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South Carolina tops our 2024-25 women’s college basketball power rankings

South Carolina tops our 2024-25 women’s college basketball power rankings
NCAA Womens Basketball

South Carolina tops our 2024-25 women’s college basketball power rankings

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Congrats to South Carolina, which was the No. 1 team in all but one edition of this season’s rankings. The Gamecocks proved they were the best team in college basketball for all of 2023-24, just like last year, only this time they were able to cap their remarkable regular season with a national championship. South Carolina’s success was the primary validation of these power rankings, though the last poll did feature 15 of the Sweet 16 teams in the top 18 (apologies to Duke).

In case you’re interested in how well my first power rankings of 2023-24 held up, take a gander! Oregon State really came out of nowhere.

As we look ahead to 2024-25, a reminder that this is an indicator of how teams stand right now, though WNBA Draft decisions and transfers — keep an eye on Oregon State and Washington State following the dissolution of the Pac-12 — could substantially change the makeup of rosters. I’ve priced in some player improvement, particularly for younger players with high pedigree, but otherwise tried to assess these squads based on how the players finished this season. Let me know in the comments if you think I’m overlooking anyone.

Almost famous: Kentucky, Michigan State, Vanderbilt

Why South Carolina over UConn?

South Carolina is losing Kamilla Cardoso, but otherwise brings back the entirety of the roster that went undefeated to win the national championship. Neither Ashlyn Watkins nor Sania Feagin individually has the skillset of Cardoso, but they can approximate it together with Watkins’ defensive versatility and Feagin’s touch in the post. Plus, the Gamecocks are bringing in Joyce Edwards to add to the post rotation, leaving them as deep as ever. Other than Edwards, every player will have at least one year of experience in her role. South Carolina will be deep and veteran in 2024-25 with the institutional knowledge of how to win. The Gamecocks are a no-brainer No. 1.

The toughest contender for the Gamecocks will be UConn, as Paige Bueckers returns, along with four rising sophomores (including redshirt sophomore Ice Brady) who should improve dramatically after experiencing high-stakes games in their first season. The Huskies are also welcoming the No. 1 recruit in the country, Sarah Strong, to supplement their frontcourt after the graduation of Aaliyah Edwards. The question with UConn, as it persistently has been in recent years, is health. If Azzi Fudd, Aubrey Griffin and Jana El Alfy can be meaningful contributors, then the Huskies are as deep as any team in the country, but it’s hard to expect that; even if everyone does play, South Carolina still has the chemistry advantage.

What will the SEC look like?

An eternal bugaboo of mine in the two years of writing these rankings has been finding a third or fourth SEC team to consistently place in the top 25. South Carolina and LSU are obvious entrants, but the cannibalism in the next tier has made it difficult for another team to make its way into the rankings.

That problem is partly resolved with new entrants Texas and Oklahoma. The Longhorns are ahead of the Tigers and Sooners with the assumption Rori Harmon will be ready to play by the start of 2025. At that point, they will have the bones of an Elite Eight team plus an elite two-way point guard in Harmon. LSU stays in the top 10 despite losing Angel Reese because Sa’Myah Smith can slot in at center next to Aneesah Morrow, Flau’jae Johnson, and Mikaylah Williams. Questions remain at point guard, however. Oklahoma returns nearly everyone from its Big 12 title campaign, though the Sooners’ defensive issues prevent them from cracking the top 10.

Ole Miss and Alabama also project to build off NCAA Tournament seasons. The Rebels will have some turnover, but they have historically been active in the transfer portal and always defend well. The Crimson Tide had a great offense in a tough defensive conference. Vanderbilt just missed the cut. The Commodores were simply not as good as Ole Miss or Alabama and have to prove their consistency in conference play before making this list.

L.A. schools will keep Big Ten in title contention

The Big Ten has the most programs on the list, although two are new entrants: UCLA and USC. The Trojans might be the best team in the conference by the end of the season – or even by preseason once Lindsay Gottlieb has done her work in the portal – but for now, the Bruins’ talent is undeniable. With Charisma Osborne gone, UCLA is a little light on guards, though Gabriela Jaquez could play down a position to mitigate that issue. However, the Bruins’ frontcourt is stacked, led by Lauren Betts and featuring Angela Dugalic, Lina Sontag and Emily Bessoir, all of whom can play on the perimeter. Betts should be an All-American this year.

USC has JuJu Watkins. Watkins, along with Rayah Marshall, is enough to keep the Trojans in the top 10, with the expectation that some transfers will make their way to Los Angeles. Beyond USC, however, a cluster of Big Ten schools dot the bottom of the rankings. Nebraska returns underclassmen Logan Nissley and Natalie Potts. Along with Alexis Markowski, that’s a core that can challenge to host NCAA Tournament games. Ohio State’s system makes the Buckeyes hard to play during the regular season, and Madison Greene and Taylor Thierry should keep the press humming while Cotie McMahon assumes a larger role in the offense – McMahon’s relative stasis from year one to year two, prevents Ohio State from moving any higher.

Although Iowa and Indiana graduate their most important players, they have several upperclassmen who have played on big stages. Caitlin Clark and Mackenzie Holmes leave Taylor McCabe and Lilly Meister, respectively, big shoes to fill, but Lisa Bluder and Teri Moren are excellent coaches. They should figure out how to remain competitive with a less star-centric approach.

Illinois, the WBIT champion, slides in at No. 24. I was high on the Illini at this time last year, but they couldn’t quite put it together until March. The talent is there, and perhaps the postseason experience helps going forward.

 

Is Iowa State the Big 12 favorite?

With the departures of the Big 12 regular-season and tournament champions to the SEC, a vacuum is left atop the conference for someone to swoop into. I think it’s a year too early for Colorado and Utah, who will deeply miss Jaylyn Sherrod and Alissa Pili, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see either former Pac-12 school in the rankings at some point next season.

Iowa State is my top team in the conference — at least for now. The Cyclones ended the year strong and have four outstanding rising sophomores, led by NCAA Tournament breakout star Audi Crooks. Emily Ryan is the veteran glue who brings everyone together. As evidenced by its double-overtime defeat to Stanford, Iowa State is on the precipice of greatness.

Kansas State brings back a far more veteran roster, and with Ayoka Lee in the fold, the Wildcats could recapture the form that had them at No. 2 in the polls during the 2023-24 season. They fall just behind the Cyclones because Iowa State swept the season series, and the bet is Crooks will close the gap with Lee after one year in college.

As for the rest of the Big 12, I have faith West Virginia will overwhelm opponents with its ball pressure as long as JJ Quinerly and Jordan Harrison are around. Baylor nearly made the Elite Eight but has a couple questions in the frontcourt without Dre Edwards and Aijha Blackwell. Arizona’s youngsters were thrown into the fire and acquitted themselves well; Esmery Martinez and Helena Pueyo will be missed. But the freshman class, led by Jada Williams and Breya Cunningham, is special. TCU gets in the mix as a longshot because the Horned Frogs were really cooking before injuries ripped them apart, and the demise of the Pac-12 means Mark Campbell could clean up on transfers.

Will there be a new ACC champion?

Kenny Brooks’ move to the SEC means Virginia Tech is no longer an immediate threat in the ACC. (Kentucky is almost famous for now until a full roster coalesces around Georgia Amoore and Clara Strack.) Notre Dame is the clear favorite with Olivia Miles, Hannah Hidalgo and Sonia Citron in the backcourt along with Maddy Westbeld and incoming freshman Kate Koval in the middle. The Irish could probably use another stopgap big in the portal to help Koval and Natalija Marshall, but the star talent is ridiculous already.

NC State, a Final Four squad, also will need frontcourt help in the portal, unless Maddie Cox and Mallory Collier are able to produce as sophomores. They’re a notch below Notre Dame as is, since Westbeld is a proven starter at forward, but there’s a lot of upside for the Wolfpack considering the strength of their backcourt and the player development that took place this year.

(Photo of Raven Johnson: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)



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