are 8–0 this season. LSU (6–1) entered at No. 24 after beating then-No. 14 Iowa State last week. Colorado (8–0) is No. 25, its first appearance since Dec. 26, 2016.

Oregon dropped out of the poll, ending a streak of 80 consecutive weeks ranked dating to the preseason poll in 2017 that was the sixth-longest active streak. Florida State and Florida Gulf Coast also fell out.

Full AP top 25 (as of Dec. 6):

1. South Carolina 
2. NC State
3. UConn
4. Stanford 
5. Baylor
6. Arizona 
7. Louisville 
8. Maryland 
9. Tennessee
10. Indiana
11. Texas 
12. Iowa 
13. Michigan 
14. Kentucky
15. Iowa State
16. BYU 
17. South Florida
18. Texas A&M
19. Duke
20. Ohio State
21. Georgia
22. Notre Dame
23. Oregon State
24. LSU
25. Colorado 

Others receiving votes: Florida Gulf Coast 51, Oregon 48, Florida State 40, North Carolina 32, Georgia Tech 29, UCLA 26, Gonzaga 15, Nebraska 11, Virginia Tech 11, West Virginia 7, Oklahoma 6, DePaul 4, Washington State 4, Missouri 3