Thursday saw the release of the women’s basketball USA TODAY Sports preseason coaches poll. Coach Kristy Curry and the Alabama Crimson Tide are ranked No. 25 entering the 2024-25 season.
Curry led Alabama to a 24-10 overall record last season and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Crimson Tide defeated Florida State in the first round before falling to the Texas Longhorns, 65-54.
A week ago, Alabama was ranked in the preseason AP Top 25 poll for the first time since 1998. That year, Rick Moody’s Crimson Tide team ranked preseason No. 9 and finished 20-11. Alabama lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Dawn Staley and the defending national champion South Carolina Gamecocks took the No. 1 spot in the preseason coaches poll with 27 first-place votes. The Gamecocks went a perfect 38-0 last season and won the national championship over Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes with a roster that included fellow WNBA first-round pick Kamilla Cardoso (No. 3 overall).
UConn was ranked No. 2 behind South Carolina, with the USC Trojans at No. 3 and Texas at No. 4. Notre Dame rounded out the top five.
Other SEC teams ranked in the preseason Top 25 were Kim Mulkey’s LSU Tigers (No. 8), the Oklahoma Sooners (No. 10), the Ole Miss Rebels (No. 21) and the Kentucky Wildcats (No. 22).
Alabama opens the season on Nov. 4 at Coleman Coliseum against the University of New Orleans. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT.
2024-25 Women’s Basketball Preseason 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 (32-4) 49; TCU (21-12) 37; Stanford (30-6) 32; Tennessee (20-13) 32; Iowa (34-5) 28; Utah (23-11) 25; South Dakota State (27-6) 22; Oregon State (27-8) 21; Princeton (25-5) 18; Colorado (24-10) 15; Virginia Tech (25-8) 10; Illinois (19-15) 9; Middle Tennessee (30-5) 8; Fairfield (31-2) 7; California (19-15) 6; Richmond (29-6) 6; Auburn (20-12) 5; Florida Gulf Coast (29-5) 4; Miami (Fla.) (19-12) 4; UNLV (30-3) 4; South Florida (19-14) 3; George Mason (23-8) 2; Cleveland State (29-6) 1; Michigan (20-14) 1; Saint Joseph’s (28-6)
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