SEC Women’s Basketball Takes Three of Top Five Spots in AP Poll

The Southeastern Conference continued to be heavily represented in the women’s basketball AP Poll this week.  

The league has three teams in the top 5 overall and five in the top 10. Oklahoma, which is next on the list for the Gators, snuck into the front 10 this week. 

The SEC remained solid, but was not responsible for any of the biggest climbs this week. However, one jumped just enough to enter an elite group. 

No. 5 Vanderbilt

After topping Kentucky 84-83 on the road this week, the Commodores (22-2, 8-2) have established themselves as one of the premier teams in the country.

“You get past South Carolina, Texas, Vanderbilt and LSU, and I would say there’s a pretty good gap between those four and then the next five or six,” said Jeff Linder, an AP Poll voter and sportswriter at The Gazette. 

Vanderbilt finished its non-conference schedule undefeated and with a target on its back coming into SEC play. It wasn’t rattled by the rigor of conference play early on, taking its first six conference games. But it dropped back-to-back conference matchups to then-No. 2 South Carolina and then-No. 17 Ole Miss to finish out January, and has looked to get back on the climb since.

Since the blip, the Commodores have been trending upward, enough to place them in the top five. However, true tests are on the way as No. 10 Oklahoma and No. 4 Texas are on the horizon. 

No. 11 Duke

Few teams have found more success in conference play than Duke (18-6, 13-0). But it has not been without hitches. 

Despite being consistently tested throughout the season, the Blue Devils have responded and been able to hold strong in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Most notably, they scraped by with a 59-58 win over No. 9 Louisville on Thursday, their toughest matchup to date.

“The win over Louisville was huge,” Linder said. “I think they are about where they belong right now.” 

They eye North Carolina next on the schedule, a team that has also been on the climb recently. 

No. 21 North Carolina

Up four places, UNC (20-5, 9-3) is another team whose momentum has been hard to slow.

“Good week for them and they keep rising,” Linder said. “I’ve got them at 18th.”

The Tar Heels’ last loss was to Notre Dame on the road Jan. 11, and since they have seemed unstoppable. They’ve won seven-straight games, including some by incredible margins.

UNC’s last game was an 84-56 win over Wake Forest on Sunday, its second near-30-point blowout in the past month following the 82-55 victory against Florida State. 

“Seven in a row,” Tar Heels coach Courtney Banghart said after the Wake Forest win. “Really, really tough week with three games in a row. Hard to prep.”

Category: College Baseball, Gator Sports, Gators Women's Basketball, Women's College Basketball