UConn women’s basketball ranked No. 2 in AP Preseason Poll

UConn women’s basketball came in at No. 2 in the AP Top 25 Preseason Poll, behind South Carolina. The Huskies picked up 10 first-place votes.

Last season, UConn was ranked No. 3 in the preseason poll but finished the regular season as the top team in the nation. The Huskies have reached the No. 1 spot in each of the last nine seasons and have only failed to top the poll in five of the last 27 seasons.

The Huskies will play six teams in the top 25: No. 1 South Carolina, No. 6 Louisville, No. 10 Oregon, No. 15 Tennessee, No. 17 Georgia Tech and No. 20 UCLA. They could also face-off against No. 21 USF in the second round of the Battle 4 Atlantis. Three other opponents — Arkansas, Notre Dame and DePaul — received votes as well.

Coming off its 13th straight trip to the Final Four but fourth consecutive loss in the national semifinals, No. 2 is a fair spot for UConn. Stanford, South Carolina and the Huskies are expected to be the best teams in the nation, so any combination of those teams in the top three spots would’ve been fitting.

This year, UConn returns essentially its entire roster while adding a freshman class that includes Azzi Fudd (the No. 1 recruit in the nation), Caroline Ducharme (No. 5) and Amari DeBerry (No. 15) alongside Ohio State grad transfer Dorka Juhász. On paper, the Huskies are loaded with talent, which will make it challenging for Geno Auriemma to find playing time for everyone.

UConn has been ranked in every AP Top 25 for 28 years, dating back to the end of the 1992-93 season.