Michigan left its opening week with a win over UConn and a much stronger position in the AP poll. Its move from fifth to second reached almost the entire returning electorate: 30 of the 31 voters who submitted preseason ballots raised the Wolverines on November 9. The other voter kept them in the same place.
The agreement goes beyond the direction of the move. Twenty-two of this week's 33 voters put Michigan exactly second, and every ballot places it between second and fifth. That is substantial support for Michigan's place immediately behind South Carolina, even as the Gamecocks retain 32 of 33 first-place votes.
A Fourth Quarter Worth Measuring Against the Ballots
Michigan's 77–66 win over UConn on November 5 was its highest-ranked victory in program history. The Wolverines took a two-point lead into the fourth quarter, then outscored the Huskies 22–13. Te'Yala Delfosse finished with 22 points and nine rebounds, while Olivia Olson added 19 points.
Those details matter to the assessment of the result. Michigan separated from the preseason No. 2 team late in a competitive game, then followed it with a 109–52 win over Wright State. Both games belong to the evidence available when voters submitted this edition.
UConn also supplied a useful check on that opening statement. The Huskies beat Iowa 91–79 on November 8, with Sarah Strong scoring 39 points. Michigan's opponent finished the week with a win over another preseason top-10 team, despite falling from second to fourth in the poll.
The Rise Survives a Comparison of the Same Voters
The women's electorate grew from 31 preseason ballots to 33 this week. A simple comparison of Michigan's totals, 644 points and then 777, would mix changes by returning voters with the two additional submissions.
Among the original 31 voters, Michigan gained 86 points. The two additional ballots contributed another 47. The larger panel therefore accounts for part of the 133-point increase, but the rise remains clear when the comparison is limited to the same people.
AP points reward placement, from 25 for first down to one for 25th. Michigan's returning voters collectively awarded it 86 more points because they moved it up their ranked lists. None lowered it, and none had omitted it in the preseason.
Michigan also moved beyond a tight preseason comparison with Duke. It began three points behind the Blue Devils, 647–644. This week it leads Duke, now fifth, by 96 points, 777–681. Within the returning panel alone, Michigan has 730 points to Duke's 639, so that reversal also persists without the two additional ballots.
South Carolina Still Has the First-Place Support
Michigan's No. 2 ranking does not mean the vote at the top has become a close two-team contest. South Carolina has 823 points to Michigan's 777, and Michigan receives no first-place votes. USC holds the single first-place vote that does not go to the Gamecocks.
Two games cannot settle how Michigan will fare through the season. They have, however, changed its starting position with nearly the entire returning panel and produced a concentrated set of second-place votes. Michigan has made a strong first case for leading the pursuit of South Carolina; the ballots still leave a clear distinction between that position and being the first choice.
Sources & Methodology
AP preseason ballots and November 9 Week 1 ballots supply rankings, points and individual placements. Returning voters are paired by exact voter ID: all 31 preseason voters appear in Week 1, with two additional ballots. Michigan's 730 returning-panel points equal 777 minus 47; Duke's 639 equal 681 minus 42. Game details come from Michigan's linked official recaps and UConn's official results. This analysis concerns the November 9 edition.
Michigan
UConn
