Huskies No. 2 in AP Poll

Any other program in the country might be excited about a preseason No. 2 ranking but this is UConn, where national titles are a regular occurrence and coach Geno Auriemma isn't one to get caught up in the media-created hype, especially in October.

Nonetheless, the Huskies find themselves nation's second-best team, according to the Associated Press, behind defending national champs Baylor. The Bears, who collected all 40 first-place votes after going 40-0 in 2011-12, return Brittney Griner, the country's best player.

“We’re trying to win the Big East championship and then after that we’ll see what happens,” Auriemma said Thursday via SNY.com. “It’s great to be picked at the top of the polls. Is it something that every kid that comes here takes for granted? Of course. If you told them, it’s like, ‘Of course. Why would we be picked anywhere else? That’s why I came here.’ I’m happy that we are and happy for the kids and proud of our program."

The Bears and Huskies will face off on February 18.

Five Big East teams cracked the Top 25. In addition to UConn, Notre Dame comes in at 7th, Louisville is 9th, St. John's is 14th, and DePaul is 25th.

Here's the rest of the Top 25:

1. Baylor (40) 1,000
2. UConn 951
3. Duke 909
4. Stanford 854
5. Maryland 827
6. Kentucky 767
7. Notre Dame 754
8. Penn St. 676
9. Louisville 657
10. Georgia 599
11. Delaware 545
12. Oklahoma 476
13. California 428
14. St. John’s 422
15. Texas A&M 370
16. Vanderbilt 361
17. West Virginia 335
18. Nebraska 297
19. Ohio St. 273
20. Tennessee 256
21. Purdue 223
22. Georgia Tech 140
23. Oklahoma St. 139
24. Miami 110
25. DePaul 104

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