Defending national champions UConn have been voted No 1 in the Associated Press top 25 women's basketball preseason poll, released on Tuesday. The Huskies received 27 of 31 first-place votes from a national media panel, ahead of last season's runners-up South Carolina, who secured the remaining four first-place votes. It is the 13th time UConn have topped the preseason poll since 1995 and the first since 2017.
South Carolina, UCLA, Texas and LSU round out the top five, with Oklahoma at No 6 – their highest preseason ranking since 2008. Duke, Tennessee, NC State and Maryland complete the top ten. The top four teams are identical to last season's final poll, a first in the 50-year history of the women's rankings.
UConn coach Geno Auriemma said the ranking is a confidence builder but warned against complacency. 'We're not out here to prove that we're defending national champions or preseason number one... We don't want to get caught in that trap,' he said. Eight of the previous 12 times UConn were picked first, they won the national title.
The Southeastern Conference leads all conferences with eight ranked teams, including five in the top ten. The Big Ten has six, the ACC five, and the Big 12 four. Notable entries include Michigan at No 13 – their highest preseason ranking since 2021 – and No 19 Vanderbilt, ranked in the preseason for the first time since 2012. No 24 Richmond appear in the top 25 for the first time in school history.
