Kentucky’s run in AP women’s poll ends; UConn stays on top

NEW YORK – Kentucky’s run in the Associated Press women’s basketball poll has come to an end.

The Wildcats fell out of the Top 25 on Monday, ending a streak of 132 consecutive weeks in the poll. It was the fifth longest active streak and eighth longest overall. Kentucky split a pair of games last week, edging Missouri before losing to Texas A&M. Kentucky’s streak started Feb. 1, 2010, and the Wildcats reached as high as fifth in the rankings.

While Kentucky dropped out of the poll, Connecticut remained No. 1.

The Huskies have the longest current run, being ranked for 441 straight weeks. That trails only Tennessee’s all-time record of 565 consecutive appearances in the poll.

While it would take six years or so for UConn to break that mark, the Huskies can top their own NCAA record 90-game winning streak this week. The team faces No. 20 South Florida on Tuesday to tie the mark, and a win at SMU on Saturday would break the record.

Following the Huskies in the poll again were Baylor, Maryland, Mississippi State and South Carolina.

Notre Dame and Florida switched places at Nos. 6 and 7, with Washington, Louisville and Oregon State rounding out the top 10. Washington has its best ranking since the Huskies were No. 7 in 1998. They beat then-No. 9 UCLA on Sunday. The Bruins dropped eight places to 17th after getting swept by Washington State and Washington.

The Pac-12 has six teams in the Top 25. Oregon State made the biggest jump, moving up six spots this week after beating Cal and Stanford. It was the Beavers’ first win ever at the Cardinal.

North Carolina State entered the poll at No. 23. It’s the Wolfpack’s first ranking since the final poll of 2014.