This has been the season of exceeding expectations. Of the preseason No. 1 seeds in ESPN’s women’s Bracketology, only UCLA remains on the top line.
No one outside of Columbia conceived of South Carolina — with a nearly entirely new rotation — returning to the top of the rankings just one week into the 2023-24 season.
NC State wasn’t on any radar for a No. 1 seed, but the Wolfpack have earned their way to the top line with an 13-0 record which includes dominant victories over UConn and Colorado.
That was the only blemish for the Buffaloes, who with a veteran team were supposed to be good — but this good? The same holds for USC. Freshman JuJu Watkins has played even better than expected and has pulled the Trojans into the top 10 along with her.
Baylor is still undefeated and has steadily improved its status every week. Kansas State has only a loss to top-seeded Iowa — and the Wildcats also have a win over the Hawkeyes.
All of it — along with as much balanced across the country as the sport has ever seen — has made this the most difficult season in years to size up. And in many ways it leaves more questions than answers as the…
