Women's Top 25 Round-Up: Ohio State Stunner vs. Iowa Shakes Up Landscape
Women's Top 25 Round-Up: Ohio State Stunner vs. Iowa Shakes Up Landscape
Ohio State snapped Iowa's winning streak to shake up both the Big Ten and the AP Top 25 as a season of chaos continues.
Cotie McMahon's "out-of-bound experience" punctuated a record-setting day for Ohio State basketball.
In front of a record crowd of 18,660 — most ever at Ohio State's Schottenstein Center, and the most for an indoor game anywhere in women's basketball this season — McMahon scored a hoop with the harm down the stretch in the Buckeyes' 100-92 defeat of then-No. 2 ranked Iowa.
McMahon described the play as "LeBron stuff" in the postgame press conference. And with her going for 33 points and 12 rebounds, while Iowa All-American Caitlin Clark posted 45 points, the Buckeyes-Hawkeyes showdown had the feeling of the classic NBA Finals meetings between LeBron James and Stephen Curry.
Ohio State made the biggest jump in the Jan. 22 AP Top 25 with the win, climbing from No. 18 to No. 12.
No. 2 has proven to be dangerous lately. UCLA fell from the second spot in the Top 25 with a Jan. 14 loss at rival USC, opening the ranking for Iowa before its defeat at Ohio. The Hawkeyes' loss meant UCLA reclaimed No. 2 on the strength of a road win over No. 3 Colorado on Friday.
Any elation the Bruins might have experienced from returning to No. 2 only lasted hours before Utah scored its first win in program history against a team ranked second in the AP Poll. The Utes' 91-84, overtime win on Monday opened a week offering more chaos in what's already been a wild season.
The Utes climbed four spots to No. 16, just behind Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish also gained four places in the poll while riding a four-game winning streak ahead of a Top 25 showdown on Thursday against Syracuse.
Notre Dame's home date with the No. 22 Orange is the first of two Top 25 matchups for the Irish in the coming week. A non-conference trip to UConn on Saturday looms, as the Huskies continued their steady push back up the poll after a rocky start.
UConn checks in at No. 8, leading the way among BIG EAST teams. Creighton holds steady at No. 21, looking to extend its current winning streak to five games this week when it faces Georgetown.
Marquette fell out of the Top 25, but is the leading vote-getter just beyond the poll after dropping a heartbreaker last week against Villanova. The Golden Eagles open the week with a prime opportunity to get back into the national spotlight, though, hosting UConn on Tuesday night.
Headlining the week in ranked matchups, the nation's last remaining undefeated team and No. 1 South Carolina faces reigning national champion LSU in one of the most anticipated matchups of the season.
The Gamecocks have faced no real resistance in Southeastern Conference play, beating all comers thus far by at least 19 points. The last time out, Sunday vs. Texas A&M, South Carolina got double-doubles from both Kamilla Cardoso and Chloe Kitts in a 99-64 romp.
Thursday's pairing of the last two national championship winners promises to be a battle, however. LSU is one team able to match South Carolina's depth, with the Tigers featuring five scorers currently in the lineup averaging 11.6 points or more per game.
LSU can reassert itself as the team to beat for 2024 if it can capitalize on what's sure to be a raucous home-court environment.
Jan. 22 Women's AP Top 25
1. South Carolina
Record: 17-0
Previous; No. 1
2. UCLA
Record: 15-2* (played on Monday after the poll was released and lost to Utah)
Previous: No. 5
3. Colorado
Record: 16-2
Previous: No. 3
4. Kansas State
Record: 18-1
Previous: No. 7
5. Iowa
Record: 18-2
Previous: No. 2
6. Stanford
Record: 17-2
Previous: No. 8
7. North Carolina State
Record: 17-2
Previous: No. 4
8. UConn
Record: 16-3
Previous: No. 9
9. LSU
Record: 18-2
Previous: No. 10
10. Texas
Record: 18-2
Previous: No. 11
11. USC
Record: 13-3
Previous: No. 6
12. Ohio State
Record: 15-3
Previous: No. 18
13. Baylor
Record: 15-2
Previous: No. 12
14. Indiana
Record: 16-2
Previous: No. 16
15. Notre Dame
Record: 14-3
Previous: No. 19
16. Utah
Record: 13-5
Previous: No. 20
17. Gonzaga
Record: 18-2
Previous: No. 17
18. Louisville
Record: 16-3
Previous: No. 13
19. Virginia Tech
Record: 14-4
Previous: No. 14
20. North Carolina
Record: 14-5
Previous: No. 23
21. Creighton
Record: 14-3
Previous: No. 21
22. Syracuse
Record: 16-2
Previous: Not Ranked
23. Florida State
Record: 14-6
Previous: No. 15
24. West Virginia
Record: 16-2
Previous: Not Ranked
25. Oregon State
Record: 15-3
Previous: Not Ranked