Starting at No. 1: South Carolina atop first women’s basketball Top 25 for new season
The Gamecocks’ road to a repeat is quickly approaching.
The South Carolina women’s basketball opens the season as the unanimous No. 1 team in The Associated Press Top 25 that was released on Tuesday. USC has been ranked preseason No. 1 for three-straight seasons.
“This is where we wanted to be and envisioned for our program,” coach Dawn Staley told the AP. “I got to give it to our players. We constantly get some of the best players in the country. They put us in this position as they work extremely hard. I don’t know if they come in and say, ‘I want to be the No. 1 team in the country,’ but they do say they want to be national champions. This is a step to being a national champion.”
Stanford, Texas, Iowa and Tennessee are Nos. 2 through 5 in the preseason poll, respectively.
The Gamecocks never relinquished its top spot last year, and turned its No. 1 status into a national championship win. South Carolina also won the SEC regular-season title last year.
The Gamecocks lost two games last season, but none to opponents that entered those meetings as Top 25 teams. They posted an 11-0 record against ranked teams in 2021-22, while surrendering just 50.7 points per game.
USC returns four of its five starters from its national championship run: Aliyah Boston, Zia Cooke, Brea Beal and Victaria Saxton.
AP WBB preseason Top 25
1. South Carolina
2. Stanford
3. Texas
4. Iowa
5. Tennessee
6. Connecticut
7. Louisville
8. Iowa State
9. Notre Dame
10. NC State
11. Indiana
12. North Carolina
13. Virginia Tech
14. Ohio State
15. Oklahoma
16. LSU
17. Maryland
18. Baylor
19. Arizona
20. Oregon
21. Creighton
22. Nebraska
23. South Dakota State
24. Princeton
25. Michigan
PRESEASON SEC PICKS
The Gamecocks were picked by media to win the SEC in 2022-23, the league announced Tuesday.
Boston and Cooke were named to the Preseason All-SEC first team. Boston has made the All-SEC first team three times at South Carolina.
Boston was named the Preseason SEC Player of the Year. She was named SEC Player of the Year for the first time after last season.
2022-23 SEC preseason media poll
1. South Carolina
2. Tennessee
3. LSU
4. Arkansas
5. Ole Miss
6. Florida
7. Kentucky
8. Mississippi State
9. Georgia
10. Alabama
11. Texas A&M
12. Missouri
13. Auburn
14. Vanderbilt
SEC preseason Player of the Year
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Preseason All-SEC first team
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Zia Cooke, South Carolina
Jordan Horston, Tennessee
Rickea Jackson, Tennessee
Tamari Key, Tennessee
Preseason All-SEC second team
Jessika Carter, Mississippi State
Brittany Davis, Alabama
Hayley Frank, Missouri
Anastasia Hayes, Mississippi State
Alexis Morris, LSU
Angel Reese, LSU
This story was originally published October 18, 2022 at 11:59 AM.
