South Carolina Tops ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Preseason Top 10 for 2026-27
ESPN has released its first “Way-Too-Early” Top 10 rankings ahead of the 2026-27 women’s college basketball season, and Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks sit at the top of the list — a fitting projection for a program that’s reached four of the last five national championship games.
Rounding out the rest of the rankings, UConn checks in at No. 2, continuing to be viewed as South Carolina’s top rival after the Gamecocks ended the Huskies’ undefeated season in last year’s Final Four. Duke lands at No. 3, entering the year as arguably the program’s best team in nearly two decades and a marquee non-conference opponent for South Carolina this December. Michigan rounds out the top four, representing the Big Ten’s top projected contender.
USC (Southern Cal) comes in at No. 5, backed by the “Nothing Easy” mentality that’s defined the program’s rise, while Iowa holds down the No. 6 spot as it continues building following its own Elite Eight run. Louisville checks in at No. 7, followed by Texas at No. 8 — a team South Carolina will also see this season as one of the sport’s top contenders. North Carolina rounds out the ninth spot, and LSU closes out the list at No. 10, continuing to build under Kim Mulkey despite offseason roster turnover.
Notably, South Carolina is set to face several of these ranked opponents head-on this season, including Texas, North Carolina, and Duke, giving the Gamecocks multiple opportunities to validate their preseason No. 1 status against fellow top-10 competition before conference play even begins.
As always with early-season projections, plenty can shift between now and tip-off — rosters are still being finalized through the transfer portal, and injuries or late additions could easily reshuffle this order in the coming months. Still, the early consensus reflects a sport with a deep, competitive top tier heading into the new season, with South Carolina firmly positioned as the team to beat.
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