North Carolina State University Athletics
Women's Basketball jumps to No. 17 in AP Poll
3/5/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
NC State (23-9) earned a pair of victories in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament this past weekend in Greensboro, N.C. The Pack pulled of the biggest win of the college basketball season on Saturday, defeating previously unbeaten Duke 70-65 in the semifinal round of the ACC Tourney, ending the Blue Devils' 30-game winning streak.
On Friday, NC State posted a convincing 76-49 victory over fifth-seeded Florida State.
The Wolfpack's chance at an ACC title was stopped on Sunday in a hard-fought 60-54 setback to the now third-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels.
Even with a loss to the Pack, Duke is still No. 1.
Duke led the AP women's basketball poll for the eighth straight week, holding on by a solid margin despite losing for the first time. Montana joined at No. 25 as the only newcomer, its first national ranking in 13 years.
Connecticut (28-2) moved up one spot to second and received seven first-place votes, the first time this season the Huskies have been voted No. 1 on any ballots. It's their highest ranking since they led the poll the week of Feb. 23, 2004.
The four other first-places votes went to No. 3 North Carolina (30-3), which climbed one place after beating NC State to win the ACC tournament. The Wolfpacks' strong run through the tournament lifted them seven spots to 17th, by far the biggest jump within the poll.
Tennessee, a loser to LSU in the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament, slipped two spots to fourth.
Duke, which doesn't play again until the NCAA tournament, had 1,225 points in the voting to lead UConn by 48 points. The Huskies were 17 points ahead of North Carolina.
Despite the loss, Duke's resume remains impressive. The Blue Devils beat North Carolina and defending national champion Maryland twice each while going 14-0 in the ACC, and they also won at Tennessee. They'll be a strong candidate for the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAAs.
Connecticut took a 14-game winning streak into the semifinals of the Big East tournament against No. 23 Louisville on Monday night. Coach Geno Auriemma's team, which has won those 14 games by an average of 19 points, has lost only to Tennessee and North Carolina.Montana (27-2) made the Top 25 for the first time since it was 17th in the final poll of the 1993-94 season.
The Lady Griz won their 13th regular-season Big Sky championship and 20th league title overall in coach Robin Selvig's 29 seasons. They'll take an 11-game winning streak into the conference tournament.
Ohio State remained fifth, while Stanford traded places with Maryland, the Cardinal climbing to sixth and the Terrapins falling to seventh. Arizona State went from ninth to eighth, Vanderbilt climbed four places to ninth after winning the SEC tournament and LSU moved up one spot to 10th.Oklahoma was 11th, followed by Texas A&M, Purdue, Georgia and George Washington. The Lady Bulldogs fell from 10th to 14th after their loss to Vanderbilt in the SEC semifinals and George Washington tumbled from eighth to 15th, the biggest drop in the poll, after losing to Saint Joseph's in the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 tournament.
Middle Tennessee, NC State, Baylor, Rutgers and Bowling Green completed the top 20.
The final five were Marquette, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Louisville, Michigan State and Montana.
California dropped out, one week after returning to the poll. The Bears, who had been 25th, beat Oregon in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 tournament, then lost to Arizona State in the semis.
Most of the ranked teams are finished playing until the NCAA tournament. Bowling Green starts play in the Mid-American Conference tournament on Tuesday, while Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Baylor have games in the Big 12 tournament on Wednesday.
Wisconsin-Green Bay plays in the Horizon League quarterfinals on Wednesday. Montana doesn't play in the Big Sky tourney until Friday night's semifinals.
