SoCal should be up there too with the win over Ohio State, and there are quite a few teams I'd put over Texas at this point, but I like your list. Where do you think we'll drop to?
Just saw the ESPN power rankings and Sc was number one and Iowa was number two. We'll see if that holds in the polls.
1. South Carolina Gamecocks (2-0)
This week:
vs.
Clemson (Thursday)
We've talked about how well the Gamecocks scored in their first two games, but we should mention rebounding, too. They won the board battle 53-33 vs. Maryland, with
Ashlyn Watkins and
Chloe Kitts combining for 21 rebounds. Against Notre Dame, South Carolina won 47-44 on the boards behind
Kamilla Cardoso's 15. Last season, the Gamecocks ranked second in Division I and first among Power 5 teams in averaging 49.4 rebounds. That's a high bar for this year's team to shoot for, but this group appears to have a lot of confidence.
2. Iowa Hawkeyes (3-0)
This week:
vs.
Kansas State (Thursday), vs.
Drake (Sunday)
ESPN analyst Andraya Carter put it best regarding an early assessment of last season's national championship game teams. Long-term, LSU appears to have more pieces, she said, but right now Iowa has more glue. That's from three starting guards playing their fourth season together: Clark and super seniors
Gabbie Marshall and
Kate Martin. Iowa's post play is the perceived question mark, but sophomore
Hannah Stuelke is averaging 16.7 PPG and 6.7 RPG.
Let's see how the Hawkeyes fare this week against K-State, which beat Iowa last season, and Drake, which just defeated Iowa State on Sunday.
3. UCLA Bruins (3-0)
This week:
vs.
Princeton (Friday)
The Bruins have opened with three blowouts, and there have been good things in all those games -- especially from sophomores
Lauren Betts, the transfer from Stanford averaging 18.7 PPG and 11.0 RPG,
Gabriela Jaquez (18.7 PPG, 9.0 RPG) and
Kiki Rice (12 PPG, 8.0 APG).
4. Utah Utes (2-0)
This week:
at
Baylor (Tuesday), at Great Alaska Shootout vs. Alaska Anchorage (Saturday) and
Eastern Kentucky/
UAB (Sunday)
The Utes want to build on last season, when they were so close to making the Elite Eight but fell by three points in the regional semifinals to eventual national champion LSU. Feasting on two cupcakes to open this season while scoring a combined 212 points doesn't tell us much about the Utes. The matchup against Baylor could.
5. LSU Tigers (2-1)
This week:
vs.
Kent State (Tuesday), at
SE Louisiana (Friday)
Coach Kim Mulkey didn't seem especially perturbed by the Tigers' opening loss to Colorado because it wasn't a surprise to her. She knew it would take time for LSU to adjust to the loss of graduated point guard Alexis Morris, and the matchup with an experienced Buffs team would expose that. It also takes early pressure off the Tigers, who have team cohesion to work on.
6. UConn Huskies (1-1)
This week:
vs. Maryland (Thursday), at
Minnesota (Sunday)
When UConn beat NC State in the 2022 Elite Eight instant classic, guard
Paige Bueckers had 27 points. The comeback kid (she missed last season with an ACL injury) matched that total in Sunday's loss to the Wolfpack. But overall, coach Geno Auriemma was displeased with UConn's offense and defense. That said, these kinds of opponents will help the Huskies, whose nonconference schedule is stacked with good tests.
7. Stanford Cardinal (2-0)
This week:
vs.
Cal Poly (Thursday), vs.
Duke (Sunday)
Depressing as it is to think of the Pac-12's impending breakup, at least it appears the conference is going out at its best. This opening week, Pac-12 teams started a remarkable 28-0. The Cardinal were No. 15 in the preseason poll. That was before they crushed visiting No. 9
Indiana 96-64 on Sunday behind double-doubles from forwards
Cameron Brink and
Kiki Iriafen, who combined for 40 points and 28 rebounds.
8. Colorado Buffaloes (3-0)
This week:
at
SMU
The Buffs didn't have a letdown after their big win over LSU in Las Vegas. They dominated Le Moyne 97-38, and then won 86-75 over
Oklahoma State, which made 15 3-pointers. Colorado will be back in the Big 12 next season, but the Buffs currently are adding to the Pac-12's last hurrah.
9. NC State Wolfpack (2-0)
This week:
vs.
Elon (Wednesday), vs.
Rhode Island (Sunday)
Saniya Rivers won the 2022 NCAA title with South Carolina against UConn as a freshman, then transferred to NC State. Last season, she had five points for the Wolfpack in a loss to UConn. Sunday, she was spectacular in NC State's upset of the Huskies, with 33 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocked shots.
A note from the Pack's bench Sunday: Freshman
Maddie Cox scored her first college points against UConn. Her older sister, Lauren Cox, was an All-American and national champion at Baylor.
10. Virginia Tech Hokies (1-1)
This week:
vs.
Houston Christian (Thursday)
The Hokies lost 80-76 Thursday to Iowa in the first of two nonconference matchups with fellow 2023 Final Four teams. They will travel to LSU later this month. Virginia Tech had the same kind of hard time guarding Caitlin Clark that most teams do. But the Hokies' point guard,
Georgia Amoore, put on a show, too. She had 31 points and will be a handful for foes to slow down.
11. Baylor Bears (1-0)
This week:
vs. Utah (Tuesday), vs.
Harvard (Sunday)
The Bears cruised in their opening 85-53 win over
Southern, notable for the return of
Dre'Una Edwards (9 of 10 shooting for 20 points). The senior forward transferred to Baylor from Kentucky last season but had to sit out
because of eligibility issues.
Aijha Blackwell is also back for the Bears after being limited to eight games last season because of injury.
12. Texas Longhorns (2-0)
This week:
vs.
UT Arlington (Tuesday), vs.
Louisiana Tech (Sunday)
Keep an eye on 6-foot-4 forward
Amina Muhammad, who was on the Big 12's all-freshman team last season. She is averaging 14.0 PPG and 10.5 RPG for a Longhorns team that has a lot of size and depth.
13. Maryland Terrapins (1-1)
This week:
at UConn (Thursday), vs.
Syracuse (Sunday)
After defeating Harvard in its opener, Maryland was overwhelmed by South Carolina in Sunday's loss. The Terps can look at the first and third quarters, when they played the Gamecocks close, for inspiration before taking on UConn this week.
14. USC Trojans (2-0)
This week:
vs. Le Moyne (Monday)
It was a great opening week for the Trojans. Superstar freshman
JuJu Watkins had 32 points in an upset of
Ohio State and then 18 in beating mid-major power
Florida Gulf Coast. And
Aaliyah Gayles made her college debut against FGCU on Friday after being seriously injured in an April 2022 shooting.
15. Florida State Seminoles (2-0)
This week:
at
Florida (Friday), vs.
South Alabama (Sunday)
After a season-opening win against Florida Southern, the Seminoles got a big nonconference feather in their cap with a victory over
Tennessee.
Ta'Niya Latson is back to build on her national freshman of the year season, and she has lots of help at guard. The perimeter-based Seminoles are going to be challenging to defend.
16. Ohio State Buckeyes (1-1)
This week:
vs.
Boston College (Thursday)
The Buckeyes didn't get the start they hoped for with the loss to USC. But it was great for Ohio State to see guard
Jacy Sheldon looking strong with 28 points and five steals against the Trojans. She was hampered by injury last season and played just 13 games. A healthy Sheldon will be a big boost for the Buckeyes.