AP poll keeps Gamecocks in top 10 despite Tennessee loss — thanks to A’ja Wilson?

South Carolina women’s basketball suffered its first home loss of the season on Sunday, a 86-70 contest to conference rival Tennessee in which the Gamecocks (14-3, 3-2 SEC) never led past the first quarter.

But in the latest edition of the Associated Press top-25 rankings released Monday, USC hardly dropped at all despite the double-digit loss, going from No. 9 to No. 10. It is the shortest drop in ranking South Carolina has had after a loss this year — after losing to Notre Dame, the Gamecocks went from No. 3 to No. 5, and after a defeat at Missouri, the team went from No. 6 to No. 9.

The one-spot slip means that South Carolina has now been ranked by the AP in the top 10 for 79 straight weeks, dating all the way back to Jan. 6, 2014. Under head coach Dawn Staley, the Gamecocks have been in the top 10 for 81 total weeks and in the top 25 for 108 weeks.

Tennessee, meanwhile, did not change rankings at all, staying at No. 6. Other South Carolina opponents this season included in the poll are No. 1 UConn, No. 3 Mississippi State, No. 5 Notre Dame, No. 11 Missouri, No. 14 Maryland, No. 15 Duke, No. 16 Texas A&M and No. 25 Rutgers — the Gamecocks face more ranked opponents than any team in the top 15.

AP poll voters don’t typically give the reasoning behind their ratings, but the most likely explanation for why USC did not drop further than it did is obvious — the absence of A’ja Wilson.

South Carolina’s National Player of the Year favorite missed the Tennessee matchup with a sprained ankle, and without her, the Gamecocks were outrebounded, outscored in the paint and unable to contain the Lady Vols’ big, physical lineup.

Had Wilson, whose injury has been described as day-to-day, been able to play, the final score and potentially even the outcome could have been different.

The 32 media members who vote in the AP almost certainly took that into account, with one even going so far as to keep South Carolina ahead of Tennessee in her individual ballot. All told, voters put USC anywhere from No. 7 to No. 13 in their rankings.

When exactly Wilson will return to the floor and presumably boost the Gamecocks to their full competitive capabilities is still uncertain, however. Head coach Dawn Staley said after Sunday’s game that her star player is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday, and USC’s next game comes Thursday on the road against Vanderbilt.

This story was originally published January 15, 2018 at 2:17 PM with the headline "AP poll keeps Gamecocks in top 10 despite Tennessee loss — thanks to A’ja Wilson?."