Women’s college basketball power rankings: UConn keeps rolling, LSU bounces back

As 2026 begins, the world of college basketball is in chaos. There were a lot of troubling things happening during the game, with surprising international additions and untimely injuries. The priorities that seemed set in December have been upended—with one notable exception.

Wow, look at those UConn Huskies.

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According to Her Hoop Stats, the Huskies, coming off another clinical blowout (a 41-point blowout on the road against Creighton), ranked fourth in offensive efficiency and first in defensive efficiency despite having the best winning percentage among their opponents. They rank first in effective field goal percentage and assists per game and fifth in forced turnovers. Sarah Strong leads the nation in win shares for the second straight season despite averaging just under 27 minutes per game.

UConn won’t have to wait long to beat a team. A cautious first quarter would lead to a sharp rise in the second quarter; against the Blue Jays, the Huskies led 21-14 after the first quarter and expanded their lead to 38-14 in the blink of an eye.

It’s been another season of familiar dominance from UConn — Creighton even had its second-highest attendance ever on Sunday despite not being competitive at all against the Huskies. Fans just want to spend time together. The question is whether other teams are capable of providing a challenge. Thanks to a furious fourth-quarter rally, Michigan fell within three points of UConn, and the defending champions have won at least 26 games in each of their past 12 games.

Last season provided a proof of concept that the Huskies didn’t necessarily need to test in January and February to be ready in March. While the rest of the country is fighting each other, UConn is perfectly capable of peaking in two months, which is a scary thought when it already looks like the best team in the country.

Dropped: Nebraska (15), USC (17), Stanford (23), Georgia (25)

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Also considering: Oregon, Minnesota, West Virginia

This is the Jaloni Cambridge Show

Arguably, no one is having a better week than Ohio State sophomore Jaloni Cambridge. Cambridge favorite and Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson watched her game against Illinois, and the Buckeyes guard put on a show, scoring a career-high 41 points on 15-for-25 shooting. Despite having no 3-point jumpers to speak of, Cambridge still got into the zone reliably. She took 10 shots in the penalty area and is shooting 75.7% this season. Cambridge’s efficiency in the paint is reminiscent of a young Chennedy Carter, with both smaller guards residing in the paint, although defenders don’t have to worry about their long-range jumpers.

Cambridge follows up its win over the Illini with another strong performance against Maryland. The Terrapins, who haven’t lost at home all season (and have only lost once total), had few answers against Cambridge. She got to the basket again, attempting seven shots within 4 1/2 feet. She also found success in the mid-range, especially in the fourth quarter when she hit three mid-range jumpers in the win over Maryland. Cambridge has the ability to get to her spots regardless of the opponent, and she’s much more efficient in transition in her second year than she was in her freshman year. Her assist rate is about the same, but her points per game are 0.14 higher.

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Ohio State’s early schedule doesn’t give a good indication of its ability; the Buckeyes’ only noteworthy opponent is UConn, and the Huskies beat Ohio State. Facing opposition from Big Ten opponents, Cambridge and the Buckeyes proved they remain relevant in the conference, even if they are temporarily out of contention for a national title. Aside from UCLA, it’s hard to find a Big Ten team that plays better than Ohio State.

Kody McMahon expands her range

As her previous program found its footing without her, Cody McMahon showed off a different part of her game at Ohio State. When McMahon was playing for the Buckeyes, she was basically a bowling ball that knocked down pins on the way to the basket, but she was asked to show off more skill in the Mississippi State game.

After playing the four position for the first three seasons, McMahon found himself in charge of the Rebels’ offense. She will serve as the ball-handler in the pick-and-roll nearly as many times as she will in all of 2024-25. Her assist rate is 7% higher than last season.

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When McMahon wants to score, she comes off ball screens and takes short jumpers instead of driving all the way to the basket. This season, McMahon shot 57.8% from the paint outside the penalty area, compared to 42.5% last season. Among Ole Miss’s dissatisfaction with the situation – no. 5 Oklahoma State, McMahon’s first two possessions began with high screens from Christeen Iwuala, which allowed the senior forward to score in the mid-range.

The longer the season goes on, the more baffling the Rebels’ loss to Kansas State becomes. But that shouldn’t take away from Ole Miss’s impressive start to the SEC season, with three wins and a close loss to Texas. Longhorns coach Vic Schaefer praised McMahon for making the Rebels’ defense “problematic” because of her scoring ability, drive and ability to play multiple positions. Mississippi State has been a problem for most opponents since McMahon’s arrival.

LSU bounces back quickly

The most iconic play of LSU’s win over Texas on Sunday came early in the second quarter. Freshman Grace Knox, who was promoted to the starting lineup after the Tigers lost two straight games, grabbed an offensive rebound from the free throw line. Knox was pushed away and fouled by Texas Judge Carlton; as she fell to the ground, Knox did a few push-ups before standing up, much to the delight of her senior teammate Amiya Joyner.

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Rebounding has been a major point of contention for LSU’s coaching staff after the Tigers’ losses to Kentucky and Vanderbilt. Offensive rebounding is non-negotiable in this program; the nation’s leading offensive rebounder spent the past three seasons at LSU, while Angel Reese and Aneesah Morrow both led the nation in total rebounds while with the Tigers.

As LSU got back in the win column, it also won the rebounding battle against Georgia (+8) and Texas (+9), highlighted by the hard work of Knox and others. The Tigers still need to improve their execution late in games, and they nearly lost a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter (a period when Knox didn’t see the floor, by the way) but were saved by a clutch shot from Mikayla Williams.

LSU has too much offensive firepower to ignore. The win against the Longhorns was a reminder of how lethal the Tigers can be when they also control the ball game.

Bailey Maupin’s heroic season at Texas Tech

One of my personal complaints about basketball is that violations are rarely mentioned. Players kept getting into the paint or crossing the three-point line without any consequences before the ball hit the rim. In Texas Tech’s come-from-behind win over West Virginia, the Mountaineers should have been whistled for an attempted foul on Snuda Collins with less than two minutes remaining. Luckily for the Red Raiders, that missed call turned into something better.

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After playing catch-up throughout the fourth quarter, Jarlin Bristow grabbed an offensive rebound on a missed free throw and found senior guard Bailey Maupin on the wing. Maupin immediately hit a three-pointer to give Texas Tech a one-point lead that they held for the rest of the game. She finished with 27 points, none more important than that jump shot that probably shouldn’t have happened.

It’s been an unexpected season for Maupin and the Red Raiders. They finished 13th out of 16 teams in the conference and became the only undefeated team in the Big 12 Conference. Maupin is having the most productive season of her career. She shot 56 percent from two-point range, compared with her previous high of 46.2 percent; and she shot 37 from three-point range, nearly 4 percentage points higher than her previous high. Texas Tech was supposed to come back down to earth at some point, but the Raiders kept passing every test, first against Baylor and then West Virginia. They’re making some pretty awesome footage in the process.

Games worth watching

(All times are Eastern Time)

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TCU at West Virginia, Tuesday, 7 p.m., ESPN+

Notre Dame, Louisville, Thursday, 6 p.m., ACCN

Texas vs. South Carolina, Thursday, 7 p.m., ESPN2

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

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