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Lady Cougars back in top 25

By Christian Schmidt

The Daily Cougar

Houston's last absence from The Associated Press top-25 poll lasted more than 10 years. But after dropping out of the poll Jan. 26, the Lady Cougars only waited two weeks to show up again.

Houston (19-3 overall, 8-1 in Conference USA) is No. 25 in the most recent edition of the poll released Monday.

The Lady Cougars are No. 21 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll, one spot ahead of C-USA rival Texas Christian. Houston beat TCU 61-59 on Jan. 18 in Fort Worth. Houston has been ranked in the last four editions of the coaches' poll.

All that is great, but Houston is more concerned about a spot in the NCAA Tournament at the end of the season. One recent projection of the tournament's seedings on www.espn.com had Houston as the No. 7 seed in the Mideast region.

Senior guard Chandi Jones is making a run at the rankings on her own. With a 39-point effort in Sunday's win over Tulane, Jones ranks No. 4 in the nation in points per game with 22.0. She is also 10th nationally in steals per game with 3.5.

UConn, Texas top polls

Texas and Connecticut are Nos. 1 and 2. But which is No. 1 and which is No. 2 depends on which poll you look at. The Lady Longhorns are No. 1 in the AP poll, their first appearance in the top spot since 1987. The Lady Huskies are No. 2, up two spots from last week.

But in the coaches' poll, the teams' positions are reversed.

DePaul at No. 15

The Lady Blue Demons just continue to climb up the AP poll. DePaul rebounded from its first conference loss of the season against Charlotte on Jan. 31 with two more wins.

The Lady Blue Demons took out East Carolina 90-74 Feb. 2 and then beat Marquette 61-59 on Sunday.

Might makes Wright

Shereka Wright could have gone to just about any school in the nation. As a senior in tiny Copperas Cove in central Texas, Wright was one of the nation's top recruits.

She chose to go to Purdue, where she has had a great career over the last four years. This year, she's averaging 19.7 points per game and has her team ranked No. 5 with a 19-2 record, including a win over the Lady Cougars earlier this season.

"This proves to everyone in the Big Ten, and everyone in the nation, that she's an outstanding player," Purdue senior guard Erika Valek said to The Associated Press.

If Purdue, which should be a No. 1 or 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, is to make a serious run at a national title, Wright will be the player to make it happen.

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