Hierarchy of the WCBB teams you root for

[Hayven]

Women’s:
1: UConn
2: Stanford
3: Louisville
4: The rest of the PAC-12
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350) ND

 

[SimpleDawg]

I guess I admire Baylor the most. They play the most like hail state. But reason I like Mulkey is she can recruit all 5 positions and her players all seem quite different from each other. That attribute sets them apart.

I also really respect South Carolina, and definitely would've rooted for them over Oregon. Their fans just tend to misinterpret comments written about them and the discussion escalates unnecessarily from that point on.

 

[SCGamecock]

1. South Carolina
2. Other SEC Schools when out of conference
3. UCLA (grew up rooting for the Bruins, mom is an alum)
4. Maryland (Big Alyssa Thomas fan.. kinda intro’ed me to WCBB)

I’m generally fond of Stanford and surprisingly Oregon.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Well UConn better be ranked higher than other schools in SC!!!! And better be ranked higher than NC!!!
You and a few others are coming perilously close to outright diatribes from us BYers if you don't list our school somewhere on your list considering all the time you spend on here (hint, cough cough @KnightBridgeAZ @nwhoopfan and of course @stwainfan )...

I have always said, even though some would think otherwise because I was a Rutgers fan, I typically am neutral in most UConn games. I admire the program, many of the players that have played for UConn, and of course Geno as a coach. Generally, one of most enjoyable styles of play to watch, as well. That said, I usually root for the underdog in individual games when I lack a specific interest, and that is not typically UConn.

It should be noted that none of the teams on my list are there because they are "great" teams, South Carolina comes in because of Dawn, for example. And there are teams I didn't list. As someone said, a list of the teams I root against would actually (in my case) be easier, since there are so few of them (in WBB). In some other sports, the list might be longer.

 

[j66kicker]

1. Tennessee
2. Vandy (alum)
3. Generally the rest of the SEC when playing out of conference
4. Notre Dame
5. Stanford
6. Baylor

My theory and sincere belief is that, for the most part, fans of non-UConn teams who hang out here a lot are really latent UConn fans and they just don't know it yet (although some of them actually do). But the biggest portion of that other part besides "for the most part" is you Tennessee fans. No Tennessee fan would or could EVER root for UConn under any circumstances. I totally respect (and sympathize) with that.

 

[triaddukefan]

My theory and sincere belief is that, for the most part, fans of non-UConn teams who hang out here a lot are really latent UConn fans and they just don't know it yet (although some of them actually do). But the biggest portion of that other part besides "for the most part" is you Tennessee fans. No Tennessee fan would or could EVER root for UConn under any circumstances. I totally respect (and sympathize) with that.

Well I do have a UCONN cap.... bought it in 1997.... but that's a story for a different thread

 

[DefenseBB]

Women’s:
1: UConn
2: Stanford
.
.
.
.354) Tennessee
350)355) ND

There, I fixed it for you. There are 32 D1 conferences and 355 team...

 

[Undercovervol]

Baylor
UConn (can’t deny greatness)
Notre Dame
Texas, because Schaefer and I want them to challenge Baylor.
historical LV/Summitt fan.
women’s national team
I enjoy the WNBA as well and hoping they’ll play this year.

 

[Sifaka]

..

1-Just because
2- My Alma Mater
3- Where I live
4- Son's school
5- x other schools because I respect the coaches:
DePaul- Doug Bruno
UNC- Courtney Banghart
Baylor- Kim Mulkey
USF- José Fernández

 

[DefenseBB]

I guess if I had to rank them after UConn it would be:
Oregon State (I like Rueck)
Louisville (I like Walz)
NC State (Wes has done a nice job there and Cunnane is great player)
Stanford (Tara is a class act and the you know the team is academic)
Baylor (I used to really like Kim, so much so, I joined their forum but her comments over the whole Briles thing frustrated me so she dropped and I stopped going on their board)
Arizona (My brother moved to Tucson so I follow all of UofA's sports led by Softball!)
TCU (I am rooting for Raegan Pebley, a Big12 version of Adia Barnes, albeit with a bigger salary)
Gonzaga
Marquette
DePaul
Oklahoma-however it is clearly time for Sherri to leave...

Teams I kinda like see win as it makes for good dialogue:
Maryland
SC
Ohio State
Iowa
Indiana
Northwestern
North Caronlina
BC
FSU
Oregon
Texas

Teams I openly root against but at one time actually liked:
Tennessee (yes, after UConn I used really like Tennessee until the whole Maya Moore fiasco, now their fans drive me bonkers so...)
ND (yes, I also liked seeing ND get better and become a challenge for UConn but MM wore on me with her less than gracious comments so schadenfreude was great this year!)
Duke-McCallie has jaded me so much I now want them to lose every game. If they hire someone logical, I can see me buying a Duke WCBB T-Shirts and buddying it up my Dookie colleagues!
Texas Tech-Marlene Stollings came along and wham, they can't lose enough for me

Humbly submitted,
DefenseBB

 

[newfrontier]

1. Oregon State
2. Michigan State
3. Arizona
4. Stanford
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350. Michigan*
351. Oregon*
(division 1 teams only)
*edited

 

[Gamecockfan77]

After South Carolina, I generally support the SEC teams, which isn't necessarily the case in other sports. Currently Neighbors is my favorite, though.

Nikki changes the Miss State dynamic a bit.

I generally feel pretty good towards the ACC's traditional schools (except Clemson), which would include Maryland. (Again, not something that necessarily holds in other sports).

I see Texas as a program I'll want to do well with Vic.

Stanford is fine. I like to see them in the mix.

Have Nothing against Oregon, though the Nike thing keeps me from being all in. No dislike though. Really want to schedule them sometime. I guess the teams are likely meet this winter in the islands.

I enjoy watching UConn play anybody good. They are kind of like old school Tiger Woods for me. I'm not necessarily pulling for them most times, but it's not a hate watch. I appreciate their best and before this season always think they will win.

Notre Dame hasn't scheduled Dawn so I do hold that against them.

 

[newfrontier]

Umm, you lost me on your numbers, there are 355 Division 1 teams and 65 P5 Teams.

You are right. I don't know what I was thinking at 2 am PDT. Brain fart. At least one
website says "there are currently 351 member (D1 women's) basketball colleges across the U.S. "

 

[DefenseBB]

You are right. I don't know what I was thinking at 2 am PDT. Brain fart. At least one
website says "there are currently 351 member (D1 women's) basketball colleges across the U.S. "

Yes, there are conflicting numbers and I went with my database of coaches and schools that had 355 in the 32 conferences. I haven't had the motivation to reconcile the list. I suspect the 351 may be correct.

 

[Jmsdawg]

Mississippi State
UConn
South Carolina
Oregon
Stanford

 

[HuskyNan]

1. UConn
2. Elon (current student here!)
3. Stanford (they've had such likeable teams in recent years, play fundamentally sound ball, no drama)

My son graduated from Elon last year. If you went to any basketball games, you heard him in the pep band.

 

[HuskyNan]

1. UConn
2. USF
3. Princeton
4. Elon
5. Sorta watching Florida. It’s not that far away so I can see Div I games without having to go to......
...
...
575. UCF. I’d rather watch some Div II and Div III teams despite UCF being 25 minutes easy drive from me

 

[Baylor1994]

After South Carolina, I generally support the SEC teams, which isn't necessarily the case in other sports. Currently Neighbors is my favorite, though.

Nikki changes the Miss State dynamic a bit.

I generally feel pretty good towards the ACC's traditional schools (except Clemson), which would include Maryland. (Again, not something that necessarily holds in other sports).

I see Texas as a program I'll want to do well with Vic.

Stanford is fine. I like to see them in the mix.

Have Nothing against Oregon, though the Nike thing keeps me from being all in. No dislike though. Really want to schedule them sometime. I guess the teams are likely meet this winter in the islands.

I enjoy watching UConn play anybody good. They are kind of like old school Tiger Woods for me. I'm not necessarily pulling for them most times, but it's not a hate watch. I appreciate their best and before this season always think they will win.

Notre Dame hasn't scheduled Dawn so I do hold that against them.

Didn’t Notre Dame play South Carolina in 2018

 

[TheFarmFan]

1. Stanford
2. UConn (except this past year where I probably would have rooted for Oregon over UConn)
3. Other PAC-12 and West Coast (such as Gonzaga) teams not named U$C and Colorado.
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Next to Last: Duke. Because it's Duke, duh. (sorry @triaddukefan!)
Last: Baylor. The institution's callous attitudes about its athletes' sexual assaults and its treatment of LGBT students and players is, IMHO, hard to stomach. No amount of Kim Mulkey big hairdos and even bigger jacket tossing can rehabilitate it for me. Never been more excited to root for Vic Schaefer than I will be next year.

 

[ochoopsfan]

1-UConn
2-13 - Pac 12--No particular order
14- Vanguard U(Costa Mesa, CA--NAIA)
15 - Queens College(CUNY)

 

[triaddukefan]

Ok.... in the ACC. I root for the conference teams when they are in the tournament and in non-conference matchups. With the exception of VPI (i have a soft spot in my heart for the Gobblers) ... I root for the old school teams first.

1) Duke
2) Wake
3) State
4) VPI
5) UVA
6) Clemson
7) Georgia Tech
8) Florida State
9) Miami
10) Syracuse
11) Pitt
12) Boston College
13) Louisville
14) Notre Dame

 

[Lorcan]

1. Stanford: I grew up watching Stanford, my family watched many of the biggest games of the Pedersen, Pohlen, and Wiggins era together. I got the opportunity to watch them in person in Storrs, and while I have never made it to Maples, I continue to be thrilled whenever they come out to Colorado and make great escapes. I was live for this one, and it was epic.

2. Princeton: 31-0 and only an 8 seed? Princeton continues to perform at a high level, although the departure of Bela Alarie will make things interesting next season in Princeton. I admired this team under Courtney Banghart, and attended a few games at Jadwin. I haven't quite been as attentive to them this season under Berube (for no particular reason) with the exception of a few higher caliber games like the one against Iowa.

3. Gonzaga (Who doesn't love a plucky mid-major on a Cinderella run? Vandersloot, Bowen, Redmon, and so many others have been fun to watch.)

4. Iowa: It's been fabulous to watch the progression of great players from Samantha Logic, Megan Gustafson, Kathleen Doyle, and now to Caitlin Clark linking up with Monika Cizano. Besides, it's always good to know that Iowa isn't a danger to Stanford Football if the Rose Bowl a few years back is any indication.



5. Drake: I have a soft spot for insanely amazing statistical seasons that help my fantasy team out. This may change next season with the graduation of Sara Rhine and Becca Hittner. I have never lived in Iowa, so I have no idea why Drake and Iowa are both in my top 5 apart from rooting for an underdog to do well.

6. South Dakota: Allison Arens, Ciara Duffy, Hannah Sjerven, Madison McKeever have all been amazing to watch as the Yotes ascended supremacy in the Summit, and snatched a national title of their own.

7. South Dakota State: The Jackrabbits were probably my first true love in the Summit with their ability to perennially challenge top teams. Remember that time that Stanford needed Lilli Thompson to send them to the Sweet 16?



8. Florida Gulf Coast: Beat Notre Dame? Check. Beat South Dakota State? Check. Beat Duke? Check. Florida Gulf Coast led by Karl Smesko are always a thrill to watch with their exciting and dynamic style of play. I was looking forward to seeing who they would get to upset in the tournament this year after a memorable upset of Sophie Cunningham's Mizzou in 2018.

9. Arizona State: I will never ever, EVER say that I enjoy playing against Charli Turner Thorne who has been a proverbial thorn in Stanford's side for years. Arizona State can play some ugly basketball, but they've had some amazing wins or games over the years. Who didn't love their upsets of Oregon and Oregon State back to back this season? Absolutely an epic weekend for Sun Devil Basketball.

10. St. John's: One of the biggest upsets in history, when Shenneika Smith sunk the three-pointer below. I still get such a thrill from watching this which will probably make UConn fans dislike me -- but while I respect what the Huskies have done, I will root for the underdog 9/10 times. I would advise UConn fans to avoid re-watching the game below unless you enjoy pumping emotions.

2/18/2012 - UConn vs. St. John's

11. Denver: I guess I live here, so I should root for the local team since Boulder is a nasty drive from work in Lone Tree. I have shamefully yet to make it to a game at DU, as the Dakota's visits just haven't lined up well with my travels.

12. Non-P5 Teams (excluding UConn): I always enjoy a success story. From Darby Maggard at Belmont, to Cierra Dillard's run at Buffalo, to Presley Hudson at Central Michigan, to Ally Mallott at Dayton, or watching Michelle Clark Heard's teams at Western Kentucky, or Villanova coming up with an inexplicable win, I will constantly hope for a win or a stunning upset from these teams. There are a few exceptions to this rule, such as rooting against BYU, or Pennsylvania (where my ex is a graduate student), or Abilene Christian (where my deeply religious grandparents lived for a time).

13. The Rest of the Pac-12: In some order, I'm probably rooting for California to rise again, to make the it a rough trip to the Bay Area so that teams can't focus on Stanford. Beyond that, I'll root for Colorado, Utah, Washington, Oregon State, Arizona, Wazzu, UCLA, Oregon, and USC in that order.

14. Northwestern, Indiana, North Carolina State, Florida State, Iowa State, Texas Christian: These teams all have coaches that I enjoy listening to, along with successful programs that I feel I can somewhat root for.

15. University of Connecticut: I do admit that I will root for almost anyone against the mighty Huskies. I have the utmost respect for everything that Geno has done for his program, and I grudgingly admit that they can be a fun team to watch if you're not so heavily rooting against them. I will happily state that I will root for the Huskies against Baylor, Louisville, South Carolina, Maryland, or others UNLESS I deem it acceptable that the elimination of UConn in the tournament enhances the odds of my favorite team.

340 and Below: The SEC: This conference has far too much football money, and I dislike that they will continue to poach good coaches from elsewhere. I am not a huge fan of Dawn Staley's antics nor can I bring myself to support Matthew Mitchell at Kentucky, or other coaches in the conference. There are a few exceptions, such as being cautiously optimistic about Nikki McCray-(Pearson?) at Mississippi State.

 

[nwhoopfan]

1. Stanford: I grew up watching Stanford, my family watched many of the biggest games of the Pedersen, Pohlen, and Wiggins era together. I got the opportunity to watch them in person in Storrs, and while I have never made it to Maples, I continue to be thrilled whenever they come out to Colorado and make great escapes. I was live for this one, and it was epic.

I've seen Stanford live a bunch of times when they come to Seattle. My memory is getting foggy, I can't remember if I saw them during the Nicole Powell era (I want to say I did, but I might be inventing that), but definitely starting w/ Wiggins I've seen all of their stars since then. I don't think I've ever seen them lose in Seattle, I wasn't there for the game Chiney's Sr. year.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I guess I should take a stab at this.

1. Oregon St./Washington (it varies a bit from year to year who I pull for when they go head to head)
2. Most of the rest of the Pac 12 in some order, probably Stanford next. I generally dislike Oregon (football especially), but Graves puts a really entertaining and quality team on the floor. I have a really hard time rooting for USC or Arizona St., but for conference solidarity I grudgingly want them to do well in OOC and post season.
3. It gets tough at this point. I used to really enjoy watching UConn, but the last several years I've found I have zero interest in watching them beat up craptastic AAC teams. I'll watch their big OOC games. I've really been enjoying Iowa recently. I'll watch random games from various different conferences from time to time. I follow Gonzaga, but streaming is the only option for watching most of their games and I rarely end up doing that (the WCC's site was awful this last season).
300+ I generally dislike all things SEC. Sorry fans of the various schools, that's just how I feel. I don't care much for Notre Dame or Baylor either.

 

[Lorcan]

I guess I should take a stab at this.

1. Oregon St./Washington (it varies a bit from year to year who I pull for when they go head to head)
2. Most of the rest of the Pac 12 in some order, probably Stanford next. I generally dislike Oregon (football especially), but Graves puts a really entertaining and quality team on the floor. I have a really hard time rooting for USC or Arizona St., but for conference solidarity I grudgingly want them to do well in OOC and post season.
3. It gets tough at this point. I used to really enjoy watching UConn, but the last several years I've found I have zero interest in watching them beat up craptastic AAC teams. I'll watch their big OOC games. I've really been enjoying Iowa recently. I'll watch random games from various different conferences from time to time. I follow Gonzaga, but streaming is the only option for watching most of their games and I rarely end up doing that (the WCC's site was awful this last season).
300+ I generally dislike all things SEC. Sorry fans of the various schools, that's just how I feel. I don't care much for Notre Dame or Baylor either.

There's definitely some Pac-12 Solidarity in the dislike of the SEC. I figured we had a lot of commonalities, given the threads that we collided on. I do have to say, easy access to games is a huge factor in some of my fandom of the mids, as I can nearly always get their games online. It wasn't until this past year that I had a more legal way to view Pac-12 games so, the pain of finding games has gone away, and my enjoyment has gone up immensely.

I think my concern for next year, if there is a season at all, will be the impact of COVID-19 on the schedules of Pac-12 teams, as travel will likely still be restricted regionally. It's going to be very difficult for teams to find quality OOC conference games, because we can't play Gonzaga 14 times in a row.