Utah Women’s Basketball Earns Highest Ranking Ever After Clinching Partial Pac-12 Regular-Season Title
Feb 27, 2023, 11:47 AM
SALT LAKE CITY – Excitement continues to swirl around Utah women’s basketball after they knocked off (at the time) No. 3 Stanford to clinch a piece of the regular-season Pac-12 Title for the first time in program history.
Now the Utes are enjoying their highest ranking in program history after the latest AP Top 25 Poll was released Monday morning. Utah comes in at No. 3 beating their highest spot at No. 4 which was also earned earlier this season.
It’s been a buzz-worthy few days for the Utes being projected as a one-seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament, earning a two-seed BYE for the Pac-12 Tournament, and of course beating what many consider to be the standard of Pac-12 women’s basketball in Stanford, 84-78 to wrap up the regular season.
#Trophies 🏆#GoUtes #UteProud #Pac12Champs pic.twitter.com/kY2P1u2H4q
— Michelle Bodkin (@BodkinKSLsports) February 25, 2023
“That was a great game,” head coach Lynne Roberts said. “I think the reason it means so much too is that we did it beating Stanford. They have been the elite program not just in our conference but in the country for years. I have so much respect for them and the way they play, the way they compete and that’s why it means more to do this, to beat them. Incredibly proud of my team. That was a great game.”
Utah Women’s Basketball In The AP
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ women’s college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, and total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and previous ranking.
| Record | Pts | Prv | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. South Carolina (28) | 29-0 | 700 | 1 |
| 2. Indiana | 26-2 | 650 | 2 |
| 3. Utah | 25-3 | 599 | 8 |
| 4. LSU | 27-1 | 590 | 5 |
| 5. Maryland | 24-5 | 588 | 7 |
| 6. Stanford | 27-4 | 587 | 3 |
| 7. Iowa | 23-6 | 560 | 6 |
| 8. Virginia Tech | 24-4 | 497 | 9 |
| 9. UConn | 25-5 | 484 | 4 |
| 10. Notre Dame | 24-4 | 481 | 10 |
| 11. Villanova | 25-5 | 378 | 15 |
| 12. Texas | 22-7 | 355 | 19 |
| 13. Duke | 24-5 | 347 | 11 |
| 14. Ohio St. | 23-6 | 331 | 16 |
| 15. Gonzaga | 27-3 | 282 | 18 |
| 16. Oklahoma | 22-5 | 273 | 13 |
| 17. Michigan | 21-8 | 202 | 12 |
| 18. North Carolina | 20-9 | 183 | 22 |
| 19. UCLA | 22-8 | 181 | 17 |
| 20. Colorado | 22-7 | 174 | 21 |
| 21. Arizona | 21-8 | 144 | 14 |
| 22. UNLV | 27-2 | 122 | 24 |
| 23. Iowa St. | 18-8 | 115 | 20 |
| 24. Middle Tennessee | 23-4 | 58 | 25 |
| 25. South Florida | 25-5 | 42 | – |
Others receiving votes: Creighton 34, Tennessee 31, Florida St. 24, Oklahoma St. 18, Mississippi 13, Florida Gulf Coast 13, South Dakota St. 10, Southern Cal 10, Louisville 8, Toledo 8, Illinois 5, NC State 3.
Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for KSLsports.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram: @BodkinKSLsports
