A few top-10 teams didn't see the floor during Week 8 of women's college basketball because of COVID protocols. But we still saw plenty of action in top-25 matchups that went wire to wire, including several ranked matchups that forced two teams out of my top 10.
Here's my NCAA.com Power 10 for Week 8 (last week's ranking in parentheses):
1. Stanford (1) – The Cardinal remain untouched at the No. 1 spot for the sixth straight week after a statement win against AP No. 11 Oregon, 70-63. It was a third-quarter attack that got the job done, led by Haley Jones with 18 points and six rebounds.
Staying 𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙩@haleyjoness19 returning home and helping @StanfordWBB to the 𝗪 against Oregon. Jones had a game-high 18 pts and 6 reb. #ncaaW pic.twitter.com/x0TDjMcum7
— NCAA Women’s Basketball (@ncaawbb) January 9, 2021
Staying 𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙩
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) January 9, 2021
@haleyjoness19 returning home and helping @StanfordWBB to the 𝗪 against Oregon. Jones had a game-high 18 pts and 6 reb. #ncaaW pic.twitter.com/x0TDjMcum7
2. UConn (2) – The Huskies are 7-0, with six of those wins coming against Big East opponents. UConn is fresh off of an 87-50 victory over Providence, led by freshman guard Paige Bueckers who finished with 23 points and five assists.
3. South Carolina (3) – The Gamecocks picked up a close win against then-No. 10 Kentucky, 75-70. Destanni Henderson and Aaliyah Boston combined for 42 points against the Wildcats.
WBB: No. 5 South Carolina defeats No. 10 Kentucky 75-70 in women's basketball
4. Louisville (4) – The Cardinals are still rolling with a 10-0 record. Last week, Louisville knocked off ACC opponents Virginia Tech and Clemson. All-American guard Dana Evans is leading the Cardinals' charge, averaging 19.7 points per game.
5. NC State (5) – The Wolfpack did not suit up this week due to postponements against Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.
6. Baylor (6) – The Bears haven’t played since Jan. 2 due to COVID-19 tracing within the program. Their matchup with UConn was canceled, in addition to games against Kansas State and Kansas being postponed. Baylor is currently slated to host Iowa State on Saturday, Jan. 16.
7. Texas A&M (7) – The Aggies have the most wins in the top-10 with a 12-0 record. Texas A&M picked up back-to-back victories over top-13 opponents — Kentucky and a 74-63 nail-bitter against Arkansas.
8. Maryland (UR) – The Terrapins are coming off two big wins against top-25 opponents — Indiana and Michigan State. Maryland is currently on an eight-game winning streak and a 22-game winning streak against Big Ten opponents.
A hard-fought 𝓦 on the road ✔️#FearTheTurtle pic.twitter.com/J41T6Bnw5g
— Maryland Women’s Basketball (@TerpsWBB) January 8, 2021
9. UCLA (UR) - The Bruins have been picking up momentum since being upset by Oregon in Week 6. On Sunday, UCLA cruised through Pac-12 opponent Utah, 92-67. The Bruins have been doing a great job of using their opponent’s mistakes to their advantage, averaging 21.6 points per game off of turnovers.
10. Oregon (10) – The Ducks put up a fight in the first half against the No. 1 team in the country, Stanford, but couldn’t get the job done falling, 70-63. Freshmen Sydney Parrish led the Ducks with 14 points in 13 minutes of play. Oregon then bounced back in a Pac-12 win against Cal, 100-41.
WBB: No. 1 Stanford women's basketball uses big third quarter to defeat No. 11 Oregon
Knocked out:
Arizona (8) - The Wildcats fall out of my Power 10 after losing to unranked Washington State in overtime, 71-69. Arizona's next matchup is against Oregon on Thursday, Jan. 14. This game will be the deciding factor of who will remain or break back into next week's Power 10.
Kentucky (9) - The Wildcats lost back-to-back games against top-10 opponents last week, falling to then-No. 8 Texas A&M and No. 5 South Carolina.
