The Wildcats (19-3) ascended to No. 1, supplanting the Tar Heels (19-2), who slip to second despite owning the poll's best winning percentage at .905. The swap at the summit underscores how razor-thin the margin is between two programs that have separated themselves from the field.
The Blue Jays (17-5) authored the poll's most emphatic statement, vaulting five spots from eighth to third, while the Buffaloes (16-4) matched that rise by climbing from 11th to fifth. Those two jumps reshuffled the entire top tier and pushed the Midshipmen (20-2) — the only 20-win team in the rankings — down to seventh from fourth.
At the bottom, the Minutewomen (16-3) crashed the party at No. 25 after sitting outside the poll entirely, while the Fighting Irish (12-6) took the hardest tumble, dropping five spots from 15th to 20th. With six teams holding four or fewer losses inside the top seven, the race to the title looks less like a coronation and more like a coin flip.
Data via ESPN · Summarized by D1Ball's editorial engine from official statistics.
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