Power Rankings: USC rises and Tennessee enters

As we head into the holiday break, there are six teams in this week's ESPN Power Rankings with perfect records. Are they all contenders? Or are some pretenders?

Conference play typically is the real equalizer. Teams can tiptoe through nonconference schedules that have a sprinkling of challenges and a downpour of dominant wins. But at some point, the rubber meets the road. That's where we're headed.

The six unbeatens on this list -- UCLA, LSU, Maryland, Ohio State, Georgia Tech and Tennessee -- have had varying degrees of nonconference difficulty. But they all play in tough leagues. And for the Big Ten newcomer Bruins, a new league awaits.

UCLA has the top strength of schedule among these six at No. 26. Georgia Tech is 35th, Ohio State 76th, Maryland 94th, Tennessee 123rd and LSU 144th. The Tigers won the national championship in 2023 after a similarly non-challenging nonconference slate, so this isn't new for them. But there is reason to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Maryland and Tennessee, which is under new coach Kim Caldwell, likely have the biggest questions about them because of the schedule. The Terps' only ranked foe was Duke, which lost at Maryland on Nov. 10. Now things will change quickly: The Terps play three ranked foes between Dec. 29 and Jan. 8. And they still have a marquee nonconference matchup Jan. 20. against a ranked Texas team in the Coretta Scott King Classic in Newark, New Jersey.

Tennessee, making its Power Rankings debut this week, has one win over a ranked team -- Iowa -- and one against another credible foe, Florida State. On the other end of the opponent spectrum, the Lady Vols set an NCAA record with 30 3-pointers against North Carolina Central on Dec 14. In that 139-59 result, Tennessee forced 44 turnovers. (LSU also played NC Central, winning 131-44.)

The Lady Vols' next game could be just as much of a walkover, as they face Winthrop, the only team NC Central has defeated this season. Then things get much tougher for Tennessee: From Jan. 5 and Feb. 9, the Lady Vols play six games against teams currently ranked in the top 10.

While these six unbeaten teams will find league play tougher, we won't call any of them pretenders. But we'll see how many really are contenders when it comes to the possibility of going to the Final Four.

1. UCLA Bruins (12-0)

Previous ranking: 1

The Bruins defeated Creighton 70-41 at the Invisalign Bay Area Women's Classic in San Francisco last week. Junior guard Kiki Rice had her best game of the season with 20 points, five rebounds and four assists. Lauren Betts has sat out the past two games with a lower leg injury, but it seems precautionary. Both were blowout victories, so it gave her more time to heal.

Next seven days: vs. Nebraska (Dec. 29)

2. South Carolina Gamecocks (11-1)

Previous ranking: 2

The Gamecocks overwhelmed Charleston Southern 82-46. Freshman Joyce Edwards led South Carolina in scoring (20 points) for the second game in a row. Edwards is averaging 10.6 PPG, second on a balanced team.

Next seven days: vs. Wofford (Dec. 29)

3. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-2)

Previous ranking: 3

Hannah Hidalgo had a season-high 33 points in Notre Dame's 97-54 victory over Loyola Maryland on Sunday. This season, the sophomore guard has shot 50% or better in six of Notre Dame's 12 games. Fellow guard Olivia Miles had her fifth career triple-double (18 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists). Guard Sonia Citron and forward Kate Koval were held out for precautionary reasons.

Next seven days: vs. Virginia (Dec. 29)

4. USC Trojans (11-1)

Previous ranking: 8

The ending was a little shaky, but USC still got a huge 72-70 win Saturday against UConn in the XL Center in Hartford. JuJu Watkins had 25 points and Kiki Iriafen contributed 16 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists. That ended nonconference play for the Trojans on a high note.

Next seven days: vs. Michigan (Dec. 29)

5. Texas Longhorns (12-1)

Previous ranking: 5

The Longhorns had their second consecutive game scoring 100 or more points, beating South Dakota State 103-57 on Sunday. Freshman Justice Carlton led Texas in scoring for the second time this season with 19 points. After one more nonconference cupcake, Texas will start SEC play the first week of January against Oklahoma.

Next seven days: vs. UT Rio Grande Valley (Dec. 29)

6. UConn Huskies (10-2)

Previous ranking: 2

The Huskies have gone 3-2 against ranked teams. Their 72-70 loss Saturday to USC was a tough one for UConn, which doesn't have big conference games in a power league to make up ground in NCAA seeding. The Huskies do still have nonconference games against Tennessee and South Carolina in February.

Next seven days: vs. Providence (Dec. 29)

7. LSU Tigers (13-0)

Previous ranking: 6

Aneesah Morrow had 19 points, 13 rebounds and four steals as LSU beat UIC 91-73 in her homecoming game in Chicago. Flau'Jae Johnson had her third double-double of the season with 23 points and 11 rebounds. NC State in November stands out as the Tigers' best nonconference win.

Next seven days: vs. Albany (Dec. 29)

8. Maryland Terrapins (11-0)

Previous ranking: 7

The Terps romped over William & Mary by 50 points, their second game this season in which they have scored 107. Rutgers transfer guard Kaylene Smikle continues to excel in her first season at Maryland, averaging 17.7 PPG.

Next seven days: vs. Michigan State (Dec. 29)

9. Oklahoma Sooners (11-1)

Previous ranking: 10

The Sooners followed up a 10-point victory over a ranked Michigan squad with a blowout over Omaha in which Raegan Beers matched her career high with 28 points and went 11 of 13 from the field. She has been everything the Sooners hoped for when she transferred from Oregon State. Oklahoma has topped 100 points three times this season.

Next seven days: vs. New Mexico State (Dec. 29)

10. Ohio State Buckeyes (12-0)

Previous ranking: 12

After three consecutive routs for Ohio State, the thought was Stanford could challenge the Buckeyes last week in the Invisalign Bay Area Women's Classic in San Francisco. Instead, the Cardinal became just another Buckeye blowout victim, 84-59, with six Ohio State players scoring in double figures.

Next seven days: at Rutgers (Dec. 29)

11. TCU Horned Frogs (12-1)

Previous ranking: 11

The Frogs opened Big 12 play last week with a 40-point victory over UCF in which Madison Conner scored 24 points, Sedona Prince added 20 and Hailey Van Lith chipped in 14. TCU will go as far as that trio can take it.

Next seven days: vs. Brown (Dec. 29)

12. Duke Blue Devils (10-3)

Previous ranking: 9

This was one of the surprises of last week: The cold-shooting Blue Devils fell at South Florida 65-56. That was Duke's lowest point total of the season. It was the Bulls' first victory over a ranked opponent since 2022.

Next seven days: No games

13. Kansas State Wildcats (13-1)

Previous ranking: 13

The Wildcats dispatched New Mexico State and Cincinnati last week. Ayoka Lee had a season-high 34 points against New Mexico State and tied her season best with 11 rebounds. The Wildcats have won eight in a row and are positioned as the Big 12 favorites.

Next seven days: No games

14. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (11-0)

Previous ranking: 16

It's been an exciting start for the Yellow Jackets, who have made the NCAA tournament just three of the past 11 years. They appear to be on the road back this season behind standout freshman Dani Carnegie. They had victories last week over Rice and Nebraska; the Huskers were the third ranked team Georgia Tech has defeated this season.

Next seven days: vs. Pitt (Dec. 29)

15. Tennessee Volunteers (11-0)

Previous ranking: NR

It's been the kind of start Tennessee wanted for Caldwell's first season. But the Lady Vols are likely to be tested in the first full week of SEC play when they face top-10 teams Oklahoma and LSU. Talaysia Cooper (19.2 PPG) is leading five Lady Vols who average double figures in scoring.

Next seven days: vs. Winthrop (Dec. 29)

16. Kentucky Wildcats (10-1)

Previous ranking: NR

The Wildcats are back in the Power Rankings after dropping out last week. Guard Georgia Amoore had 23 points and 5 assists to lead Kentucky over a scrappy Belmont team Friday. The SEC schedule is backloaded for Kentucky with what are expected to be its toughest league games in February. Thus, it's important for the Wildcats to make the most of their January opportunities.

Next seven days: vs. Western Kentucky (Dec. 28)

Fell out: West Virginia Mountaineers, Michigan State Spartans