South Carolina Ranks #3 in 2026‑27 Early Women’s Top 25
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- South Carolina ranked No. 3 in the 2026‑27 Way‑Too‑Early women’s basketball Top 25, joining Texas, UCLA and UConn in the early rankings.
- UConn remains a top contender despite losing Paige Bueckers, with Sarah Strong highlighted as the team’s biggest reason for success.
- Texas returns Madison Booker and adds a highly‑rated 2026 recruiting class (ranked second nationally) that includes five players in the SC Next 100.
- South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley used the transfer portal to add Ta'Niya Latson and Madina Okot, while losing leader Raven Johnson, and relies on top‑15 recruits like Joyce Edwards and Tessa Johnson.
- UCLA will miss the 2026‑27 early rankings after losing its top six players, and Coach Cori Close plans to be active in the transfer portal.
- The transfer portal, opening Monday, is already reshaping the Top 25 outlook, with Iowa State, Georgia, Oklahoma State and Tennessee affected by player departures.
- JuJu Watkins returns healthy to USC, bolstering the Trojans’ chances as they aim for a Big Ten title and a Final Four run.
Why it matters: The early Top 25 highlights South Carolina’s ascent and underscores how the newly opened transfer portal is already reshaping power balances: programs like UCLA lose key talent and risk missing the rankings, while teams such as Texas and USC secure returning stars and high‑profile recruits to cement their championship bids.
