The LSU women’s basketball program is gearing up for what is expected to be another successful season despite losing Angel Reese, one of the biggest stars in the sport, to the WNBA draft.
The Tigers return key starters Flau’Jae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow as well as standout sophomore Mikaylah Williams, and they also add a veteran-heavy transfer class as they look to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
The preseason polls are high on coach Kim Mulkey’s team. LSU ranks seventh in the preseason AP Top 25, and it comes in at No. 7 in the preseason USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, which was released on Thursday, as well.
The Tigers are joined in the top 10 by three other SEC teams: South Carolina (No. 1), Texas (No. 4) and Oklahoma (No. 12). Ole Miss (No. 20), Kentucky (No. 22) and Alabama (No. 24) are also all ranked while Vanderbilt and Tennessee received votes.
Here’s the full coaches poll as we prepare for the start of the 2024-25 season, which tips off for LSU on Thursday night with an exhibition against Xavier (New Orleans). The Tigers will face LSU-Alexandria in another exhibition on Wednesday night before beginning the regular season against Eastern Kentucky on Monday, Nov. 4.
Preseason USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll
| Rank | School (Last Year’s Record) | Points | First Place Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Carolina (38-0) | 770 | 27 |
| 2 | Connecticut (33-6) | 734 | 3 |
| 3 | Southern California (29-6) | 716 | 1 |
| 4 | Texas (33-5) | 670 | – |
| 5 | Notre Dame (28-7) | 629 | – |
| 6 | UCLA (27-7) | 612 | – |
| 7 | LSU (31-6) | 567 | – |
| 8 | North Carolina State (31-7) | 533 | – |
| 9 | Iowa State (21-12) | 487 | – |
| 10 | Oklahoma (23-10) | 457 | – |
| 11 | Duke (22-12) | 449 | – |
| 12 | Baylor (26-8) | 434 | – |
| 13 | Kansas State (26-8) | 407 | – |
| 14 | Ohio State (26-6) | 405 | – |
| 15 | West Virginia (25-8) | 285 | – |
| 16 | North Carolina (20-13) | 263 | – |
| 17 | Louisville (24-10) | 261 | – |
| 18 | Maryland (19-14) | 254 | – |
| 19 | Florida State (23-11) | 177 | – |
| 20 | Creighton (26-6) | 150 | – |
| 21 | Mississippi (24-9) | 135 | – |
| 22 | Kentucky (12-20) | 106 | – |
| 23 | Nebraska (23-12) | 92 | – |
| 24 | Indiana (26-6) | 75 | – |
| 25 | Alabama (24-10) | 57 | – |
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