Two of the top teams in the Big Ten will face each other Wednesday as the No. 1 UCLA Bruins host the No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes in Los Angeles.
The Bruins (21-0, 9-0) are the last undefeated team in the nation, and have jumped out to the best start in program history. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes’ 20-1 record is their best start since the 2011-12 season.
At 9-1 in the conference standings, Ohio State is tied for second with No. 7 USC (21-2 overall), entering this critical stretch in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes will face the Trojans on Saturday, and the Bruins will face them on Feb. 13.
Here is what you need to know about Wednesday’s matchup between UCLA and Ohio State.
Where to watch No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 8 Ohio State When: Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 9:30 p.m. ET Where: Pauley Pavilion — Los Angeles TV: Peacock Streaming: fubo (follow for free) Follow: CBS Sports app
Women’s college basketball Power Rankings: USC drops out of top five after Iowa loss, NC State keeps climbing Isabel Gonzalez Women’s college basketball Power Rankings: USC drops out of top five after Iowa loss, NC State keeps climbing Last meeting Ohio State leads its all-time series against UCLA, 5-4. Their last meeting was last December in Columbus, and the Bruins won 77-71. Lauren Betts, who was a sophomore back then, is the top UCLA returner from that game. She registered 17 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks. Kiki Rice was another key contributor still on the roster, registering 15 points, three rebounds, four assists, one steal and two blocks in that win.
Ohio State’s Taylor Thierry, now a senior, dropped 20 points. Cotie McMahon was a sophomore back then and put up seven points. She will likely play a bigger role this time around as she has been the team’s leading scorer this season.
UCLA remains undefeated The Bruins have been ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll for 11 consecutive weeks, and this week they are an unanimous selection. Their biggest win was against then-No. 1 South Carolina in November.
Cori Close’s roster has size and players who can contribute on both ends of the court. They rank high in several major categories, including No. 1 in the nation in rebounding margin (15.8), No. 4 in assists per game (21.4) and No. 4 in scoring margin (27.3).
Betts — one of the strongest candidates for national Player of the Year — leads the team with 20.2 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. Meanwhile, Rice is averaging 13.2 points while registering a team-best 79 assists so far. Gabriela Jaquez also averages double figures with 10.2 points per game.
Ohio State is deep Kevin McGuff’s team is No. 11 in scoring margin (22.7) with one of its biggest strengths being depth. All five starters are averaging double figures, led by McMahon with 16.5 points per game. Jaloni Cambridge and Chance Gray are contributing 14.6 and 14.5 points per contest, respectively.
The Buckeyes were one of the last undefeated teams in the country until they were narrowly upset by Penn State, 62-59, on Jan. 19. The fourth quarter was rough for both teams as they each went four minutes without scoring a point.
However, Ohio State bounced back with strong wins against Maryland and Nebraska. Their most recent with was a 66-56 victory against Washington.
The answer to the future popular sports trivia question around Tennessee will be: Kim Caldwell. As for the question, it will be: Other than Pat Summitt, who is the only coach to beat UConn’s women’s basketball team?
No. 19 Tennessee outhustled and outworked No. 5 UConn in pulling the 80-76 upset on Thursday night in Knoxville. This was the Lady Vols’ first win over the Huskies since 2007, which was also a signature victory for first-year coach Kim Caldwell, who gave all the credit to her players.
“I didn’t do it, they did it, they just made up their minds on if they wanted to do it and they did it,” Caldwell said after the game. “They can be excited for me, but I’m more excited for them.”
Four Tennessee players reached double figures, with Samara Spencer and Zee Spearman leading the way with 16 and 14 points, respectively, and here are three reasons why UConn lost.
UConn’s offense was not productive enough UConn shot at 40.3% from the field, which is more than 10% less than their season average.
Four UConn players registered double figures with freshman Sarah Strong leading the way with 18 points and nine rebounds. However, the Huskies weren’t as productive as they could have been, with two quarters in which they shot well under 40%.
Veteran star Paige Buecker has been averaging 18.7 points per game this season while shooting a productive 53.2% from the field, but she struggled against the Lady Vols. Bueckers went 5 of 16 while picking up 14 points. She did put up a team-high eight assists, but making a few more field goals clearly would have helped the Huskies in such a tight game.
The Huskies seemed to be taking control in the second quarter as they jumped out to a seven-point lead. However, Tennessee picked up some momentum and entered the break with only a two-point deficit. The Lady Vols found a nine-point advantage in the third quarter thanks to a stretch during which they held UConn scoreless for over four minutes.
Tennessee out-rebounded UConn This one was not really a surprise. The Huskies are not known as a super strong rebounding team, while Tennessee is 17th in the nation. The Lady Vols showed off that strength on Sunday as they won the rebounding battle 46-34.
Talaysia Cooper got eight rebounds for Tennessee, seven of those on the defensive end which helped limit second-point chances for the Huskies. Meanwhile, Zee Spearman and Ruby Whitehorn registered seven rebounds each.
Tennessee’s record was deceiving UConn entered this game as the higher ranked team while riding an 11-game winning streak. Meanwhile, Tennessee entered Sunday with five losses — all of them to SEC opponents.
The Lady Vols’ record was a bit deceiving because all of their losses were against currently ranked opponents — No. 15 Oklahoma, No. 6 LSU, No. 24 Vanderbilt, No. 4 Texas and most recently No. 2 South Carolina. There is also the fact that three of those losses were by only one or two points.
The loss to South Carolina, the most recent one, was only a seven-point defeat to a Gamecocks team that is averaging a 25.7 scoring margin, good enough for seventh in the nation.
Tennessee had been trending down in the rankings because of how tough the SEC competition is, but a win against Big East powerhouse UConn was a good reminder of how dangerous the Lady Vols can be.
Thursday’s result snapped UConn’s 11-game winning streak, and dropped them to 21-3 overall. Meanwhile, Tennessee improved to 17-5.
Up next, UConn will return to Big East conference play and take on Providence on the road on Sunday. That game will be available on CBS Sports Network. Tennessee has another tough challenge ahead against LSU in Baton Rouge that same day.
Since the turn of the year, Tennessee had lost five games by a combined 15 points. Four of those losses came against top-10 teams as the Lady Vols sought their first marquee victory in the Kim Caldwell era.
They fell by one against Oklahoma, two to LSU, four at Texas and seven vs. reigning national champion South Carolina. Tennessee was clearly good enough to take down a premier program, but for one reason or another, the win never quite materialized.
But rivalries can bring the best out of a team, and that’s exactly what happened Thursday in Knoxville.
UConn and Tennessee are the winningest schools in the sport, combining for 19 national championships. But the Huskies had the upper hand in the series, winning four straight meetings since the rivalry was renewed in 2020.
That changed with Thursday’s 80-76 Tennessee win, its first against UConn since 2007. The Volunteers finally broke through while also ending UConn’s slim hopes of running the table and possibly snagging a No. 1 seed.
Three reasons why Tennessee got its first win over UConn since 2007 Isabel Gonzalez Three reasons why Tennessee got its first win over UConn since 2007 Instead, the Huskies have a firm ceiling on the No. 2 line while Tennessee has moved up to a No. 4 seed, grabbing one of the final projected hosting spots.
It was a good week to be a “UT” as elsewhere, the Texas Longhorns benefitted from a USC loss against Iowa, passing the Trojans for the final No. 1 seed.
That Iowa win came on Caitlin Clark’s jersey retirement day. Even as a pro, Clark is still impacting the NCAA Tournament field.
No. 1 seeds
*UCLA (22-0, 10-0 Big Ten): NET 4, SOS 27 The nation’s only undefeated team will stay on the West Coast this week, first traveling to face Oregon on Sunday before returning to California for Thursday’s highly awaited showdown with USC.
UCLA is 6-0 this season against ranked teams, winning each of the last five by at least 13 points. Cori Close’s team is also 3-0 against top-10 teams this season, marking the first three-game win streak against top-10 teams in school history.
*South Carolina (22-1, 10-0 SEC): NET 1, SOS 1 South Carolina has had a 20-point scorer just twice through 10 conference games. The most points any of Dawn Staley’s players have scored in a game this season is 23.
That sets the Gamecocks apart from other title contenders — Notre Dame, USC, UCLA and LSU each have a player averaging at least 20 points per game. But South Carolina likes it that way. Any team whose top two scorers come off the bench is a team to be feared.
*Notre Dame (20-2, 11-0 ACC): NET 5, SOS 8 There just isn’t any suspense anymore. Notre Dame’s 15th straight win came in a 96-47 romp over bubble team Stanford that saw the Irish lead 50-15 at halftime. They didn’t need to score in the final two quarters.
The ACC is projected to have eight NCAA Tournament teams this season, but is any team good enough to prevent Notre Dame from finishing conference play undefeated?
Texas (23-2, 9-1 SEC): NET 3, SOS 6 Congratulations on becoming a No. 1 seed, Texas! There’s only one problem. South Carolina is up next on the schedule, and the Longhorns could just as easily lose their spot by the end of the weekend.
During the teams’ last meeting on Jan. 12, Texas shot a paltry 27.8% from the field. Starters combined for just 22 points and the Longhorns fell 67-50. Being at home should help this time around, but how much?
No. 2 seeds
USC (20-2, 10-1 Big Ten): NET 6, SOS 18 The last time USC and UCLA met was in the semifinals of the 2024 Pac-12 Tournament. USC won that game 80-70 in double-overtime behind 33 points and 10 rebounds from JuJu Watkins.
On Thursday, the Trojans will be seeking to win three straight games against UCLA for the first time since a seven-game streak from 2005-08. What had been a lopsided rivalry over the previous decade has transformed into must-watch TV of late.
LSU (24-1, 9-1 SEC): NET 9, SOS 58 With more wins than every other team in the nation, LSU’s path to a No. 1 seed has been held back by having fewer Quad-1 wins (four) than each of the teams above it.
But five of LSU’s final six games are Quad-1 opportunities, beginning with Sunday’s home tilt against Tennessee, a team the Tigers beat 89-87 on Jan. 9 thanks to Kailyn Gilbert’s game-winning layup.
*UConn (21-3, 12-0 Big East): NET 2, SOS 32 Tennessee entered its game against UConn as a team so close to pulling off the big win. That’s probably what it has felt like to be UConn over the past several years, continually being a top team but always seeming to lose in the biggest games.
There’s no need to feel bad for a team with 11 banners, but it once again seems like the Huskies may be a piece short from reaching their goals.
*Kansas State (22-2, 10-1 Big 12): NET 7, SOS 75 Wednesday’s win over TCU marked Kansas State’s biggest victory of the season. With no second meeting in the regular season, the Wildcats are now in the driver’s seat for the Big 12 regular-season title.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much room for upward mobility in a Bracketology context for a team with just two Quad-1 wins.
No. 3 seeds
Ohio State (20-2, 9-2 Big Ten): NET 15, SOS 60 Par for the course. The Buckeyes took care of business at a Washington team currently on the wrong side of the bubble but fell 65-62 at UCLA. They’ll get the other half of the two-headed Los Angeles monster Saturday at USC. While a signature win would be awfully nice, Ohio State should be feeling pretty good with the strength of its overall resume.
TCU (21-3, 9-2 Big 12): NET 10, SOS 42 After as tough a three-week stretch as you can get in Big 12 play, TCU will only play one projected NCAA Tournament team over the rest of February. That’ll be at home against West Virginia on the 23rd, although a few teams could pose a sneaky threat between now and then.
Kentucky (19-2, 8-1 SEC): NET 17, SOS 52 Georgia Amoore tied a school record with 43 points in Kentucky’s 95-86 win at Oklahoma on Sunday. The fifth-year senior, who also leads Division I with 7.5 assists per game, has continued to elevate her play, and the Wildcats are now one win away from their first 20-win season since 2019-20.
Duke (18-5, 9-2 ACC): NET 8, SOS 5 The Blue Devils have a staggering 11 wins over Quads 1-2, but playing a schedule that difficult has also left Duke with five losses, more than any other team seeded as highly.
But the team is still undefeated at home, a good sign heading into Sunday’s clash against the Haley Cavinder-led Miami Hurricanes, who have won two of three games following a 1-7 start to ACC play.
No. 4 seeds
North Carolina (20-4, 8-3 ACC): NET 13, SOS 29 UNC’s best wins this season are against Duke and Kentucky, the two teams directly above it in the bracketology. That may well be an important tiebreaker on Selection Sunday, but for now, North Carolina is just a smidge behind those two teams.
The Tar Heels should be on the lookout for next week’s clash against Virginia Tech, a bubble team whose best remaining opportunity for a resume-building win is that contest.
NC State (18-4, 10-1 ACC): NET 23, SOS 24 Over the past few weeks, we discussed how no ACC team had scored even 60 points against Duke. Apparently, NC State didn’t get the memo, as the Wolfpack won 89-83 at home against the Blue Devils on Monday.
Positioned firmly in the second tier of ACC schools behind Notre Dame, NC State travels to face a steadily rising Florida State team on Sunday.
Tennessee (17-5, 4-5 SEC): NET 11, SOS 7 Now with four Quad-1 wins and no losses outside of the NET top 20, Tennessee and the nation’s second-highest scoring offense (90.6 PPG) heads to LSU looking for revenge and another huge victory.
If the Lady Vols could pull it off, this would arguably be the team’s biggest week since the Pat Summitt era.
Maryland (18-5, 8-4 Big Ten): NET 24, SOS 9 It was another 1-1 week for a Maryland team looking to stop the bleeding. Sunday’s home loss to Illinois was the Terrapins’ first defeat of the season against an unranked team.
The good news is that Maryland only plays unranked teams for the rest of the month, but many of those opponents are still NCAA Tournament teams, and Brenda Frese’s squad has officially run out of wiggle room for maintaining a hosting position.
UCLA star Lauren Betts confirmed on Friday that she will return for her senior season with the Bruins and will not declare for the 2025 WNBA Draft. The 6-foot-7 center would have been a potential lottery pick if she declared for the draft this year.
“College is the best years of your life, and so I don’t think I’d ever give that up,” Betts told ESPN. “Why not be spoiled for a whole another year? The way the coaches take care of us in this program, like, how comfortable I am here, and I think that the friendships I’ve created — I’d want to do that for another year.”
While Betts is a junior, she was eligible to turn pro this year because she’ll turn 22 in October. Under the current WNBA draft rules, domestic draft prospects must be at least 22 years old in the year in which the draft takes place.
Betts started her collegiate career at Stanford but spent just one season there before transferring to UCLA. She’s come into her own this season and is averaging 20.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and a nation-leading 2.9 blocks on 64% shooting from the field. All of those numbers are career-highs.
With Betts leading the way, UCLA is undefeated (21-0) and ranked No. 1 in the country. The Bruins have never been to the Final Four in program history, let alone win a national championship, but UCLA will have a good chance to do so this season.
“I want to win a national championship, obviously, if not this year, then obviously next year, but hopefully we could just do it both times,” Betts said.
Having two chances at winning it all is enough reason for Betts to return for her senior season. Add in her little sister’s impending arrival and it was a no-brainer for Betts to stay in school. Siena Betts, a 6-foot-4 forward, is the No. 2 ranked recruit in the country, per 247 Sports. She signed with UCLA in November and will arrive on campus next season.
“I think that I would be crazy if I gave up the opportunity to play with my sister, so obviously, I’m going to come back next year,” Betts said.
No. 4 Texas pulled off a 66-62 upset win over No. 2 South Carolina on Sunday, handing the Gamecocks their first conference loss this season and snapping their 57-game SEC win streak. The last SEC loss for Dawn Staley’s squad came on Dec. 30, 2021, when Missouri gutted out a 70-69 overtime win.
Texas, although a top-five team, came into the game with an underdog mentality. On Jan. 12, the Gamecocks defeated the Longhorns 67-50 and held star forward Madison Booker to only seven points.
South Carolina shuts down Madison Booker, Texas in top-five win: Three takeaways from Gamecocks’ SEC rout Isabel Gonzalez South Carolina shuts down Madison Booker, Texas in top-five win: Three takeaways from Gamecocks’ SEC rout Booker, who led all scorers with 20 points in Sunday’s win, credited the strong mindset of her team for the win in front of a sold-out crowd at Moody Center.
“It’s a mental game,” Booker said when asked how Texas stopped a South Carolina push with 10 seconds left in the game. “It’s a mental game, that’s all I got to say.”
The will to win manifested in the Texas defense, which held South Carolina to 36% shooting from the floor in the first half. However, defense wasn’t the only contributing factor.
Here are the three keys that led to Texas’ big win.
Smothering defense The Longhorns were determined to set the tone early. They attacked South Carolina early and often. Despite having slightly more turnovers (13-10), Texas converted off its opponents’ mistakes for 13 points. Additionally, Texas dominated inside, scoring 40 points in the paint compared to South Carolina’s 26.
Combined, that resulted in a clunky offense for the Gamecocks as the 2024 NCAA champions scored well below their 81 points per game. The Gamecocks did a better job stretching the Longhorns defense in the second half, but neglected to make them pay, shooting just 26% from 3-point range.
Had South Carolina knocked down just two more 3-pointers, the game could’ve swung in its favor. Instead, the anemic perimeter shooting proved costly and the Gamecocks never led in the game.
Quick whistles South Carolina’s struggles to get a rhythm was exacerbated by stingy officiating, which led to the first free throw within the first 21 seconds of the game. There were 44 free throws taken between the top-five ranked teams, with Texas narrowly winning the free throw battle by 1.5 percentage points. However, it’s worth noting South Carolina had more free throw attempts (23-21) and makes (15-14) than Texas.
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley did not mince words regarding the officiating in her on-air interview after the first quarter.
“People are here to see the players play … we’re not going to adjust, ’cause this is the way we play,” Staley on the broadcast.
Staley and Texas coach Vic Schaefer were noticeably vocal throughout the game. South Carolina starter Te-Hina Paopao received two early fouls, limiting her to 10 first-half minutes. Sania Feagin, Bree Hall and MiLaysia Fulwiley all recorded at least three fouls compared to only two Texas players with three-plus fouls.
“Toughness” As Booker noted in her postgame interview, Texas had the right mentality to grind out a significant win, and nobody embodied that more than the 6-foot-1 sophomore. Booker ended the afternoon with 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Longhorns.
“They’re a great team,” Booker said of South Carolina. “We won all the battles, so I think that’s how we got the dub.”
Texas forced South Carolina to play its tempo. Despite South Carolina winning the fastbreak scoring battle 13-5, the Longhorns slowed down the Gamecocks enough to keep the nation’s No. 2-ranked team from ever leading in the ball game. Although it wasn’t the prettiest, most fluid win, Texas won where it mattered.
“Toughness,” Booker said. “Last time, we got out-toughed. This time we out-toughed them.”
Notre Dame rose to No. 2 in the AP Top 25 poll after South Carolina suffered an upset loss to Texas on Sunday. This is the Fighting Irish’s best ranking since 2019. Meanwhile, UCLA remains No. 1 for the 12th consecutive week.
The Gamecocks dropped to No. 4, while the Longhorns climbed to No. 3. South Carolina’s loss also ended the Gamecocks’ 57-game winning streak in regular-season SEC games, which dated back to December 2021.
It was also quite the week for No. 15 Tennessee, as the Lady Vols upset No. 5 UConn. That was the program’s first win over the Huskies since 2007.
Three reasons why Tennessee got its first win over UConn since 2007 Isabel Gonzalez Three reasons why Tennessee got its first win over UConn since 2007 Kim Caldwell’s team nearly caused more chaos in the rankings after almost pulling off an upset win over LSU while breaking its season record for 3-pointers. The Tigers survived that matchup, 82-77, with Aneesah Morrow registering her 23rd double-double of the season. That win helped LSU move back into the top five.
Vanderbilt and Cal dropped out of the top 25, with Creighton and Baylor sliding in to take their spots. This is the Bluejays’ first appearance in the poll this regular season, while Baylor has been ranked five weeks, including preseason.
Kentucky women’s basketball has been a surprise success his season, and it all stems from a decision made by coach Kenny Brooks back in 2002.
At the time, Brooks was the top assistant coach for James Madison men’s basketball when he decided to become an assistant coach on the women’s team. Almost everyone he knew told him he was taking a step backward in his career.
“All the way down to my family,” Brooks told CBS Sports. “Everyone, especially on the men’s (basketball) side, they were like, ‘Are you sure?’ My mom was dead set against it. She was like, ‘Don’t do it, you are going to be a head coach on the men’s side.'”
Brooks was sure because this was his second chance to make the switch. The first opportunity presented itself two years earlier, but he declined and regretted it immediately.
Brooks took over as James Madison’s women’s head coach a year later, and eventually led the Dukes to six NCAA Tournament appearances before getting hired by Virginia Tech in 2016. Fast forward to 2023, and Brooks had guided the Hokies to their first Final Four in program history while collecting a program-record 31 wins.
That decision Brooks made in 2002 still gets him a lot of praise from his peers, including NC State men’s basketball coach Kevin Keatts, Texas’ Rodney Terry and Clemson’s Brad Brownell.
“They all look at me and say, ‘You are a genius,'” Brooks said. “‘You knew something.'”
But last year, Brooks made another big decision. Just a year after the Virginia Tech Final Four run, Brooks accepted an offer to become the head coach at Kentucky — a program coming off back-to-back losing seasons.
Despite his “quarterback” Georgia Amoore following him from Virginia Tech, there were a lot of unknowns regarding how the Wildcats would fare this season. The most important questions being whether Teonni Key and Clara Strack could step up after transferring from North Carolina and Virginia Tech, respectively.
There were even questions regarding how Amoore would do in a completely different roster and environment.
“She’s an All-American, but I took her out of her comfort zone and she comes to a brand-new situation with a brand-new team in a brand-new conference,” Brooks said of Amoore. “So, there were a lot of unknowns, but what I did know is they were going to work hard.”
So far everything, has worked out quite well: The Wildcats are No. 8 in the AP Top 25 poll with a 19-2 record.
Women’s college basketball rankings: Texas leapfrogs South Carolina, Kentucky surges into top 10 Isabel Gonzalez Women’s college basketball rankings: Texas leapfrogs South Carolina, Kentucky surges into top 10 The Wildcats are fresh off consecutive wins over ranked opponents Alabama and Oklahoma. Amoore leads the team with 19.4 points per game and a Division I-best 7.5 assists per contest. Meanwhile, Strack averages 15.5 points along with a team-best 9.6 rebounding average and a total of 49 blocks.
Amoore and Strack are constantly being recognized by fans and media, but Brooks explained how other pieces of the team have been crucial for the success.
“Those two grab a lot of the headlines, but we don’t go if Teonni Key is not playing well. Pun intended, she is the key to our team,” Brooks said. “But it’s also Amelia Hassett. Amelia Hassett will do whatever we need her to do. She’ll do the dirty work, she’ll step up and she always quietly has a double-double. She almost averages 10 rebounds from the guard position.
“… And you have Dazia Lawrence, who came from UNC-Charlotte where she was the No. 1 option, the go-to person averaging 18 points a game, and she’s had to adjust her game to play off of Georgia to be a catch-and-shoot, but also creating. Her versatility allows us to switch her to the point so Georgia can get a rest.”
The Wildcats have length and athleticism, and the fact that all five starters are averaging double figures makes this a difficult team to scout. However, Brooks wanted to highlight a different aspect of their game.
“I there was a King of the Hill or Queen of the Hill 1-on-1 tournament — none of my kids would win because individually they are not good defenders, but collectively as a group they are really good,” Brooks said. “They play off of each other, they communicate well with each other, they help each other.
“I think our offense is so good sometimes our defense gets overlooked.”
The Wildcats are currently No. 4 in the SEC standings with an 8-1 conference record. Their lone conference loss was a 61-55 defeat by the hands of Texas A&M. Despite their success so far, the next month will be tough for Kentucky as it faces four ranked opponents: No. 3 Texas, No. 5 LSU, No. 15 Tennessee and No. 4 South Carolina, the reigning national champion.
“This league is very very tough. This league presents so many challenges for you,” Brooks said. “You can throw out the record of the team that you are playing — it’s all about matchup. How you match up with that next group because everyone is going to be physical, but some teams present different challenges for you, and you just have to be ready for it.”
Tennessee is trending up in the CBS Sports women’s college basketball Power Rankings following an upset win over UConn and a strong showing in a tight loss to LSU.
Kim Caldwell’s Lady Vols, ranked No. 14 this week, are 17-6 on the season and 4-6 in the SEC. Being below .500 in conference play is simply a reflection of their tough competition. The SEC teams has three teams in the top 10, including reigning national champion South Carolina.
Texas upsets South Carolina: Madison Booker, No. 4 Longhorns exact revenge on No. 2 Gamecocks in Austin Erica Ayala Texas upsets South Carolina: Madison Booker, No. 4 Longhorns exact revenge on No. 2 Gamecocks in Austin The Gamecocks have been a force to be reckoned with all season, but they suffered a 66-62 loss to Texas on Sunday and ultimately dropped two spots to No. 4. That was their second blemish of the season as they also fell to UCLA in November. Meanwhile, Vic Schaefer’s Longhorns rose to No. 3.
In the ACC, Notre Dame continues to take care of business and is the new No. 2. NC State rose to No. 8 with wins over Duke and Florida State this month.
The Big Ten is about to see its first Battle of Los Angeles as USC hosts UCLA on Thursday. The Bruins are the last undefeated Division I program in the nation and our No. 1 team since late November. Meanwhile, USC suffered its second loss of the season in a shocking upset to Iowa earlier this month. However, the Trojans got a 21-point win over Ohio State on Saturday and are still comfortably sit in the top 10 at No. 6.
Oklahoma State had an ugly loss to West Virginia on Feb. 1, but an 85-55 win against Kansas State earned the Cowgirls a ticket into the Power Rankings. Baylor fell to UCLA and TCU in late January, but the Bears have returned to the list with a four-game winning streak.
Here are the latest CBS Sports women’s college basketball Power Rankings.
No. 6 USC is hosting No. 1 UCLA on Thursday for the Big Ten’s first Battle of Los Angeles. These were the two teams predicted to finish atop the conference in their first season since moving from the Pac-12, and if their recent meetings are any indication of how this one will go down, fans are in for a treat.
The Bruins have been the No. 1 team in the nation for 12 consecutive weeks while being the last undefeated team remaining. Their 23-0 record is also the best start in program history.
Women’s college basketball rankings: Texas leapfrogs South Carolina, Kentucky surges into top 10 Isabel Gonzalez Women’s college basketball rankings: Texas leapfrogs South Carolina, Kentucky surges into top 10 The Trojans suffered their first loss in November against now-No. 2 Notre Dame. Their second loss was more unexpected, as it happened against an unranked Iowa squad earlier this month. However, USC bounced back with 20-plus point wins over Wisconsin and then-No. 8 Ohio State.
Here is what you need to know about Thursday’s matchup between USC and UCLA.
Where to watch No. 6 USC vs. No. 1 UCLA When: Thursday, Feb. 13 at 10 p.m. ET Where: Galen Center — Los Angeles TV: Peacock Streaming: fubo (follow for free) Follow: CBS Sports app
Series history UCLA holds a 33-24 lead over USC since 1999 in their all-time series, but the Trojans won their last two meetings.
Their most recent encounter was a double-overtime thriller in the 2024 Pac-12 semifinals. USC won it 80-70 behind 33 points and 10 rebounds from JuJu Watkins, who finished the season as the highest-scoring freshman in history with 920 points.
Lauren Betts had an excellent performance in that game, tallying 17 points and career-high 18 rebounds. Kiki Rice and Angela Dugalic also registered double figures in scoring.
This will be a star-studded rematch as both Watkins and Betts are two of the top candidates for national Player of the Year.
UCLA’s resume is unblemished The Bruins have collected wins over six ranked opponents, and also have a few other victories over teams that were not ranked at the time of their matchup but have been in the AP Top 25 at least once this season.
Cori Close’s team is led by junior center Lauren Betts and her 19.6 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. However, the Bruins are much deeper than her as six other players are averaging at least eight points per contest.
In their 62-52 win against Oregon on Sunday, Londynn Jones was the player who took over by registering a season-high 21 points, including five of UCLA’s seven 3-pointers. That game also saw a strong defensive effort by the Bruins as they held the Ducks to just 26.6% from the field.
The team dynamic can be seen in the stat sheet as the Bruins are No. 4 in the country with 21.1 assists per game. UCLA is also top 15 in both scoring offense and defense.
Kiki Iriafen, Kennedy Smith powering USC Sophomore guard JuJu Watkins has been going through a bit of a slump for her standards, but she still leads the team with 23.9 points per game. Grad student forward Kiki Iriafen is another top contributor with 18 points while shooting a productive 51.5% from the field.
Iriafen registered her eighth double-double in the 84-63 win over Ohio State, the Trojans’ fifth win over a ranked opponent.
One of the Trojans’ biggest moments this season was getting their first win against UConn in December. That was the day freshman Kennedy Smith returned to the USC lineup after a month-long absence due to a surgical procedure. It was a relief for USC coach Linsday Gottlieb as she described Smith as the “best defensive freshman player I ever had.”
Through the 16 games she has played this season, Smith is the Trojans’ third double-digit scorer with 10.2 points per game. USC is No. 9 in the country in scoring offense with 83.2 points per contest.
Azzi Fudd set a new career high with 34 points in No. 7 UConn’s 78-40 win over St. John’s on Wednesday night. Her performance also included a career-best eight 3-pointers.
Fudd’s basketball career has seen more than a few obstacles because of injuries, so this was an important moment for her as she reached 30-plus points for the first time since 2022.
“Confidence is obviously through the roof right now,” she said during her postgame interview. “I feel like I can’t miss, even though I’m mad I missed my last two.”
Despite missing her final two field goal attempts, she shot 13 of 22 (59%) from the field, and 8 of 14 (57%) from beyond the arc. The way she was playing, Fudd could have outscored St. John’s by herself, but she was only on the court for two minutes in the fourth quarter as the Huskies held a massive lead.
Fudd was on fire early in the night as she registered 13 points and three 3-pointers in the first quarter. When asked about what was different for her on Wednesday, she said it was a combination of preparation and her teammates helping her get good shots.
“I was locked in, extra locked in today in shootaround,” she said. “I think the last few practices we’ve been been doing a lot of press stuff, a lot of scoring. Just working on scoring, getting to the basket, not thinking. I think that’s what it was. Kind of the combination of my teammates finding me, setting me great screens as well, getting me open. I had amazing looks thanks to them.”
As a team, UConn shot at 53.7% from the field while holding St. John’s to just 25.5%. Paige Bueckers and Aubrey Griffin also reached double digits for the Huskies with 16 and 10 points, respectively. St. John’s efforts were led by Lashae Dwyer and Ber’Nyah Mayo with a combined 21 points.
Wednesday’s result helped No. 7 UConn improve to 23-3 overall and a perfect 14-0 in Big East play, while St. John’s dropped to 13-11 (3-10 Big East) on the season. The Huskies have posted back-to-back wins since losing at Tennessee last Thursday.
Fudd and the rest of the Huskies don’t have much time to celebrate as they need to start preparing to take on No. 4 South Carolina on the road on Sunday afternoon.
“I think we’ve learned a lot about ourselves and what we need to work on,” Fudd said. “I think we took our game at Tennessee as a lesson. These last practices have been some of our best all season, working on what we need to work on. That was kind of that eye opener that we needed. As a whole we are locked in, we are together.”
