One week after being ranked No. 6 in the Associated Press 2025 Preseason Top 25, the Oklahoma women received another preseason top-10 ranking, earning the No. 7 spot in the USA Sports Coaches Poll.
The No. 6 preseason AP ranking was the highest for the Sooners' women's basketball program since 2009. The Sooners were ranked No. 4 in the AP poll to begin that season.
Sooners No. 7 in preseason Coaches Poll
Earlier this week, Oklahoma was picked to finish fourth in the SEC in a preseason vote of league coaches, but the three teams picked to finish ahead of the Sooners in the conference standings (South Carolina, Texas and LSU) are also ranked above them in both the AP and Coaches preseason polls.
This is believed to be the most talented roster in head coach Jennie Baranczyk's five seasons at Oklahoma, highlighted by four McDonald's All-Americans. Returning this year are All-SEC First-Team selection Raegan Beers, 2025 All-SEC preseason honoree Payton Verhulst and junior standout Sahara Williams, along with newcomer Aaliyah Chavez, a true freshman who was the No. 1 recruit in the 2025 class.
The Sooners ended last season with a 27-8 overall record and a No. 11 ranking in the final AP poll. OU lost to eventual national champion UConn in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Oklahoma is one of five SEC teams ranked in the top 10, with eight in the top 25 in both the AP and Coaches polls. The Sooners will play 10 teams ranked in the preseason top 25 over the course of the 2025-26 season.
This year marks the seventh time the Oklahoma women have begun the season inside the nation's top 10 and extends the team's current active streak to 30 consecutive appearances in the AP preseason poll.
The Sooners begin the 2025-26 season at home at the Lloyd Noble Center on Nov. 3 against Belmont. One week later, they will face No. 3 UCLA in Sacramento, California.