UConn, South Carolina, Notre Dame and Baylor top seeds in latest committee ranking

With a combined overall record of 96-3, Connecticut, South Carolina, Notre Dame and Baylor continue to hold the top four seeds, respectively in the latest NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship Sport Committee February top-10 ranking.

The remainder of the top 10 is made up of Ohio State at No. 5, followed in order by Texas, Oregon State, Arizona State, Maryland and UCLA.  Other teams receiving committee consideration for top-10 ranking were Florida, Florida State, Louisville, Mississippi State and Texas A&M. 

The 10 teams announced today are identical to those identified in the first ranking on Feb. 1.  Teams making the biggest jump over the last two weeks were Ohio State from No. 6 to No. 5, while Oregon State moved up from No. 8 to No. 7.

“What we saw over the last two weeks was that the top-10 teams from February 1 for the most part handled the challenges that came their way,” said Chris Dawson, chair of the committee and associate commissioner at the Pac-12 Conference.  “It’s a great time of year for basketball fans with so many key matchups scheduled over the next several weeks.  The committee will continue to closely monitor what is taking place, and we look forward to our next top-10 ranking on February 29.”

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UConn, the defending three-time national champion, is currently riding a 61-game winning streak as the No. 1 team in the country with a record of 24-0 overall and 13-0 in the American Athletic Conference.  Despite a home loss to UConn last Monday, Feb. 8, South Carolina, was able to maintain its No. 2 overall ranking with a record of 23-1 overall and 11-0 in the Southeastern Conference.  Currently ranked third, Notre Dame is now 24-1 overall and 12-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, while Baylor, ranked fourth, is currently 25-1 overall and on top of the Big 12 Conference with a 12-1 mark.

The Feb. 15 ranking is the second of three times the potential seeding will be announced during February by the committee, with one final in-season ranking taking place on Feb. 29.  The three February announcements will have no bearing on the final bracket that will be revealed on Selection Monday, March 14, at 7 p.m. on ESPN.

NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship Sport Committee

February 15 – Top 10 Ranking

1. UConn
2. South Carolina
3. Notre Dame
4. Baylor
5. Ohio State
6. Texas
7. Oregon State
8. Arizona State
9. Maryland
10. UCLA

Others receiving consideration: Florida, Florida State, Louisville, Mississippi State and Texas A&M