The Texas Longhorns lost their first game of the season this weekend in a surprise upset against the LSU Tigers. That's a tough reality for the team, and it's also one that gave a few teams in the NCAA a little more breathing room and plenty of opportunity to move past the Longhorns in the AP's weekly ranking poll.
And move past them two teams did: the South Carolina Gamecocks and the UCLA Bruins are now ranked No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, while the UConn Huskies continue to firmly hold on to the top spot. While the Huskies won't really see their spot threatened until early February, the rest of the top five is a little more malleable.
South Carolina is making a lot of big moves
The Gamecocks will play the Longhorns Thursday, which will offer a true test of whether or not they can hold on to their new ranking. (The team's game after that will be against Coppin State on January 18). South Carolina has been putting on a show of late since Ta'Niya Latson is back on the floor (Latson suffered a lower leg injury in late December). Joyce Edwards and Madina Okot have also kept the ship steady, with Okot clocking 13 double-doubles so far — and she has plenty of potential to keep adding on to that number.
Lauren Betts is leading the charge for UCLA
The Bruins, who are being led by senior Lauren Betts (who has dominated the team in terms of scoring and rebounding over their last four games), and it's not too surprising they managed to sneak past Texas this week. The team saw six players score well into the double figures during their game against the Nebraska Huskers, and will next meet the Minnesota Golden Gophers Wednesday night.
The win against Texas was big for LSU
Despite having many years of proven success under her belt, Sunday's win against the Longhorns was the first time the Tigers have beaten an Associated Press top-2 team since 2008. That speaks in part to just how competitive the world of women's college basketball (and the SEC) really is, and that win did a lot to change a narrative about LSU that had been quietly gaining traction.
The Tigers didn't begin conference play with a strong showing, and suffered back-to-back losses against Kentucky and Vanderbilt before rallying to pull off back-to-back wins against Georgia and the Longhorns.