THE Big 12 will announce the conference game on Saturday.
Sixteen teams will compete for the conference crown, including five teams ranked in the USA Today Sports Coaches Poll. That group includes No. 12 Kansas State, No. 13 TCU, No. 14 West Virginia, No. 21 Baylor and No. 23 Iowa State.
Let’s move on to this week’s conference power rankings:
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Last week: 1
This week: vs. Cincinnati (Sunday)
No. 12 Kansas State (12-1) still sits atop the power rankings heading into Big 12 play. The Wildcats have an unstoppable force in Ayoka Lee, and they are ranked No. 1 in the country in terms of score margin (37.7).
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Last week: 2
This week: in Colorado (Saturday)
No. 14 West Virginia (10-1) took care of business in a 68-46 road win over Temple on Sunday. The Mountaineers have allowed the second fewest points per game (48.9) this season.
Last week: 3
This week: at UCF (Saturday)
No. 13 TCU (11-1) beat Louisiana Tech and Samford on Sunday and Tuesday, respectively, by an average margin of 45 points. The Horned Frogs enter the Big 12 with a deadly offense led by Hailey Van Lith, who is averaging 19.5 points and 6.4 assists.
Last week: 4
This week: vs. Baylor (Saturday)
Kansas (10-1) earned a 68-65 home victory over Penn State on Sunday thanks in large part to S’Mya Nichols, who recorded 26 points and five assists. The Jayhawks are now on a six-game winning streak.
Last week: 6
This week: vs. Iowa State (Saturday)
OSU (10-1) got a 92-41 home win over McNeese State Monday. The Cowgirls have scored at least 90 points in each of their last three games and rank seventh in the nation in points per game (88.3).
Last week: 5
This week: in Kansas (Saturday)
No. 21 Baylor (10-2) enters the Big 12 on a six-game winning streak. Opposing teams had no answer for Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, who is averaging 15.4 points and 10.9 rebounds in her career.
Last week: 8
This week: vs. Arizona State (Saturday)
Gianna Kneepkens scored a season-high 24 points as she led Utah (9-2) to a 67-57 road victory over Washington on Saturday. The junior guard is averaging 17.5 points on 42.7 percent shooting from deep.
Last week: 9
This week: vs. West Virginia (Saturday)
Colorado (9-2) hasn’t played since Dec. 10. He should be rested and ready to begin Big 12 play with a tough home matchup against No. 14 West Virginia on Saturday.
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Last week: 7
This week: at Oklahoma State (Saturday)
No. 23 Iowa State (9-4) suffered a 101-68 home loss to No. 5 UConn on Tuesday. THE Cyclones are now 0-3 against ranked opponents this season.
Last week: 11
This week: vs. Arizona (Saturday)
BYU (9-2) earned a 72-57 road victory over Washington State last Friday thanks in large part to Delaney Gibb, who scored a career-high 26 points. The freshman guard is now averaging 16.8 points per game.
Last week: 10
This week: vs. Houston (Sunday)
Texas Tech (11-2) earned a 75-72 road victory over Arkansas on Sunday and a 73-67 home win over Lamar on Tuesday. The Lady Raiders got a huge boost from Bailey Maupin, who averaged 23 points during that stretch.
Last week: 13
This week: at Kansas State (Sunday)
Cincinnati (8-2) has been led by Jillian Hayes all season. But he still found a way to pull out a 67-64 home win over Marshall on Wednesday, despite just two points from Hayes on 0-of-6 shooting from the floor.
Last week: 14
This week: at BYU (Saturday)
Jada Williams dominated in Arizona’s 87-66 home win over Weber State on Monday. The sophomore guard scored a career-high 24 points on 4-of-7 shooting from deep (57.1%) for the Wildcats (9-4).
Last week: 12
This week: vs. TCU (Saturday)
UCF (7-3) stumbled in its 64-60 home loss to High Point on Tuesday. After starting the season 6-0, the Knights have lost three of their last four games.
Last week: 15
This week: at Utah (Saturday)
Arizona State (5-6) suffered a 57-50 road loss to UC Davis on Sunday and a 67-64 road loss to San Francisco on Tuesday. THE Sun Devils are allowing a conference-high 71.7 points per game.
Last week: 16
This week: at Texas Tech (Sunday)
Houston is on a two-game winning streak after its 98-40 home victory over Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday. Sophomore guard Kierra Merchant scored a career-high 30 points on 6-of-8 (75%) shooting from deep.
This article was originally published on Oklahoman: Women’s Basketball Big 12 Power Rankings: Kansas State Still No. 1
