UConn is still No. 1 in The Associated Press women's basketball poll while former Big East rival Villanova is back in the Top 25 for the first time in 13 years.
The Huskies (5-0) ran past then-No. 5 UCLA and Michigan State this past week. Next up is a game in Nevada on Tuesday before returning home to face No. 3 Notre Dame on Sunday in the Jimmy V Classic.
Texas remained No. 2 with Louisville and South Carolina rounding out the top five in Monday's poll which is selected by a national media panel. The Gamecocks dropped two spots after losing to the Irish in the championship game of the Gulf Coast Showcase.
The No. 25 Wildcats (5-0) are ranked for the first time since Nov. 29, 2004. Harry Perretta's team won the Vermont Thanksgiving tournament over the weekend.
Villanova visits Princeton on Wednesday before hosting Saint Joseph's in a Big Five game on Sunday.
Arizona State dropped out of the poll after losing two of its three games in the Cancun Challenge.
Here are other tidbits from the Top 25:
Sports
CLOSING THE GAP: No. 16 Stanford already has shown it's grown a bit since the start of the season a few weeks ago. The Cardinal were routed by Ohio State by 21 points in the season opener. The teams played again on Saturday night in the Play4Kay championship game and the Buckeyes needed overtime to win.
"It was definitely a different look from when we played them the first time," said Kelsey Mitchell, who was named MVP of the event. "I knew something would be different. They're a great team with a great coach."
CONSISTENT WOLVERINES: No. 22 Michigan is ranked for the fourth consecutive week, the second-longest run in school history. The Wolverines were in the poll for nine consecutive weeks from Nov. 6, 2001 to Jan. 7, 2002. Michigan faces Notre Dame on Wednesday.
"The goal of every coach is consistency. We all aspire to get to be like Notre Dame and UConn or our own in-state team Michigan State," Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said. "At Michigan you're surrounded by greatness. Every sport like football and softball has won consistently. When I came to Michigan that was my goal."
