South Carolina women remain atop the rankings while Gonzaga men fall
The GIST: Last week’s mayhem made Monday’s Top 25 lists nearly unrecognizable from the previous polls — and they don’t even account for the four upsets that went down on the men’s court last night. Amidst the ongoing chaos, here’s how the rankings have been movin’ and shakin’.
Upsets rocked five Top-10 women’s teams: The top of the poll was a bloodbath with last week’s Nos. 2, 4, 7, 8, and 10 all suffering losses. Then–No. 7 LSU and then–No. 4 Baylor took the hardest hits with Ls to unranked Auburn and Iowa State, respectively. Baylor’s eight-spot drop was extra painful — it sent the Bears out of the Top 10 for the first time since Thanksgiving.
UConn’s back, baby: Even another injury can’t keep the behemoth of the women’s game down. The No. 9 Huskies have destroyed every opponent since their December 3rd loss to then–No. 10 Texas, clawing their way back into the Top 10 on Monday following an eight-week absence.
- UConn’s men also benefited from the pandemonium: Surviving the weekend was all they had to do to claim the poll’s top spot for the first time since 2009.
Gonzaga made the wrong kind of history: The perennial men’s powerhouse is floundering this season, falling to Santa Clara for the first time in 13 years last week — a loss that killed their eight-year run in the Top 25 on Monday. At this rate, their 24-year tradition of March Madness berths could be next. Yikes.
South Carolina women stay steady at the top: Amidst the poll chaos, the Gamecocks are cool as cucumbers, holding strong at No. 1 for the ninth straight week. And thanks to an upset in LA’s crosstown showdown on Sunday, they now stand alone as the only undefeated Division I (DI) team — women’s or men’s — earning them a visit from the nation’s MVP.
