Despite losing point guard Jaylyn Sherrod and other key players from last year’s Sweet 16 team, Colorado still earned a respectable number of votes in the preseason USA TODAY Sports Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
The new-look Buffs received 15 votes, the seventh-most among Big 12 Conference teams. For comparison, Colorado was ranked No. 18 in last year’s preseason poll before finishing the 2023-24 season at No. 16.
In this year’s preseason poll, released Thursday, four Big 12 teams cracked the top 25: No. 9 Iowa State, No. 12 Baylor, No. 13 Kansas State and No. 15 West Virginia. TCU received 37 votes and Utah had 25.
Led by returning guards Frida Formann, Kindyll Wetta and a slew of talented newcomers, Colorado will open its 2024-25 season on Nov. 4 at Wyoming. The Buffs’ home opener is scheduled for Nov. 7 against Northern Colorado.
Take a complete look at the preseason USA TODAY Sports Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll:
| Rank | School (Last Year’s Record) | Points | First Place Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Carolina (38-0) | 770 | 27 |
| 2 | Connecticut (33-6) | 734 | 3 |
| 3 | Southern California (29-6) | 716 | 1 |
| 4 | Texas (33-5) | 670 | – |
| 5 | Notre Dame (28-7) | 629 | – |
| 6 | UCLA (27-7) | 612 | – |
| 7 | LSU (31-6) | 567 | – |
| 8 | North Carolina State (31-7) | 533 | – |
| 9 | Iowa State (21-12) | 487 | – |
| 10 | Oklahoma (23-10) | 457 | – |
| 11 | Duke (22-12) | 449 | – |
| 12 | Baylor (26-8) | 434 | – |
| 13 | Kansas State (26-8) | 407 | – |
| 14 | Ohio State (26-6) | 405 | – |
| 15 | West Virginia (25-8) | 285 | – |
| 16 | North Carolina (20-13) | 263 | – |
| 17 | Louisville (24-10) | 261 | – |
| 18 | Maryland (19-14) | 254 | – |
| 19 | Florida State (23-11) | 177 | – |
| 20 | Creighton (26-6) | 150 | – |
| 21 | Mississippi (24-9) | 135 | – |
| 22 | Kentucky (12-20) | 106 | – |
| 23 | Nebraska (23-12) | 92 | – |
| 24 | Indiana (26-6) | 75 | – |
| 25 | Alabama (24-10) | 57 | – |
Others Receiving Votes
Gonzaga 49; TCU 37; Tennessee 32; Stanford 32; Iowa 28; Utah 25; South Dakota State 22; Oregon State 21; Princeton 18; Colorado 15; Virginia Tech 10; Illinois 9; Middle Tennessee 8; Fairfield 7; Richmond 6; California 6; Auburn 5; UNLV 4; Miami (FL) 4; FGCU 4; South Florida 3; George Mason 2; Saint Joseph’s 1; Michigan 1; Cleveland State 1;