The race for the SEC women’s basketball title is on.
The contenders for the regular-season crown are emerging halfway through conference play, and any team with two or fewer losses is solidly in the race. Those teams won’t surprise anyone – South Carolina, Tennessee, LSU, Vanderbilt, Texas and Ole Miss are the six teams vying for a championship, although the Lady Vols may not be there much longer after their recent stretch. The Rebels were the biggest risers of the week after reminding Vanderbilt they still own that matchup with a sixth straight win over the Commodores.
Rankings based on games as of Feb. 3.
Last week: 1
What to know: Joyce Edwards is only 18 points away from eclipsing 1,000 career points – and if she hits it in the next game, she’ll have done it in five fewer games than A’ja Wilson. Let that one sink in for a minute.
Last week: 2
What to know: The Longhorns have owned the Red River Rivalry since the two teams moved to the SEC, and Texas stifled the Sooners‘ two stars to add a second straight win in the series.
Last week: 5
What to know: LSU is averaging 94.6 points in its last five games, which included two ranked wins. The Tigers‘ offense is a force to be reckoned with, and not many teams have been able to slow it down yet.
Last week: 8
What to know: The Rebels reached a ridiculous level of efficiency to upset Vanderbilt, shooting 52% from the field, 67% on 3-pointers and 90% from the free-throw line. Things might just be looking up for Ole Miss.
Last week: 3
What to know: It has been six years since Vanderbilt beat Ole Miss, and even Shea Ralph’s most talented squad yet couldn’t break the streak.
Last week: 4
What to know: Two ugly losses in a row for the Lady Vols is the last way you want to go into February – especially when Tennessee has six ranked opponents in its final nine games.
Last week: 7
What to know: Alabama notched an important win over Georgia, and then it got beat by 40 against LSU. Just going to be that type of season, I guess.
Last week: 6
What to know: I’m no coach, but scoring in the single digits in two different quarters is an easy way to make sure you lose games in the SEC.
Last week: 9
What to know: Deploying a frontcourt of Clara Strack and Teonni Key against Arkansas just doesn’t even feel fair. The duo combined for 48 points and 25 rebounds to lead Kentucky to a much-needed win.
Last week: 10
What to know: Two things can’t happen if Oklahoma wants to win big games: Raegan Beers can’t take fewer than 10 shots, and Aaliyah Chavez can’t end the game with more field goal attempts than points.
Last week: 11
What to know: The Bulldogs were so close to moving up after a huge road win over Tennessee – and then they lost at home to Missouri. One step forward, two steps back in Starkville.
Last week: 14
What to know: Mississippi State, you just got Grace Slaughter’d. The junior guard took over the game down the stretch, scoring eight points on the game-winning 12-0 run.
Last week: 12
What to know: It was just one of those weeks for Auburn. The Tigers have a lighter February schedule, though, so don’t count them out yet.
Last week: 13
What to know: The Gators have lost their last three games against top-10 teams by an average of 21.7 points. Good news for Florida, it doesn’t have to play any more top-10 teams the rest of the season.
Last week: 15
What to know: Texas A&M was hanging with the shorthanded Gamecocks for three quarters, and then Joyce Edwards happened. Better luck next time, Aggies.
Last week: 16
What to know: We are getting to the point where I’m not entirely confident I’ll get to report any good news for the Razorbacks for the rest of the season.
Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social.
