MiLaysia Fulwiley Can't Get LSU Past South Carolina in First NCAA AP Top 25 Rankings

The first edition of the NCAA AP Women's Basketball top 25 rankings have been released.

Mar 21, 2025; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard MiLaysia Fulwiley (12) brings the ball up court against the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles during the first half at Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

While there were plenty of elite women's college basketball players who entered the NCAA transfer portal after the 2025-26 season, none made more headlines than former South Carolina Gamecocks star guard MiLaysia Fulwiley doing so.

There was a lot of speculation that Fulwiley might not have been content with her role coming off of Dawn Staley's bench last season, given that many saw the sophomore as the most talented guard on the Gamecocks' roster. And while it's unknown whether this has any impact on Fulwiley's decision to leave, the bottom line is that she's no longer with South Carolina.

Fulwiley ended up transferring to the LSU Tigers, which is one of South Carolina's biggest rivals in the SEC. While it's always fascinating to watch these two teams match up during the regular season, their February 14, 2026, showdown in Baton Rouge is going to be even more exciting because of Fulwiley's new threads.

Apr 4, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard MiLaysia Fulwiley (12) drives to the basket against the Texas Longhorns during the third quarter in a semifinal of the women's 2025 NCAA tournament at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

There's some uncertainty about how Fulwiley will fit in among Mulkey's offense, especially alongside fellow guard Flau'jae Johnson. What's for sure is that this pairing wasn't enough to vault LSU past South Carolina in the AP Top 25 Preseason Women's Basketball Poll, which was released on October 14.

AP Top 25 Preseason Women's Basketball Poll Turns Heads

Several X accounts have released the preseason AP NCAA women's basketball poll, which is as follows:

"1. UConn
2. South Carolina
3. UCLA
4. Texas
5. LSU
6. Oklahoma
7. Duke
8. Tennessee
9. NC State
10. Maryland
11. North Carolina
12. Ole Miss
13. Michigan
14. Iowa State
15. Notre Dame
16. Baylor
17. TCU
18. Southern California
19. Vanderbilt
20. Louisville
21. Iowa
22. Oklahoma State University
23. Michigan State
24. Kentucky (Tie)
24. Richmond (Tie)".

AP's Preseason Women's Basketball Poll 🔥

1. UConn
2. South Carolina
3. UCLA
4. Texas
5. LSU
6. Oklahoma
7. Duke
8. Tennessee
9. NC State
10. Maryland
11. North Carolina
12. Ole Miss
13. Michigan
14. Iowa State
15. Notre Dame
16. Baylor
17. TCU
18. Southern California
19.…

— Women’s Hoops Network (@WomensHoops_USA) October 14, 2025

There's a lot to unpack regarding these rankings. First off, the fact that the defending NCAA champion UConn Huskies are at No. 1 on the list is interesting, if only because they don't have superstar guard Paige Bueckers in their roster any longer, given that she's now in the WNBA.

However, UConn still has star guard Azzi Fudd along with sophomore forward Sarah Strong, who might be the most talented player in all of women's college basketball.

South Carolina still secured their No. 2 spot, despite losing Chloe Kitts for the season because of an ACL tear. LSU took the No. 5 spot behind both UCLA and Texas, who both are returning a lot of elite players.

And the USC Trojans fell all the way to No. 18 in these preseason rankings, which is surely because superstar JuJu Watkins will be missing the entire season with a torn ACL.