Women's College Basketball Rankings: AP Poll Top 25 to start new year

The ball dropped at midnight and the calendar year turned to 2025. With that, women’s college basketball is getting deeper into the season and teams are continuing to separate themselves, as the AP Top 25 Poll has been updated for the first time in the new year.

At this point, the majority of games are going to be conference games. There are still a few non-conference games on the schedule. However, the majority of games moving forward are going to come from that conference slate of games.

With that in mind, here’s a look at the latest women’s college basketball rankings from the AP Top 25 Poll:

1. UCLA

Now well into their first season of Big Ten play, the UCLA Bruins kept the good times rolling into 2025. Last week, UCLA added two more conference wins against Michigan and Indiana. On top of that, those were both double-digit wins to stay unbeaten.

UCLA has another two games coming up next week. The first of those is a road trip to Purdue. After that, they’ll be back home to take on Northwestern as the difficult travel schedule in the Big Ten becomes apparent.

2. South Carolina

South Carolina opened SEC play with a pair of blowout wins over Missouri and Mississippi State. That came after South Carolina had ended the non-conference schedule strong with multiple ranked wins since dropping their game against UCLA.

The SEC schedule continues next week with games against Texas A&M and Texas. That game against the Longhorns, in particular, is going to be one to keep an eye on moving forward. After all, those are two of the top teams in the SEC and it could set the tone for the regular season conference championship race.

3. Notre Dame

Notre Dame only had one ACC game since the last AP Poll dropped. It wasn’t an easy game, either, taking on a ranked North Carolina team. However, the Irish proved to be up for the test and added another double-digit win. 

This next week, Notre Dame is going to keep on rolling against ACC opponents with games against Wake Forest and Clemson. That game against Clemson is set to be a road trip and will be Notre Dame’s first road game since beating Syracuse in early December.

4. USC

If traveling across the country for Big Ten play was a concern for USC, the Trojans handled their first test. On Sunday, USC went to Rutgers and won by a final score of 92-42, a blowout and in conference play. That came after USC beat Nebraska earlier in the week.

Next week, USC is going to be challenged by another highly ranked team. On Wednesday, USC will be on the road again to take on Maryland. After that, they’ll return home for a game against Penn State as travel begins to add up. 

5. Texas

The Texas Longhorns opened SEC play against an old foe, Oklahoma. That was a game between two AP Top 10 teams at the time and earning a win there is going to help Texas set the tone in conference play as the schedule continues to get more difficult. Texas also then added a blowout win over Arkansas, proving they didn’t get caught up on the win.

From here, the schedule is going to continue to be a challenge. Next week, difficult games against Alabama and South Carolina are looming. Both of those could shake up the SEC race.

6. LSU

The LSU Tigers are one of the few remaining unbeaten teams in women’s college basketball. However, they haven’t been overly high in the AP Poll thanks to a relatively easy non-conference slate. That changed as they turned into SEC play, adding wins over Arkansas and Auburn.

Next week, LSU is going to see a fellow ranked opponent in Tennessee. That’s going to act as a major road test for the Tigers. After that, the Tigers will be back in action against Vanderbilt.

7. UConn

Big East play is now in full swing. That saw UConn once again get back to being the dominant force within the conference with a pair of blowout wins over Marquette and Villanova. 

Next week, UConn is going to try and continue to dominate conference play. That includes a couple of games they’ll be big favorites in next week against Xavier and Georgetown as UConn continues to try and climb in the AP Poll.

8. Maryland

The Maryland Terrapins are still unbeaten even now as Big Ten play is underway. Last week, that included a pair of wins against Rutgers and Iowa. At the time, Iowa was ranked in the AP Poll. 

Next week, Maryland has a chance to make some noise in the Big Ten. The Terrapins will host USC, which could do more than shake up the AP Top 10. It could also shake up the early Big Ten race.

9. Ohio State

The Ohio State Buckeyes, similarly to Maryland, are a Big Ten team that has dominated its non-conference schedule. Now, with the new year, the Buckeyes are taking care of business in conference play too. Last week, that saw Ohio State beat Rutgers and Northwestern.

Next week, Ohio State is going to take on rival Michigan. That promises to be a difficult and emotional game. Getting through that, Ohio State will then see one of the conference’s new teams, the Oregon Ducks.

10. Oklahoma

The Oklahoma Sooners dropped their game to Texas to open SEC play. That was, notably, frustrating. However, the Sooners were able to bounce back with a win over Tennessee in a thrilling one-point win where they held off the Lady Vols in a frantic fourth-quarter comeback.

SEC play continues next week with what should be more manageable games against Mississippi State and Texas A&M. Of course, it’s a deep conference and any team is capable of pulling off an upset.

Rest of AP Top 25 Poll

11. TCU
12. Kansas State
13. Georgia Tech
14. Duke
15. Kentucky
16. Tennessee
17. West Virginia
18. Alabama
19. North Carolina
20. Michigan State
21. NC State
22. Utah
23. Iowa
24. California
25. Michigan