The Week 12 AP Poll Top 25 teams for women's college basketball was released on Monday, with some significant movement throughout the rankings. It will be interesting to see how these programs step up going forward with about six weeks remaining in the regular season.
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What did the AP Poll Top 25 look like this week?
The AP Poll Top 25 saw a lot of movement toward the top, but no one has been able to supplant the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks. However, the UCLA Bruins are getting closer, as they are 42 points behind the Gamecocks despite not receiving a single first-place vote.
Below are AP's top 25 teams in college basketball after Week 12:
The biggest drop saw Florida State fall eight spots to No. 23 in the nation, and the largest climber was Ohio State, going up six spots to No. 12.
What made UCLA jump to No. 2 in the AP Poll Top 25?
Going 1-1 typically does not see a team climb to the second spot in women's college basketball, but that happened for the UCLA Bruins. The Bruins lost to the then-No. 9-ranked USC Trojans at home 73-65 for their first loss of the season.
However, UCLA bounced back with a 76-68 road victory over the then-No. 3-ranked Colorado Buffaloes to get back in the win column. The team scored 27 points in the fourth quarter behind senior guard Charisma Osborne's 22 points.
The Bruins have shown the ability to play well, and it will be intriguing to see if they can find a way to get the top spot in women's college basketball.
Can the South Carolina Gamecocks remain undefeated?
The South Carolina Gamecocks are a perfect 17-0, with a few ranked matchups remaining on their schedule. They will play Angel Reese and the LSU Tigers on Thursday. The Gamecocks take on the UConn Huskies as their only other ranked opponent.
The team has a great complement of players, with five averaging at least 10 points per game. It will be challenging to stop South Carolina, as it does everything exceptionally well. It's difficult to go undefeated, but this team has a legitimate shot of ending the regular season unblemished.
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