UConn women drop to No. 7 in AP Top 25 after USC loss; Sarah Strong sweeps Big East awards

The UConn women’s basketball team fell to No. 7 in the AP Top 25 poll entering Week 8 after suffering its second top-10 loss of the season to USC on Saturday.

The Huskies dropped three spots from last week with the 72-70 loss to the Trojans, and USC replaced them at No. 4 behind the top 3 of UCLA, South Carolina and Notre Dame. The No. 3 Fighting Irish delivered UConn its first loss of 2024-25 on Dec. 12, and they are also the only team to beat USC this season with a 74-61 win in Los Angeles on Nov. 23. The Huskies are now below No. 5 Texas, who also took its only loss against Notre Dame, and No. 6 LSU.

UConn entered December poised to face four ranked opponents, but it exited the grueling stretch of non-conference play 2-2 with its only two victories over teams that are now unranked. Louisville fell out of the Top 25 following an 85-52 loss to UConn at the Women’s Champions Classic, and Iowa State — the preseason No. 8 team in the country — is no longer receiving votes after the Huskies scored a program-record 20 3-pointers in their 101-68 win at the Basketball Hall of Fame Showcase.

Freshman phenom Sarah Strong anchored UConn with double-doubles in both the win over Iowa State and the loss to USC, earning her Big East Player and Freshman of the Week honors. Strong averaged 25.5 points, 11 rebounds, 4.5 assist and 2.5 steals shooting 54.5% from the field across the two matchups. She also swept the weekly awards in Week 5, and she has been named Freshman of the Week five times in seven weeks. Ashlynn Shade, who was the Big East Freshman of the Year in 2023-24, earned the honor five times in the entire season. Strong is the third player ever to sweep Player and Freshman of the Week multiple times, joining UConn’s Paige Bueckers and former DePaul star Aneesah Morrow.

No Big East team except for UConn is even receiving votes in the AP poll, so the Huskies aren’t likely to see another ranked opponent until they travel to No. 15 Tennessee on Feb. 6. UConn began conference play with a 79-44 win over Georgetown, and the team will return from its holiday break against Providence at the XL Center on Dec. 29.

UConn women’s basketball team enters Big East play with big questions to answer after loss to No. 7 USC

AP Top 25 women’s basketball poll: Week 8

1. UCLA
2. South Carolina
3. Notre Dame
4. USC
5. Texas
6. LSU
7. UConn
8. Maryland
9. Oklahoma
10. Ohio State
11. TCU
12. Kansas State
13. Georgia Tech
14. Duke
15. Tennessee
16. Kentucky
17. North Carolina
18. West Virginia
19. Michigan State
20. Alabama
21. California
22. NC State
23. Michigan
24. Iowa
25. Ole Miss

How UConn reporter Emily Adams voted in Week 8 AP Top 25

1. UCLA
2. South Carolina
3. Notre Dame
4. USC
5. Texas
6. UConn
7. Maryland
8. LSU
9. Oklahoma
10. TCU
11. Ohio State
12. Georgia Tech
13. Duke
14. Kansas State
15. NC State
16. Tennessee
17. North Carolina
18. Ole Miss
19. Kentucky
20. West Virginia
21. Michigan
22. California
23. Alabama
24. Michigan State
25. Iowa