South Carolina remains No. 1, grip no longer unanimous

Field Level Media|published: Mon 1st January, 15:08 2024

Nov 20, 2023; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks center Kamilla Cardoso (10) drives around South Dakota State Jackrabbits forward Brooklyn Meyer (31) in the first half at Colonial Life Arena. credits: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

South Carolina remained atop the Associated Press Top 25 women's college basketball poll Monday, although the Gamecocks no longer were the consensus choice.

After South Carolina (12-0) was the unanimous No. 1 team in the country the past six weeks, the team received 34 of the 35 first-place votes to kick off the new year.

No. 2 UCLA (12-0) received one first-place vote after a victory over then-No. 6 Southern California on Saturday. UCLA has victories over four ranked teams this season. USC dropped to No. 9 after the loss.

NC State (13-0), Iowa (13-1) and Colorado (11-1) round out the top five. Baylor (12-0), LSU (13-1), Stanford (12-1), USC (10-1) and Texas (13-1) round out the top ten. The Pac-12, which will disband after this season, has four teams among the top nine in the country.

Texas had the biggest drop in the polls, falling five spots after an 95-79 loss to Baylor on Saturday. Baylor was the biggest upward mover, jumping four spots.

No. 25 Syracuse (11-1) entered the poll after a victory over then-No. 13 Notre Dame on Sunday. North Carolina (9-4) dropped out after a 34-week run in the poll.

The full AP Top 25 women's college basketball poll

1. South Carolina

2. UCLA

3. NC State

4. Iowa

5. Colorado

6. Baylor

7. LSU

8. Stanford

9. Southern California

10. Texas

11. Kansas State