The Arizona women’s basketball team dropped one spot in The Associated Press Top 25 released Monday, sliding from No. 17 to No. 18.
The poll results for the Wildcats’ next opponent were more noteworthy.
Utah, which comes to McKale Center on Friday, moved up from No. 7 to No. 4 — the highest ranking in program history.
The Utes (22-2, 12-2 Pac-12) swept the Washington schools last week and have won seven games in a row. The Wildcats (19-6, 9-5) split against Stanford and Cal.
Arizona and Utah met in Salt Lake City on Jan. 15, with the Utes winning 80-79 in a game that featured a controversial ending.
UNLV enters Top 25
UNLV coach Lindy La Rocque was 4 years old the last time the Lady Rebels were ranked in the AP Top 25 women’s basketball poll.
Now the Las Vegas native has the team back in the Top 25 for the first time since 1994: UNLV entered the poll at No. 23 on Monday.
“Obviously it means a lot. When I took the job I had a vision of what this place could be and what it once was,” La Rocque said. “That’s what I remember and I’m trying to put the pieces together to make that come to fruition. This is one of the small milestones that gives you a little bit of joy and you know that you’re doing some things right.”
South Carolina earned the No. 1 ranking for the 34th consecutive week. That is tied for the third-longest run atop the poll with UConn. Only the Huskies (51 weeks) and Louisiana Tech (36) have had longer streaks at No. 1.
The Gamecocks (25-0), who were again a unanimous choice from the 28-member national media panel, routed then-No. 3 LSU on Sunday in a showdown of unbeaten teams. The Tigers fell to fifth.
Indiana, Stanford and Utah were behind South Carolina.
UNLV (24-2) has won 15 straight games, second to only South Carolina for the longest streak in the country. It is the team’s best start since the 1989-90 team went 28-3.
“It’s cool. If you look at our roster, the two best players are from Vegas,” said La Rocque, who played at Stanford. “There’s some good karma that we got working.”
USC joined the Lady Rebels in the Top 25, entering the poll at No. 25. It’s the first time since 2016 that the Trojans are ranked. They visit Stanford on Friday night.
Alabama climbs to No. 1
Alabama is the new No. 1, rising to the top spot in the AP Top 25 men’s poll for the first time in 20 years.
Purdue’s loss to Northwestern last week caused a jumble at the top of the AP Top 25, and that helped the Crimson Tide.
Alabama (22-3, 12-0 SEC) received 38 first-place votes from a 62-person media panel, moving up two spots to leapfrog No. 2 Houston. The Cougars had 22 first-place votes to remain at No. 2 and Purdue, down to No. 3, still had two first-place votes.
UCLA and Kansas rounded out the top five.
Alabama has made a name for itself as more than just a football school since coach Nate Oats arrived from Buffalo in in 2019. The Crimson Tide reached the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight two years ago, and Oats pulled in one of the nation’s best recruiting classes last year.
Alabama is No. 1 for the first time since spending two weeks atop the poll midway through the 2002-03 season. It also is the first school to be No. 1 in the AP football and basketball polls in the same season since Ohio State in 2010-11.
The University of Arizona once had a live "Wildcat" mascot; however, the current mascot ─ with a few changes that include wife, Wilma, along the way ─ Wilbur the Wildcat has been a favorite around Tucson for more than 60 years.
