BATON ROUGE — The LSU women’s basketball team capped one of the most memorable seasons in school history with a No. 5 ranking in the final ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll, which was released on Wednesday.
The No. 5 ranking is the highest final national ranking ever for the Lady Tigers. LSU had previously finished ranked as high as No. 8 in the final coaches polls in 1985-86 and then again in 1999-2000. LSU was also been ranked No. 8 in the final Associated Press poll in 1983-84 and 1990-91.
The Lady Tigers, champions of the 2003 Southeastern Conference Tournament, posted a 30-4 overall mark and reached the Elite Eight at the NCAA Tournament before falling to Texas.
The 30 wins in 2002-03 marked only the second time in school-history the Lady Tigers reached the 30-victory plateau. LSU won a school-record 37 games in 1977-78.
Connecticut, winners of its second straight national title, was the unanimous choice for No. 1 team in the nation. The Huskies were followed by Tennessee at No. 2, Texas at No. 3, and Duke at No. 4.
Other SEC teams in the Top 25 include Georgia at No. 11, Mississippi State No. 16, South Carolina No. 18, Vanderbilt No. 20 and Arkansas No. 25.