After a terrific start to the season and thanks to losses from LSU and UConn, the Iowa Hawkeyes (3-0) jumped up a spot to No. 2 in the latest AP Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Poll.
The Hawkeyes garnered 13 first-place votes and captured a total of 869 points. Iowa has opened with a 102-46 victory over Fairleigh Dickson, a signature win over then-No. 8 Virginia Tech in the Ally Tipoff, 80-76, and another impressive road win over Northern Iowa, 94-53.
Senior superstar guard Caitlin Clark is already reminding everyone why she’s the nation’s best player. Against a fellow Final Four participant from last season in the Virginia Tech Hokies, Clark dropped a cool 44 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out six assists.
Then, she went ahead and became just the second player in women’s college basketball history to record a triple-double in four different seasons after her 24 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds triple-double against UNI. It’s the 12th career triple-double for Clark.
Iowa has gotten a number of other key performances in its strong start as well. Sophomore forward Hannah Stuelke looks like her game is really starting to round into form and redshirt junior guard Kylie Feuerbach added a much-needed eight points and spark in the third quarter against the Hokies.
While Iowa’s start impressed the AP voters, it wasn’t quite enough to get the Hawkeyes the nod up to the coveted No. 1 ranking. That distinction is instead bestowed upon another team that made its way to last season’s Final Four.
South Carolina made a five-spot leap up to No. 1 after blowout wins over then-No. 10 Notre Dame in their season opener in Paris and over then-No. 14 Maryland. The Gamecocks topped Notre Dame, 100-71, behind a 20-point performance from senior center Kamilla Cardoso. Then, South Carolina beat Maryland 114-76 as senior guard Te-Hina Paopao led the way with a team-high 14 points.
Of course, previous No. 1 and defending national champion LSU was upset by then-No. 20 Colorado, 92-78. After adding wins over Le Moyne and Oklahoma State, the Buffs jumped all the way up to No. 5.
Elsewhere, No. 2 UConn took a tumble at North Carolina State, falling, 92-81. That sent the Huskies spiraling down the rankings as well.
Here’s a look at the full AP Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Poll for Nov. 13:
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Change |
| 1 | South Carolina | 2-0 | 884 (23) | +5 |
| 2 | Iowa | 3-0 | 869 (13) | +1 |
| 3 | UCLA | 3-0 | 801 | +1 |
| 4 | Utah | 2-0 | 764 | +1 |
| 5 | Colorado | 3-0 | 681 | +15 |
| 6 | Stanford | 2-0 | 673 | +9 |
| 7 | LSU | 2-1 | 670 | -6 |
| 8 | UConn | 1-1 | 625 | -6 |
| 9 | Virginia Tech | 1-1 | 601 | -1 |
| 10 | USC | 2-0 | 550 | +11 |
| 11 | Texas | 2-0 | 483 | +2 |
| 12 | Florida State | 2-0 | 475 | +6 |
| 13 | Ohio State | 1-1 | 454 | -6 |
| 14 | North Carolina State | 2-0 | 445 | NR |
| 15 | Tennessee | 1-1 | 383 | -4 |
| 16 | Notre Dame | 1-1 | 375 | -6 |
| 17 | North Carolina | 2-0 | 346 | -1 |
| 18 | Indiana | 1-1 | 328 | -9 |
| 19 | Louisville | 2-0 | 288 | -2 |
| 20 | Maryland | 1-1 | 241 | -6 |
| 21 | Baylor | 1-0 | 215 | -2 |
| 22 | Creighton | 2-0 | 131 | NR |
| 23 | Ole Miss | 1-1 | 101 | -11 |
| 24 | Washington State | 3-0 | 97 | NR |
| 25 | Oklahoma | 3-0 | 94 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Mississippi State, 51; Kansas State, 31; Kansas, 15; Texas A&M, 10; Duke, 7; Marquette, 4; Miami, 3; UNLV, 2; Illinois, 1; Drake, 1; Arizona, 1
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