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How loss to Duke affected Notre Dame WBB in AP Top 25

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka•02/06/23•

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notre dame niele ivey
Notre Dame women's basketball coach Niele Ivey. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)

Notre Dame fell in the Associated Press Poll for the second week in a row. Sunday’s 57-52 home loss to Duke caused the Irish to slip from No. 9 to No. 10 in Week 14’s AP Top 25.

Duke rose from No. 16 to No. 9 with its victory over the Irish. The Blue Devils also took sole possession of first place in the ACC standings with six regular season games remaining. Duke and Notre Dame are two of six ACC teams ranked in the Week 14 poll. The others are No. 11 Virginia Tech, No. 14 North Carolina, No. 19 Florida State and No. 22 NC State.

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None of the Irish’s six games left before the conference tournament are against ranked foes. Duke still has to play three ranked teams. If the Irish run the table and finish with a 15-3 record in conference play, two games better than last year’s mark, they have a legitimate shot of winning a regular season conference title.

Still, easier said than done.

Notre Dame still has to play Louisville twice, once at home and once on the road. The Irish have not beaten the Cardinals in six tries. Louisville has endured an uncharacteristic up-and-down season, but the Cards are still the Cards. Until the Irish prove they can beat them, even in a year in which they have not been as elite as usual, it’s not safe to assume that they will.

Notre Dame still has not fully adjusted to life without graduate student guard Dara Mabrey and graduate student center Lauren Ebo, either. Mabrey is out for the season with a torn ACL. Ebo has been sidelined indefinitely with a sprained ankle. The two were averaging a combined 19.2 points per game before they went out with their respective ailments.

Here’s a look at the Week 14 AP Poll and current ACC standings.

Week 14 women’s basketball AP Poll

  1. South Carolina (23-0)
  2. Indiana (22-1)
  3. LSU (23-0)
  4. UConn (21-3)
  5. Iowa (19-4)
  6. Stanford (22-3)
  7. Utah (20-2)
  8. Maryland (19-5)
  9. Duke (20-3)
  10. Notre Dame (18-4)
  11. Virginia Tech (18-4)
  12. Michigan (19-5)
  13. Ohio State (20-4)
  14. North Carolina (17-6)
  15. Villanova (20-4)
  16. Oklahoma (18-4)
  17. Arizona (18-5)
  18. UCLA (18-6)
  19. Florida State (20-5)
  20. Texas (18-6)
  21. Iowa State (15-6)
  22. NC State (16-6)
  23. Gonzaga (22-3)
  24. South Florida (22-4)
  25. Colorado (18-5)

ACC standings

Duke (10-2)

Notre Dame (9-3)

Florida State (9-3)

Virginia Tech (8-4)

North Carolina (8-4)

Louisville (8-4)

Miami (8-4)

NC State (6-5)

Syracuse (6-7)

Wake Forest (5-8)

Boston College (4-9)

Clemson (4-9)

Georgia Tech (3-9)

Virginia (3-10)

Pittsburgh (1-11)

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