Auriemma ties VanDerveer for most appearances at one school in women’s AP Top 25; UCLA remains No. 1

By DOUG FEINBERG The Associated Press

UConn guard Kaitlyn Chen, left, talks with UConn head coach Geno Auriemma, right, in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Southern California, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Hartford, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Jessica Hill]

UConn coach Geno Auriemma moved into a tie with Tara VanDerveer for the most appearances with one school in the women’s basketball AP Top 25 as the Huskies remained seventh in the poll Monday.

Auriemma has now led UConn to 627 appearances in the poll in his 40 years at the school, matching VanDerveer’s mark at Stanford before her retirement. She also had Ohio State ranked 27 times when the Hall of Fame coach was in charge of that school before joining the Cardinal and holds the overall record by a coach for appearances in the poll.

Auriemma passed VanDerveer’s NCAA record career win total earlier in the season and has 1,224 victories now after his team routed Providence on Sunday.

After a week where many schools played only a single game, UCLA, South Carolina and Notre Dame remained the top three teams and the first 18 schools were unchanged. The Bruins, Gamecocks and Irish all had routs in their lone games of the week, winning by an average of nearly 41 points. Every school in the country was off last week until Friday — a chance to recharge for the three-month sprint to the NCAA Tournament.

UCLA received 30 of the 32 first-place votes from a national media panel. South Carolina and Notre Dame each garnered one. USC, Texas and LSU followed Notre Dame. Maryland was eighth, finally putting away Michigan State to remain unbeaten with the 72-66 victory on Sunday.

Oklahoma and Ohio State rounded out the first 10 teams. The Sooners have a busy week ahead with games against rival Texas and No. 15 Tennessee on the road. It’s the first SEC road test for Oklahoma and could prove to be a high-scoring game.

Moving around

Michigan State dropped two spots to No. 21 after falling to Maryland, which moved Alabama and California both up a spot. Michigan’s loss at USC dropped the Wolverines one place to 24th with Iowa moving up to 23rd.

Home sweet home

South Carolina extended its home winning streak to 65 games with a victory over Wofford on Sunday. The Gamecocks are four victories short of making the top five all-time home streaks. Baylor, UConn and Tennessee all won 69 straight games at home to tie for the fourth longest all-time in Division I history. The Huskies hold the top two marks with 99 and 98-game runs. Stanford is third (82).

Conference breakdown

The Southeastern Conference finished off 2024 with eight teams in the poll for the second consecutive week to lead the way. The Big Ten is next with seven. The ACC has six while the Big 12 has three and the Big East one.

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