USA TODAY Big Ten women's basketball power rankings with conference play underway

USA TODAY Big Ten women’s basketball power rankings with conference play underway

Posted by Admin December 12, 2024 Sports

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We’ve reached another round of Big Ten women’s basketball power rankings.

Conference-play cameos began last weekend and will continue this coming weekend, with all teams getting at least one Big Ten game in before briefly jumping back into non-conference play. Here are the latest USA TODAY Sports Network power rankings.

1. UCLA (9-0)

Previously: No. 1

What to know: No trouble for the Bruins recently, winning road games at Hawaii and Washington to open conference play.

2. USC (9-1)

Previously: No. 2

What to know: JuJu Watkins and the Trojans are back on track and dominating, having recently picked up wins over California Baptist, Oregon and Fresno State.

3. Maryland (10-0)

Previously: No. 3

What to know: Maryland kicked off conference play with a road win over Purdue to go with victories over Toledo and Mount St. Mary’s since the last rankings.

4. Ohio State (9-0)

Previously: No. 4

What to know: A home win over Illinois got Ohio State off on the right foot in Big Ten play, followed by a Ball State drubbing earlier this week.

5. Iowa (9-1)

Previously: No. 5

What to know: The Hawkeyes took their first stumble last Saturday against Tennessee, but Iowa rebounded emphatically with a key rivalry win over Iowa State.

6. Michigan State (9-0)

Previously: No. 6

What to know: A cruise-control win over DePaul last Sunday has Michigan State ready to roll for this weekend’s Big Ten opener vs. Iowa.

7. Michigan (8-1)

Previously: No. 11

What to know: Michigan has things more than stabilized after its opening-night loss to South Carolina. The Wolverines have won nine in a row, most recently toppling Northwestern in their Big Ten opener.

8. Nebraska (9-1)

Previously: No. 8

What to know: Nebraska had no trouble with Minnesota or Tarleton State this past week.

9. Illinois (7-2)

Previously: No. 7

What to know: Illinois couldn’t quite hang with Ohio State in Sunday’s conference-opening loss.

10. Indiana (7-3)

Previously: No. 13

What to know: A road rout over Penn State is exactly what Indiana needed to begin Big Ten play.

11. Minnesota (11-1)

Previously: No. 9

What to know: Minnesota’s first real challenge didn’t go well in a blowout road loss at Nebraska.

12. Oregon (7-3)

Previously: No. 10

What to know: Oregon has come back to reality with three losses in its last four following a 6-0 start. Oregon fell to USC in its first-ever Big Ten game.

13. Penn State (9-2)

Previously: No. 12

What to know: A road win over Providence mitigated some of the damage from Penn State’s conference-opening loss to Indiana.

14. Wisconsin (9-2)

Previously: No. 14

What to know: For once, Wisconsin is trending in the right direction as December hits the midway point. The Badgers picked up recent wins over Rutgers and Butler.

15. Washington (7-3)

Previously: No. 15

What to know: The Huskies couldn’t hang with UCLA in their first-ever Big Ten game.

16. Purdue (5-4)

Previously: No. 16

What to know: Purdue kept it respectable but ultimately couldn’t hang with Maryland in its Big Ten opener.

17. Rutgers (6-4)

Previously: No. 17

What to know: Rutgers has dropped five of six after a 4-0 start, its most recent stumble coming last Sunday at Wisconsin.

18. Northwestern (4-4)

Previously: No. 18

What to know: The Wildcats kept it somewhat close at Michigan but couldn’t come away with a needed upset.

Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.