USC
UConnReported Analysis · AP Women's Basketball · 2026–27 Preseason
USC Returns to No. 3 With Two First-Place Votes and a Wide Range
By Poll Behavior ·
UConnNo. 2USCNo. 3USC received two first-place votes in the AP women's basketball preseason poll, but its support is spread farther down the ballot than that of the two teams ahead of it. The Trojans begin third with 668 points, 78 behind No. 2 UConn.
All 31 voters included USC. Nine put it in the top three; 26 put it in the top five. Its most common placement was fourth, chosen by 12 voters, while its full range stretches from first through 14th.
Those rankings accompany a substantial roster change. USC's October 20 announcement confirms JuJu Watkins returns after an injury redshirt in 2025–26. Jazzy Davidson, last season's USBWA and WBCA National Freshman of the Year, and Kennedy Smith, an All-Big Ten defensive selection, also return.
The Difference Between a First Choice and Consistent Top-Two Support
USC joins South Carolina and UConn as the only teams receiving first-place votes in the October 20 poll. The rest of the distribution explains their different totals.
| Placement | USC Ballots |
|---|---|
| First–Third | 9 |
| Fourth–Fifth | 17 |
| Sixth–14th | 5 |
AP awards 25 points for first, 24 for second and one fewer at every lower position. A team ranked first by all 31 voters would receive 775 points. USC finishes 107 below that maximum; UConn finishes 29 below it. The 78-point difference between those shortfalls accounts for the gap between second and third.
UConn appears in the top two on 28 ballots. USC does so on three. Two voters give the Trojans the highest possible placement, while most put them fourth or fifth, reducing their total even with universal inclusion.
USC opened last season's preseason poll at No. 18. The return to third matches its position before 2024–25. Those are comparisons between different seasons' preseason polls, with different rosters and electorates, rather than a weekly rise within this season.
Watkins' return helps establish why USC enters a new evaluation. The ballots show a team included everywhere, favored for No. 1 by two voters and placed in the top two by only one other. That combination gives USC a place among the leading contenders with less consistent support near the top than UConn.
Sources & Methodology
Complete poll and ballots; preseason Insights; official USC releases for 2026–27 and 2025–26. Poll Behavior calculated current distributions and maximum-point shortfalls from all 31 ballots. The No. 18 comparison concerns the prior season's preseason ranking and does not measure movement among the same voters.
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USC Returns to No. 3 With Two First-Place Votes and a Wide Range
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