Women’s College Basketball standings, Week 10: LSU in top 5, Illinois in top 25

The conference chaos continued into Week 10, causing much movement in the women’s college basketball standings.

For the first time since November 2000, Illinois women’s basketball is ranked. The Illini moved up to No. 24 this week, despite losing to No. 3 Ohio State. At 14-3, the Illini has already doubled their win count from last season.

Ohio State remained No. 3 after the win, behind South Carolina and Stanford. The Gamecocks held first place for the 29th consecutive week.

UConn moved up to fourth place, despite missing a game this week due to injury. The Huskies’ game against DePaul was postponed because UConn only had six players available.

LSU continued its ascent, reaching the top 5 for the first time this season. The Tigers got off to a 16-0 record. LSU, South Carolina and Ohio State are the last undefeated teams.

Notre Dame has dropped three places and finds itself in seventh place after a loss to North Carolina (22nd). UCLA and Maryland both moved up four spots to eighth and ninth, respectively. UCLA got a win over rival USC. Maryland made the top 10 for the first time this year after wins over Rutgers and Michigan State.

Utah suffered its first loss of the season and fell two spots to 10th. The North Carolina State team went 1-1 on the week and fell to 11. The Wolfpacks lost to Boston College, their second loss to an unranked opponent in as many weeks.

Iowa moved up four places to 12th after beating Michigan (14th). The Wolverines dropped to 17th after that loss. Virginia Tech dropped to 13th after a loss to Miami. Arizona moved up to 14th after beating Oregon (18th). The Ducks dropped to 21st after the loss.

Iowa State dropped four spots to 15th after losing to Oklahoma (17th). Despite the win, Oklahoma fell to 19th due to a loss to Baylor (23rd). The Bears jumped five spots to 18th after beating Oklahoma and Kansas (21st).

Duke continued his rise in the standings, moving up to 16th after a win over Wake Forest.

Gonzaga remained at no. 20. The Zags have two wins this week and are 16-2. North Carolina ended its slide with a win over Notre Dame and remains in 22nd place. Kansas, Illinois and Villanova round out the rankings.

Complete the Women’s College Basketball Leaderboards, Week 10

1. Caroline du Sud (16-0) (PREV : 1)
2. Stanford (16-1) (PREVIOUS : 2)
3. Ohio State (17-0) (PREV: 3)
4. UConn (13-2) (PREV : 5)
5. LSU (16-0) (PREV : 7)
6. Indiana (14-1) (PREV : 6)
7. Madonna (12-2) (PREV: 4)
8. UCLA (14-2) (PREVIOUS: 12)
9. Maryland (13-3) (PREVIOUS: 13)
10. Utah (14-1) (PREV : 8)
11. NC status (13-3) (PREV : 10)
12. Iowa (12-4) (PREVIOUS: 16)
13. Virginia Tech (13-3) (PREVIOUS: 9)
14. Arizona (14-2) (PREVIOUS: 15)
15. Iowa State (10-3) (PREV : 11)
16. Duke (14-1) (PREV: 19)
17. Michigan (13-3) (PREVIOUS : 14)
18. Baylor (12-3) (PREV: 23)
19. Oklahoma (12-2) (PREV: 17)
20. Gonzaga (16-2) (PREV : 20)
21. Oregon (12-4) (PREV: 18)
22. North Carolina (10-5) (PREV : 22)
23. Kansas (12-2) (PREV : 21)
24. Illinois (14-3) (PREV : NR)
25. Villanova (14-3) (PREV: NR)

Other voters

Arkansas 33, Middle Tennessee 27, St. John’s 22, Miami (FL) 10, South Florida 6, Florida State 5, Seton Hall 5, Creighton 5, Colorado 2, Louisville 1

Matches to note this week

Villanova (25th) @ DePaul, Wednesday, January 11, 8:00 PM (EST)

Villanova faces a tough task in her first game after returning to the top 25. This game features two of the top five scorers in the nation: Maddy Siegrist (#1, 28.5 ppg) and Aneesah Morrow (#4, 26.1 ppg). Both teams are also averaging over 7 shots on goal per game, meaning this match could be very high in points.

Maryland (9th) @ Indiana (6th), Thursday, January 12, 6:30pm (EST)

Maryland travels to the Assembly Hall to face a high scoring Indiana team. The Terrapins have a six-game hitting streak, but they will be tested. Indiana has five double-digit scorers on its roster, compared to Maryland’s three. The Hoosiers are averaging 81.9 points per game, 10 more than Maryland allows.

NC State (11th) @ Florida State, Thursday, January 12, 6:00 PM (EST)

Surprise Watch will be in full action in this game. The Seminoles are 15-3 and led by fabulous freshman Ta’Niya Latson, who is scoring 25.5 points per game. They are also very strong, with the contribution of their entire team. The NC State team is just as deep and has bounced back to health with the returns of Diamond Johnson and Jada Boyd. Florida State’s active perimeter defense (9.4 steals per game) will be a challenge for the Wolfpack.