ESPN’s women’s college basketball rankings for the 2024-25 season stunned hoop fans after USCs JuJu Watkins edged out UConns Paige Bueckers for the top spot. Watkins, barely a sophomore, had a historic rookie season, but several fans voiced Bueckers’ overall body of work as enough for the throne.
Watkins, already pinpointed as a future No. 1 overall WNBA Draft pick, has dominated headlines since she pushed USC to the Elite Eight last season. Her relentless scoring and airtight defense led to an average of 27.1 points per game last season, and scoring 920 points total, the most by any freshman ever.
Bueckers’ Huskies eliminated Watkins and USC in last season’s Elite 8 by a score of 80-72. Both players had double-doubles in the tightly contested game, with Watkins adding 29 points and ten rebounds, while Bueckers had 28 points and ten boards.
Bueckers ranked ahead of No. 3 on the list in Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dames lightning-fast guard, whose playmaking has been compared to Las Vegas Aces champion guard Kelsey Plum. Hidalgo scored double-digit points in every game last season and led the Fighting Irish to the Sweet 16 with 22.6 points per game.
The social media reaction to the list was nearly split down the middle. One user commented, “Not UConn fan, but Paige, even if I’m at sleep.” On the other side, the JuJu supporters were equally vocal. “Is this really a discussion? Juju wayyyyyy better,” read another comment. Another fan was almost neutral and said, “Paige, because of age and experience, JuJu is coming.”
After Hidalgo was Watkins’ USC teammate in Kiki Iriafen. Early mock drafts have Iriafen going as high as No. 2 overall next season, as the 19-year-old Watkins will have to be at least 22 years old to be draft eligible. Texas had two players, Madison Booker and Rori Harmon, who I returning from an ACL setback. Harmon’s last battle on the court before the injury saw her give UConn 27 points and 13 assists, beating the Huskies 80-68.
UCLAs Lauren Betts and LSUs duo Annesah Morrow and Flau’jae Johnson round out the list’s top ten. More notable names who appeared on the list were WNBA Draft prospect Georgia Amoore, highly-touted second-year guard Audi Crooks, and reigning NCAA national champion guard Te-Hina Paopao.
The Associate Press top 25 women’s rankings as of Oct 15 have the national champion South Carolina Gamecocks remaining the top team in the nation, followed by the Huskies in second and USC in third. The return of Harmon helped Texas establish itself as a top-five team in the country, with UCLA rounding out the top five while Notre Dame and LSU knock on the door of contention.
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