Gophers move up slightly in latest women's basketball poll

NEW YORK — After winning two more games in the last week the raise its record to 9-0, Minnesota moved into a tie for 13th in the latest Associated Press women's basketball poll.

The Gophers are tied with California, which also is 9-0, after beating Incarnate Word 75-39 on Wednesday and Boston College 77-69 on the road Sunday.

After not being in the coaches' poll, Minnesota made its first appearance in that Top 25 at No. 18 on Monday.

Minnesota plays its final two nonconference games at Williams on Wednesday against Coppin State and on Dec. 22 vs. Rhode island. The Big Ten opens on Dec. 28, when the Gophers play Wisconsin at the Barn.

Meanwhile, a win over Oregon vaulted Michigan State into the women's AP Top 25. Oregon knocked the Gophers out of the NCAA tournament in the second round last season, the last game coach by Marlene Stollings before she left the U for Texas Tech, where her team is 5-2.

The Spartans enter the poll at No. 23 on Monday, a day after upsetting the then-third ranked Ducks 88-82. Michigan State (8-1) only had three votes from the 31-member national media panel last week. It's the first ranking for Michigan State in two years.

The win was the Spartans first over a top-three opponent since April 3, 2005, when they defeated No. 3 Tennessee, 68-64 in the Final Four. It's also the team's first regular-season win over a top-three opponent since Dec. 2, 2004, when they won at No. 3 Notre Dame, 82-73 in overtime.

There wasn't much other movement in the poll with many teams starting their exam breaks. UConn and Notre Dame remain No. 1 and 2. Baylor, Louisville and Mississippi State round out the first five teams in the poll.

Drake fell out of the Top 25 after losing at South Dakota State.

ROUGH WEEK FOR DUCKS: The NCAA announced that Oregon violated rules related to the both basketball teams and the track and field program and put the school on probation for two years.

The decision issued Wednesday said Graves failed to "monitor and promote an atmosphere of compliance in his program." He must serve a two-game suspension this season.

"I regret that some members of my staff made errors of judgment, and I have taken actions to ensure that it doesn't happen again," Graves said in a statement when the university received notice. "I am steadfastly committed to building a winning program at the UO that operates in full compliance with NCAA bylaws and is committed to the highest levels of integrity."