Syracuse women’s basketball: ACC Rankings and AP Poll Update for the week of November 18th

For the first time this season, it’s time to take a step back from the Syracuse Orange women’s basketball team.

Well, not necessarily.

Now with four games underneath the Orange’s belt, it’s finally time to begin our weekly look at the broader women’s college basketball landscape. How is Syracuse performing within the context of the ACC? How are the other teams in the conference faring? What are the latest changes in the AP poll?

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Every Friday, we’ll be answering these questions as the 2022-2023 season continues.

With all that in mind, let’s get right to the chase. We’ve got basketball to discuss.

ACC power rankings and a look around the conference

Note: All team records include games from up to and including Thursday, November 17.

Outside of a team or two, all is calm in the ACC when it comes to the standings.

Other than a recent matchup between Virginia and Wake Forest, conference play hasn’t kicked off yet, with many of the ACC teams getting the job done in an easy fashion against their opponents. As of Thursday night, 12 of the 15 teams in the conference remain undefeated to start the season.

With every team having at least three or four games out of the way, here are the current standings in the conference as of Friday morning.

Coming off a win against Long Island University, the Orange join five other ACC teams in beginning 4-0 on the season. Every ACC team ranked in the latest AP top-25 poll (Louisville, Notre Dame, NC State, North Carolina, and Virginia Tech.) remains undefeated to begin the year.

Three teams have at least one loss as of Friday morning: Wake Forest, Boston College, and Clemson.

Wake Forest’s loss was against Virginia, so it isn’t too big of a concern for the Demon Deacons.

Boston College’s and Clemson’s starts are each a bit more of a red flag. BC lost to Harvard by 9 points and to 14th-ranked Ohio State by 18 points, with its only wins coming against Northeastern (by just 5 points) and UMass Lowell. Last season, Boston College finished as one of the better teams in the conference 21-12 record and 10-8 in conference play.

As for Clemson, the Tigers just suffered an embarrassing 54-point (not a typo) loss to #1-ranked South Carolina. Sheesh.

Looking ahead to this week, there are a couple of big matchups to watch for with the ACC teams. Louisville, who’s ranked 6th overall in the latest AP Poll, will take on 3-0 Gonzaga at home on Saturday night. Sunday night will feature two fun early-season matchups: Providence versus Boston College and #10-ranked NC State against #5-ranked UConn. Lastly, #14-ranked Virginia Tech.’s Monday afternoon game against the 4-0 Kentucky Wildcats will also be one to watch for.

Latest changes in the AP poll

Note: AP top-25 poll information includes games from up to Monday, November 14.

Heading into the second week in women’s hoops, not too much has changed at the top with the exception of Tennesee dropping from the top five to just outside the top ten.

Here are the current standings, per the latest AP top-25 poll:

Ohio State made the biggest jump of the week, moving from 14th to securing a spot inside the top ten. Honorable mention candidates include UCLA (31 points), South Dakota State (15), Kansas 13, and Miami (11).

All five ACC teams ranked in the AP top-25 are ranked in the top-15, which is the most out of any other conference. For the ACC, Duke joined Miami as the only other team to receive n honorable mention nod.

With our next women’s college basketball update scheduled for next Friday, the only game the Orange will have that will factor into the equation is a road matchup against Penn State.

Two weeks of basketball down, and tons more left to go.