UConn women No. 1 again
NEW YORK — The University of Connecticut women’s basketball program will start the season in a familiar spot — the top one.
The Huskies were a unanimous No. 1 in The Associated Press women’s basketball preseason poll released Thursday. It’s the 12th time in school history UConn has held that place in the preseason, matching Tennessee for the most all-time.
The entire 32-member national media panel picked UConn first, marking the fifth time the team has been the lone choice atop the preseason poll.
“Being ranked number one in the AP preseason poll is something we certainly do not take for granted, but I think those are the expectations, internally and externally, as it relates to this program,” Huskies coach Geno Auriemma said. “This is an honor and a testament to the hard work of our players, but we all know that what really matters is where you finish the season and not necessarily where you are when the season starts.”
UConn also was the preseason No. 1 in 1995, ’99, 2000, ’01, ’03, ’08, ’09, ’10, ’13, ’14 and ’16. The Huskies open their season Nov. 12 against No. 10 Stanford in Columbus, Ohio, the site of this season’s Final Four. UConn has gone on to win the national championship in seven of those years it was the preseason No. 1.
The Huskies, whose 111game winning streak came to an end in the Final Four last season, return four starters and add a stellar freshman class to go along with two solid transfers.
Texas is No. 2, the Longhorns’ best ranking since the second poll of the 2004 season. That was also the most recent year the Longhorns were ranked second in the preseason Top 25.
“We appreciate the national media recognizing the hard work and dedication of our players and coaching staff in recent years to return our program back to a place where we have the expectation to compete for championships,” Texas coach Karen Aston said.
Big 12 rival Baylor is third, followed by South Carolina, last season’s national champion, and Ohio State. Notre Dame, Mississippi State, UCLA, Louisville and Stanford round out the top 10.
No. 11 Oregon is ranked in the preseason for the first time since 2000. The Ducks, who made a run to the NCAA regional finals last season, return most of that team.
Tennessee is 14th in the poll and continued its run of being ranked in every preseason poll since missing the first one in 1976.
The Southeastern Conference and Pac-12 had five teams each in the poll.