There might be more questions than answers after the first month of the season, but the current parity in women's college basketball has given us great entertainment. The CBS Sports Power Rankings saw a lot of movement this week, and the December schedule figures to keep things volatile.
UCLA stayed atop, but the Bruins were reminded that no one can get too comfortable because the first half of their game against Hawaii on Sunday was looking like a potential upset. UConn remains No. 2, but the Huskies are about to get tested with four currently-ranked opponents this month.
Notre Dame was our No. 3 team last week after a convincing win over USC, but the Fighting Irish slipped to No. 10 following back-to-back losses to ranked TCU and unranked Utah. Not many teams would stay in the top 10 after losing two straight games, but TCU is currently one of the hottest programs in the nation, while Utah has the talent and depth to be considered a dark horse.
The Horned Frogs climbed 10 spots to No. 7, but Sedona Prince, Hailey Van Lith and the rest of Mark Campbell's roster have a huge challenge ahead of them on Dec. 8 against South Carolina. Anyone facing the Gamecocks any time soon has good reason to be nervous. After UCLA snapped South Carolina's 43-game winning streak on Nov. 24, Dawn Staley's team showed zero mercy while crushing a very good Iowa State 76-36 on Thanksgiving. And that was good enough for the Gamecocks to earn the No. 3 spot this week.
It is important to note that Michigan almost pulled off an upset over South Carolina during their season opener, and since then the Wolverines have won seven straight games. Staying the course has helped them finally enter our rankings at No. 23.
Meanwhile, NC State was a complicated decision. The Wolfpack holds a 4-3 record, but strength of schedule was taken into consideration when deciding to keep them in the top 25. Those three losses happened against South Carolina, TCU -- which was only a three-point loss -- and LSU. If they want to keep their spot next week, they will have to bounce back with a win against Ole Miss on Thursday.
Here are the official CBS Sports women's college basketball Power Rankings:
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| Last week: 16 | |
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| Last week: NR | |
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| Last week: 20 | |
First five out: Michigan State, Mississippi State, Utah, Stanford, Florida State
