How Lady Vols writer Cora Hall voted in the AP Top 25: You should be paying attention to Oregon State
The curse of the No. 2 spot in the AP Top 25 lives on.
For five straight weeks, the No. 2 in the AP Top 25 has lost. Iowa fell victim to the curse for a second time after getting upset by Nebraska on Sunday. It happened to Kansas State last week and UCLA the two other times – whichever team lands at No. 2 this week will have a streak to break.
Something that streak reveals, though, is just how good South Carolina is. Last season before the NCAA Tournament, it often felt like the No. 1 Gamecocks and then everyone else. This season, it feels the same way – but somehow the gap feels even bigger, which is incredible to say with four players from last season's team now on WNBA rosters.
But Dawn Staley has built a program to last, and she's the frontrunner for Coach of the Year.
With both NC State and Colorado losing, Stanford has risen back up to No. 2. The Pac-12 is the best conference in the country, and the Cardinal are sitting alone at No. 1. NC State, Ohio State and Texas round out my top five.
Teams on the rise you should be paying attention to
Oregon State should be at the top of your list of teams you should be paying attention to. The Beavers have steadily risen in my ballot since the entered my top 25 in Week 10.
After wins over Utah and Colorado – which gives them a sweep over both teams in Pac-12 play – the Beavers are No. 10 on my ballot this week. Oregon State has a young star in sophomore forward Raegan Beers, who's averaging a double-double while playing against a handful of the top post players in the nation.
The Beavers are rank in the the top 25 in offensive and defensive rating, according to Her Hoop Stats, and they're currently No. 3 in the Pac-12 standings. At this point, it wouldn't be a surprise to see them hosting the NCAA Tournament.
Virginia Tech is also trending up after an unconvincing nonconference season. The Hokies beat NC State for the second time, this time with the Wolfpack at full strength. Virginia Tech looked shaky early on in conference play after back-to-back losses to Florida State and Duke. But since then, the Hokies have won seven straight games, which is not an easy feat in the conference of chaos.
They learned something from the losses, and now they're sitting atop the ACC. Virginia Tech has a tough schedule to close out the season, but it's a team that seems to have figured some things out at the right time. The Hokies jump from No. 17 to No. 11 on my ballot.
Another team from the ACC you should be paying attention to is Syracuse, which has climbed to No. 2 in the conference standings. The Orange are led by one of the best scorers in the country, Dyaisha Fair, who's averaging 21.8 points, and they're up five spots to No. 16 on my ballot.
WEEK 13: How Lady Vols writer Cora Hall voted in the AP Top 25: Two more SEC teams earn my vote
They've knocked off Notre Dame twice, Florida State and Louisville in conference play, and with the teams left on their schedule, they have a legit chance to finish at the top of the ACC. Felisha Legette-Jack is shining in her second year as head coach at her alma mater – if it wasn't for what Staley has done at South Carolina, she'd probably have my vote for Coach of the Year.
Cora Hall's AP Top 25 ballot for Week 14
South Carolina
Stanford
NC State
Ohio State
Texas
Colorado
UCLA
USC
Iowa
Oregon State
Virginia Tech
Kansas State
LSU
Notre Dame
UConn
Syracuse
Gonzaga
Indiana
Oklahoma
Louisville
Utah
Baylor
West Virginia
Princeton
Tennessee
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why Oregon State is rising in Lady Vols writer Cora Hall's AP Top 25
