Kentucky women stuck in holding pattern in AP Top 25
The University of Kentucky women’s basketball team will have numerous opportunities to prove its mettle once Southeastern Conference play begins on Jan. 3.
For now, the Wildcats are rolling through the schedule presented them with destructive aplomb.
Kentucky (12-1) won its two games last week — over Western Carolina and Murray State — by an average of 49.5 points, but that didn’t move the needle with The Associated Press voters, who ranked the Wildcats No. 18 for the third week in a row.
Kentucky’s lone defeat remains its 80-75 loss to No. 3 Louisville on Dec. 9, the only currently ranked Top 25 foe the Wildcats have faced this season.
UK’s lack of schedule strength is about to change in a big way. Four teams Kentucky will face in SEC play were ranked in the latest poll, which came out Monday — No. 8 Mississippi State, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 23 Texas A&M and No. 25 South Carolina.
After opening league action Jan. 3 at home against Vanderbilt, Kentucky visits Mississippi State on Jan. 6 and Tennessee on Jan. 10. Later in the season come home-and-home matchups with Texas A&M and South Carolina.
UConn remained No. 1 in this week’s poll, followed by Notre Dame, Louisville, Maryland and Oregon.
Women’s AP Top 25
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ women’s college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Dec. 23, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last week’s ranking:
| | Record | Pts | Prv |
1. UConn (31) | 11-0 | 775 | 1 |
2. Notre Dame | 11-1 | 740 | 2 |
3. Louisville | 12-0 | 714 | 3 |
4. Maryland | 11-0 | 647 | 5 |
5. Oregon | 11-1 | 642 | 7 |
6. Stanford | 9-1 | 618 | 8 |
7. Baylor | 8-1 | 588 | 6 |
8. Mississippi St. | 11-1 | 584 | 4 |
9. N.C. State | 12-0 | 524 | 10 |
10. Tennessee | 9-1 | 493 | 9 |
11. Oregon St. | 9-2 | 446 | 11 |
12. Minnesota | 11-0 | 399 | 13 |
13. Texas | 9-2 | 394 | 12 |
14. California | 9-1 | 377 | 14 |
15. Syracuse | 11-2 | 332 | 15 |
16. Iowa | 9-2 | 302 | 16 |
17. Arizona St. | 9-2 | 241 | 17 |
18. Kentucky | 12-1 | 233 | 18 |
19. DePaul | 9-3 | 194 | 20 |
20. Gonzaga | 11-1 | 163 | 21 |
21. Michigan St. | 10-1 | 152 | 22 |
22. Marquette | 9-3 | 142 | 19 |
23. Texas A&M | 10-2 | 127 | 23 |
24. Miami | 11-2 | 79 | 24 |
25. South Carolina | 7-4 | 59 | 25 |
Others receiving votes: Iowa St. 31, Virginia Tech 28, Florida St. 25, Utah 11, South Dakota 7, Indiana 6, Southern Cal 1, West Virginia 1.