With the first weekend of ’24-’25 women’s college basketball season finished, several players made it known they’re here for a good time and a long time. Milaysia Fulwiley reminded us in fewer than 20 minutes of play that she’s all about buckets—scoring 18 points on 8-14 shooting. NC State freshman Zamaryea Jones scored 16 points off the bench in a loss against Fulwiley and South Carolina. Iowa’s own Lucy Olsen stuffed the stat sheet against Virginia Tech with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.
Meanwhile, top-ranked freshman Sarah Strong is averaging 15 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 4 steals for the UConn Huskies, after her opening week of college basketball. Rutgers senior Destiny Adams won Big Ten Player of the Week on the heels of a 36-point, 22-rebound, 2-block game. Norfolk State’s Diamond Johnson helped her team upset Missouri by scoring 17 points and serving 4 assists. Notre Dame’s super sophomore Hannah Hidalgo gave Purdue 28 points, 7 rebounds, 6 steals, and 3 assists in a 108-58 route.
The weekend gave us two upsets: Oregon topped 12th-ranked Baylor 76-74, and 18th-ranked Maryland beat 11th-ranked Duke 85-80. Maryland and Duke hadn’t played each other in 10 years, but the old ACC rivalry had not lost any of its past intensity. And in a game that maintained a frantic pace, Maryland was lucky to have Christina Dalce on their team, as she powered the Terps with 12 points and 14 rebounds. The Blue Devils never led during the game, missed a ton of layups, and only shot 53.8% from the free-throw line.
In the season’s first matchup with two Top 10 teams, South Carolina extended their win streak to 40 games, defeating NC State 71-57. NC State made a run late but didn’t have enough without a significant contribution from Saniya Rivers, who ended the game with only 4 points. South Carolina’s Te-Hina Paopao led the number 1 ranked Gamecock’s in scoring with 23 points. South Carolina dominated on the boards, outrebounding NC State 40-25.
The week ahead allows teams to address lingering injuries, solidify rotations, and prepare for a flurry of games before and into the Thanksgiving break. Movement among the Top 25 should be minimal, if at all, with the Top 10 remaining completely intact.
Keep your eyes and ears open, or else you’ll miss something special this season.
Top 25 (Week 2)
1. South Carolina
2. UConn
3. USC
4. Texas
5. UCLA
6. Notre Dame
7. LSU
8. Iowa State
9. Oklahoma
10. Kansas State
11. Maryland
12. Ohio State
13. NC State
14. North Carolina
15. West Virginia
16. Duke
17. Baylor
18. Louisville
19. Ole Miss
20. Kentucky
21. Nebraska
22. Alabama
23. Illinois
24. Stanford
25. Oregon
Watchability
Pitt vs. West Virginia (Tue, Nov. 12, 7 p.m., ESPN+)
Norfolk St vs. Alabama (Wed, Nov. 13, 7 p.m., SECN+)
Dayton vs. Duke (Thu, Nov. 14, 7 p.m., ACC Extra)
UConn vs. North Carolina (Fri, Nov. 15, 6 p.m., ESPN2)
Louisville vs. Kentucky (Sat, Nov. 16, 6 p.m., SECN+)
NC State vs. TCU (Sun, Nov. 17, 3 p.m., ESPN/ESPN+)
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Mark Patton is an owner of too many sneakers, a passionate and persistent advocate for public school students experiencing homelessness and a big sports fan with immaculate taste in Hip-hop music.
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