Women’s Hoops: Texas is No. 1 (Monday, 11:12 a.m.)

[Jeff Howe]

For the first time since the 2003-04 season, the Texas women’s basketball team is the country's No. 1 team.

Coach Vic Schaefer’s club climbed to the top spot in the Associated Press Top 25 on Monday thanks to North Carolina State’s 104-95 double-overtime win over Notre Dame on Sunday. UCLA's 71-60 road loss to rival USC on Feb. 13 opened the door for the Fighting Irish to move to No. 1 in the Feb. 17 poll.

However, their run atop the rankings was short-lived. Texas (26-2, 12-1 SEC) is the new No. 1, the first time the Longhorns have been in the top spot in the AP Top 25 since the Feb. 16, 2004 poll (the program's last game while ranked No. 1 was a 62-49 road loss to Texas Tech on Feb. 22, 2004).

Texas has won 10 consecutive games since a 67-50 road loss to South Carolina on Jan. 12. The Longhorns avenged their loss to the Gamecocks with a 66-62 victory at Moody Center on Feb. 9, one of three consecutive wins over an opponent ranked No. 8 or better in the AP Top 25 (No. 2 South Carolina, No. 8 Kentucky on Feb. 13 and No, 5 LSU on Feb. 16).

After last Sunday’s 65-58 win over coach Kim Mulkey’s Bayou Bengals on the Forty Acres, Texas returns to action on Monday, hitting the road to face Georgia (6 p.m., SEC Network). It's the first of three games in seven days for the Longhorns, who battle Mississippi State at Humphrey Coliseum on Thursday (6:30 p.m., ESPN+/SECN+) in Schaefer’s return to Starkville (a 221-62 record in eight seasons with two national runner-up finishes, an Elite Eight trip and a run to the Sweet 16) before wrapping up the regular season at home against Florida on Sunday (1 p.m., SEC Network).

[Tuco Ramirez]

Well deserved.

[HenryJames]

Held Georgia to 26 points last night.

[qaertyisthatdude]

If Texas can improve their 3 point shooting even a little bit, they can beat the two teams capable of preventing a national championship season in UConn and Notre Dame.  UCLA and USC are teams to watch out for as well.  This team is scary good and could get even better in the future if Aaliyah Chavez comes to Texas.