There is a new No. 1 — the UCLA Bruins — in the ESPN Women’s Basketball Power Rankings, ending the South Carolina Gamecocks‘ long reign in the top spot.
But the Duke Blue Devils, who have broken into the top 10, are also a team to keep an eye on.
The Blue Devils didn’t make it into the Power Rankings at all last season but ended up advancing to the Sweet 16, where they lost to UConn. That completed a 22-12 season for coach Kara Lawson, who has seen a lot happen in her Duke tenure after a tough start.
Lawson took over at Duke in July 2020. On Christmas Day 2020, Duke announced the rest of the program’s season was canceled because of COVID-19 concerns. That followed a 73-49 loss to Louisville on Dec. 9, 2020, the last of four games the Blue Devils played that season.
Lawson has been building ever since. The Blue Devils were 17-13 in 2021-22 and 26-7 (made the second round of the NCAA tournament) in 2022-23. Last season’s regional semifinal appearance was Duke’s first since 2018.
Duke is in a stretch now with three of four games against…
