UConn’s record 16-year run in the top 10 is over.
The Huskies fell four spots to No. 11 in The Associated Press women’s college basketball poll Monday after losing to Louisville a day earlier. UConn had been ranked among the first 10 teams in the poll for 313 straight weeks dating back to March 7, 2005, when the team was also 11th. That’s 101 more weeks than the next-longest streak ever, held by Tennessee.
No. 10 Baylor now has the longest active streak, with 136 consecutive top-10 appearances.
South Carolina remained the unanimous top choice, receiving all 29 first-place votes from a national media panel. The Gamecocks will face No. 2 Stanford on Tuesday in the second 1-vs-2 showdown this season. The Cardinal moved up one spot after winning at Tennessee on Saturday. It’s the 600th appearance in the AP Top 25 for Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer, who is 18 behind all-time leader Pat Summitt.
Louisville, Arizona and North Carolina State follow Stanford to round out the top five. The Wolfpack fell three places after losing in overtime to Georgia. Maryland moved up three spots to sixth. The Terrapins were followed by Tennessee, Indiana and Michigan.
The Wolverines knocked off Baylor in overtime on Sunday and now are in the top 10 for the first time ever. The victory over then-No. 5 Baylor was Michigan’s first against a top-five team in 34 tries.
“It hasn’t sunk in yet we beat a top-five team,” Wolverines Coach Kim Barnes Arico said after the overtime victory at the Women’s Hall of Fame Showcase. “It’s a great signature win.”
(7) TENNESSEE 112, EAST TENNESSEE 58: Sara Puckett came off the bench to score 19 points and Tamari Key added 16 to lead host Tennessee (10-1) over East Tennessee (1-11).
Keyen Green contributed 13 points, Kaiya Wynn had 12 and 10 rebounds, Alexus Dye had 11 points and 11 rebounds and Karoline Striplin scored 10 for the Lady Volunteers, who rebounded from Saturday’s loss to Stanford.
Jakhyia Davis scored 17 points and Aaliyah had 12 for East Tennessee.
(18) SOUTH FLORIDA 77, WEST VIRGINIA 55: Elena Tsineke scored 20 points, Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu had 14 points and 12 rebounds and South Florida (9-3) beat West Virginia (6-3) in the West Palm Beach Invitational.
South Florida snapped a seven-game losing streak in the series, getting its second victory over West Virginia in nine meetings. USF took the first meeting, 66-56, on Feb. 25, 2006.
Maria Alvarez also scored 14 points and Bethy Mununga had 10 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for USF, which has won four straight and 6 of 7.
Madisen Smith led West Virginia with 15 points.
(21) LSU 70, CLEMSON 56: Khayla Pointer had 20 points and eight assists, Faustine Aifuwa had 13 points and 11 rebounds, and LSU (10-1) beat Clemson (6-5) in the West Palm Beach Invitational.
LSU has won nine straight games to surpass last season’s win total. The Tigers were 9-13 last season, sparking a coaching change that brought in Kim Mulkey.
(23) TEXAS A&M 77, UTSA 51: Aaliyah Patty had 20 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks, Destiny Pitts added 14 points and host Texas A&M (10-2) beat the University of Texas at San Antonio (3-8).
Patty scored 14 of her points in the first quarter as Texas A&M built a 14-point lead. The Aggies extended it to 44-22 at the break. Patty had 16 points and 11 rebounds in the first half, securing her double-double with eight minutes left.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
(1) BAYLOR 94, ALCORN STATE 57: Kendall Brown, Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua and Flo Thamba scored 16 points apiece to lead five players in double figures as host Baylor (11-0) beat Alcorn State (1-10).
Baylor took a 10-point lead on a 3-pointer by James Akinjo with 14:31 left in the first half and never led by less than 10 after Akinjo’s layup made it 22-11 at the 11:58 mark.
AP POLL: Defending national champion Baylor maintained its top spot in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll, though not without ceding a No. 1 vote to Arizona on Monday.
The Bears ended a four-week streak of turnover atop the poll by taking care of Oregon last week, receiving 60 of 61 first-place votes from a national panel that regular covers college basketball. The Wildcats got the only other No. 1 vote and climbed two spots to sixth heading into a brutal stretch of games over the next three weeks.
Duke remained No. 2 after ending a two-week break with three easy wins. Purdue was third while Gonzaga and UCLA flip-flopped their spots with the Bruins – currently in the midst of a COVID-19 pause – rounding out the top five.
The Bears (10-0) reached the top spot last week after dominating then-No. 6 Villanova, something they never accomplished during their title-winning season. But they nearly became the fourth straight No. 1 to lose, falling behind the Ducks by four at halftime before rallying for a 78-70 victory in Eugene, Oregon.
COVID-19: This week’s men’s basketball showdown between No. 21 Kentucky and archrival Louisville in Lexington has been postponed because of multiple positive COVID-19 tests within the Cardinals’ program.
Louisville interim athletic director Josh Heird stated in a release that team-related activities have been paused indefinitely.
The Bluegrass rivalry matchup that was scheduled for Wednesday between the school located 80 miles apart has been played annually since the 1982-83 season. A release from Kentucky on Monday morning stated that the athletics department is seeking a replacement game for the Wildcats (8-2) for either Wednesday or Thursday at Rupp Arena.
• Texas, which rose a spot to No. 16 in the rankings, is also open on Wednesday after its scheduled in-state meeting against Rice was postponed due to COVID-19 issues within the Owls’ program. Rice is scheduled to play North Texas on Jan. 1 in its Conference USA opener.
FOOTBALL
MYRTLE BEACH BOWL: Davis Brin threw for 285 yards and two touchdowns, and Tulsa closed the season with its fourth straight victory, beating Old Dominion 30-17 at the Myrtle Beach Bowl at Conway, South Carolina.
Josh Johnson had eight catches for 129 yards, including a 23-yard reception, as the Golden Hurricane (7-6) won their second straight bowl game and third in their last four appearances.
As effective as Tulsa’s offense was, its defense was just as good. It held the Monarchs (6-7) of Conference USA to 135 yards through the first three quarters.
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