Louisiana Tech enters this weekend's season opener against Texas Tech ranked No. 16 in the country after the Associated Press released its preseason Top 25 poll Monday.
The Lady Techsters received 442 points to fall just shy of No. 15 ranked Minnesota, which garnered 453 points. Duke and Tennessee are No. 1 and No. 2 in the poll while defending national champion Connecticut is ranked No. 4 despite losing four starters to the WNBA.
Louisiana Tech ended last year ranked No. 8 in the AP poll after recording a 25-5 mark and participating in the program's 21st straight NCAA Tournament. However, first year head coach Kurt Budke returns only four letter winners while welcoming nine newcomers to this year's team.
Texas Tech, this weekend's opponent for the Lady Techsters, is ranked No. 7. Both Tulane and New Mexico who the Lady Techsters play later this year are among those receiving votes.
The ranking marks the 180th-straight week Louisiana Tech has been ranked in the AP Top 25 dating back to Nov. 24, 1992.
Associated Press' Top 25 Preseason Poll
Record Pts Pv
1. Duke (38) 31-4 1,093 3
2. Tennessee (4) 29-5 1,049 6
3. LSU (1) 18-12 941 22
4. Connecticut (1) 39-0 873 1
5. Kansas St. 26-8 839 11
6. Stanford 32-3 818 5
7. Texas Tech 20-12 814 17
8. Purdue 24-6 794 9
9. Georgia 19-11 749 -
10. Notre Dame 20-10 696 -
11. Texas 22-10 674 14
12. Vanderbilt 30-7 608 4
13. North Carolina 26-9 551 16
14. Penn St. 23-12 506 24
15. Minnesota 22-8 453 18
16. Louisiana Tech 25-5 442 8
17. Arkansas 20-12 338 -
18. Cincinnati 27-5 235 19
19. Colorado St. 24-7 218 20
20. Boston College 23-8 165 21
21. George Washington 21-9 150 -
22. Oklahoma 32-4 148 2
23. Iowa St. 24-9 147 10
24. Mississippi St. 19-12 141 -
25. UC Santa Barbara 26-6 106 -
Others receiving votes: TCU 100, Washington 94, Tulane 88, Virginia 81, Old Dominion 75, Oregon 67, BYU 46, Colorado 46, N.C. State 26, New Mexico 26, South Carolina 21, Ohio St. 14, Florida 12, Pepperdine 8, Villanova 8, Michigan St. 6, Southern Cal 6, Harvard 5, Houston 5, Michigan 5, Ball St. 3, Temple 3, DePaul 2, Rutgers 2, Pittsburgh 1, Rice 1, Siena 1.