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Michael Voepel
March Madness is the big picture of the college basketball season, but the day-to-day challenges of January are key in putting that picture together. Especially in the talent-loaded SEC, which currently has nine AP-ranked teams battling each other for supremacy, while also trying to stave off upset attempts.
One such powerhouse meeting comes Thursday: Texas — coming off its first loss of the season, at LSU — travels to South Carolina (ESPN2, 7 p.m. ET). But these teams have already met this season in a game that didn’t count in the SEC standings. That was in November’s Players Era championship game in Las Vegas, a 66-64 Longhorns victory.
The Gamecocks then avoided consecutive losses by holding off Louisville 79-77 on Dec. 4, and have mostly cruised in their nine games since. The closest victory came by 11 points at Florida on Jan. 4. Standout guard Ta’Niya Latson (ankle sprain) was even out for three games, but returned for Sunday’s 65-43 win at Georgia.
South Carolina has been the dominant force in the SEC for the past decade-plus and is once again projected as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. A win over the Longhorns this week would put the Gamecocks on even firmer ground.
Previous ranking: 1
Next seven days: vs. Villanova (Jan. 15), vs. Notre Dame (Jan. 19)
In victories last week over St. John’s and Creighton, sophomore forward Sarah Strong led the Huskies with a combined 42 points, 16 rebounds, 11 assists and 11 steals. The Huskies have now won 55 consecutive games against Big East opponents. Still, this week could be a little more challenging, as they face the second-best Big East team, Villanova, as well as former Big East rival Notre Dame, which has been in the ACC since 2013-14.
Previous ranking: 4
Next seven days: vs. Texas (Jan. 15), @ Coppin State (Jan. 18)
Ta’Niya Latson played 20 minutes in her return to action Sunday, finishing with 9 points, 3 assists and 3 rebounds. She is expected to be a big factor against Texas, along with center Madina Okot and forward Joyce Edwards. Okot has 13 double-doubles this season, including a combined 29 points and 20 rebounds in last week’s wins over Georgia and Arkansas. Edwards, meanwhile, leads the Gamecocks this season in scoring (20.7 PPG) and steals (1.9 SPG).
Previous ranking: 3
Next seven days: @ Minnesota (Jan. 14), vs. Maryland (Jan. 18)
Center Lauren Betts has led the team in scoring and rebounding in each of the past four games, with 18 points and 10 rebounds in last week’s 83-61 win over Nebraska. The Bruins had six players score in double figures against the Huskers and continued to rule the boards (43-28 advantage).
Previous ranking: 2
Next seven days: @ South Carolina (Jan. 15), vs. Texas A&M (Jan. 18)
After a 97-36 blowout of Auburn on Thursday, the Longhorns had a rough Sunday at LSU. Their offense was not in sync in the first three quarters, resulting in point guard Rori Harmon’s benching in the fourth. After the 70-65 loss to the Tigers, coach Vic Schaefer criticized the SEC for making his team play at LSU and at South Carolina back-to-back. However, Texas is still projected as an NCAA tournament No. 1 seed, and perhaps needed a loss to refocus.
1:14
Highlight: No. 12 LSU upsets No. 2 Texas in fourth-quarter thriller
Mikaylah Willliams paces the offense with 20 points and seven rebounds as the Tigers break the Longhorns’ win streak with a 70-65 victory.
Previous ranking: 6
Next seven days: @ Mississippi State (Jan. 15), vs. Michigan in Newark, New Jersey (Jan. 19)
The Commodores have matched the season-best start of the 1992-93 Vandy team, which advanced to the women’s Final Four. This past week, they defeated Missouri 99-68 and Texas A&M 91-51 behind a combined 45 points from Mikayla Blakes and 24 rebounds from Sacha Washington. Vanderbilt will step away from SEC play Monday for a top-10 matchup against Michigan in the Coretta Scott King Classic.
Previous ranking: 8
Next seven days: @ Notre Dame (Jan. 15), @ NC State (Jan. 18)
The Cardinals are 6-0 in the ACC, along with Duke. They beat Miami 77-68 and Pittsburgh 86-46 last week and continue to show that having so many similar threats offensively makes them really hard to guard. Their most challenging ACC stretch is coming up, though, with four of their next five on the road.
Previous ranking: 7
Next seven days: vs. Florida (Jan. 15), @ Mississippi State (Jan. 18)
The Wildcats had by far their worst offensive game of the season in Thursday’s 64-51 loss at Alabama, in which they shot 31% from the field. But they rallied to beat Oklahoma 63-57 on Sunday, holding the Sooners scoreless for the last four minutes of the game. Kentucky guard Tonie Morgan had a combined 36 points, 17 rebounds and 9 assists in those games.
Previous ranking: 9
Next seven days: @ Oklahoma (Jan. 18)
After starting SEC play 0-2, the Tigers roared back last week with an 80-59 win at Georgia and then the upset of visiting Texas. The latter is LSU’s signature win so far this season, led by Mikaylah Williams’ 20 points. Rebounding was a problem for LSU in its SEC-opening losses to Kentucky and Vanderbilt, but the Tigers outrebounded the Bulldogs and Longhorns 87-70 combined.
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Mikaylah Williams details LSU’s resilience in win over Texas
Williams recaps her 20-point performance as she describes how the No. 12 Tigers were able to stay focused in the fourth quarter to secure the upset over the No. 2 Longhorns.
Previous ranking: 10
Next seven days: @ West Virginia (Jan. 14), vs. Arizona (Jan. 17), vs. Ohio State in Newark, New Jersey (Jan. 19)
The Frogs are one defensive stop away from being unbeaten. On Jan. 3, they led Utah late but gave up the tying 3-pointer with 12 seconds left, then fell in overtime. But that loss seemed to motivate TCU last week, with victories against Oklahoma State (69-61) and Arizona State (77-46) in which the Frogs’ defense dominated again. The next week provides some big challenges to see whether they can keep it up, including a nonconference showdown with Ohio State in the Coretta Scott King Classic.
Previous ranking: 15
Next seven days: vs. Kansas State (Jan. 17)
It was a huge week for the Lady Raiders, who battled to a gritty win at West Virginia, defeated a Cincinnati team that had just upset Iowa State, and then didn’t overlook Houston. The scores were remarkably similar (71-66, 71-60, 71-59) with the same leading scorer: guard Bailey Maupin, who totaled 63 points. The team’s 19 consecutive wins ties a Texas Tech record set by the 1992-93 squad that won the NCAA title. That streak started in late January and went through the national championship game.
Previous ranking: 12
Next seven days: vs. Illinois (Jan. 15), vs. Vanderbilt in Newark, New Jersey (Jan. 19)
The Wolverines hit the century mark in scoring for the fifth time this season — and second against a Big Ten foe — with their 105-65 victory over Penn State last week. They followed that with an 86-60 win over Wisconsin. But next comes two games against ranked opponents, including a big nonconference meeting with Vanderbilt in the Coretta Scott King Classic that could have long-range NCAA tournament implications.
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Previous ranking: NR
Next seven days: @@ Georgia (Jan. 18)
The Rebels got their best win of the season Thursday: 74-69 at then-No. 5 Oklahoma. They then crushed in-state rival Mississippi State 93-68 on Sunday, and are back in the Power Rankings. Forward Cotie McMahon had a combined 43 points in those wins. Considering Ole Miss also nearly upset Texas the week before, falling 67-64 on the road, the Rebels are off to a strong start in SEC play.
Previous ranking: 5
Next seven days: vs. LSU (Jan. 18)
Some stretches in the SEC are brutal, and the Sooners are in one now. Their 13-game winning streak ended with their 74-69 loss at home to Ole Miss last week, followed by a 63-57 loss at Kentucky as the Wildcats stymied Oklahoma’s high-scoring offense. Over the next nine days, the Sooners face LSU and South Carolina, so they will need to correct the mistakes that hampered their scoring the past two games.
Previous ranking: NR
Next seven days: vs. Penn State (Jan. 14), vs. TCU in Newark, New Jersey (Jan. 19)
The Buckeyes move into the Power Rankings after their best week of the season, winning at Illinois (78-69) and Maryland (89-76). Ohio State lost McMahon, who transferred after three years to Ole Miss, but guard Jaloni Cambridge is soaring in her sophomore season. She had a combined 69 points and 14 assists against the Illini and Terps. A nonconference win over TCU might push Ohio State into the top 10.
Previous ranking: 14
Next seven days: vs. Oregon (Jan. 15), vs. Michigan State (Jan. 18)
The Hawkeyes looked shaky at times recently against two teams that currently are a combined 1-11 in Big Ten play. After a 67-58 win Jan. 5 at Northwestern, Iowa pulled it out of the fire at Indiana on Sunday, winning 56-53 after trailing by 16 at halftime. The Hawkeyes are tied atop the Big Ten at 5-0, but they’re about to face four ranked foes in their next six games, including UCLA.
Previous ranking: 16
Next seven days: @ Utah (Jan. 14), @ BYU (Jan. 17)
Last week could have been tricky for Baylor after getting two big road wins previously at Oklahoma State and Iowa State. But the Bears were able to stay on the right path, beating Colorado 56-52 and Kansas 79-64. They face the challenge of the Utah road trip for two games this week. But senior forward Darianna Littlepage-Buggs is playing well, with double-doubles in her past three games.
Moved in: Ole Miss Rebels, Ohio State Buckeyes
Dropped out: Maryland Terrapins, Iowa State Cyclones
