UConn Still No. 1 in AP Women's Poll

As a first-year head coach, Baylor's Kim Mulkey is learning as she goes. But there's at least one thing she and her team already have mastered. <br><br>Winning. <br><br>Baylor (13-0) is off to

Tuesday, January 9th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

As a first-year head coach, Baylor's Kim Mulkey is learning as she goes. But there's at least one thing she and her team already have mastered.

Winning.

Baylor (13-0) is off to the best start in school history, and the Lady Bears moved into The Associated Press women's basketball poll Monday for the first time in 23 years.

At No. 23, they joined a Top 25 that also has Arizona as a newcomer, the same first eight as last week and Connecticut at No. 1 for the 29th straight time.

``These kids have just opened their arms to this coaching staff and accepted everything we've thrown at them,'' said Mulkey, a former Louisiana Tech player and assistant. ``I've been hard on them. I've challenged them because that's just my coaching style.

``At the same time, I hug their necks because I'm a mother. I hope I can learn as I grow when to be hard on them and when to hug them.''

So far, Baylor has been awfully hard on its opponents. Led by junior college transfer Sheila Lambert and a bunch of returning players determined to improve on last season's 7-20 finish, Baylor has won every game but one by at least 11 points.

Lambert leads the Big 12 in scoring and leads the team in steals and assists. Right now, she'd be a shoo-in as the league's newcomer of the year â€” and maybe the player of the year. But she's not doing it alone.

``This is not the Sheila Lambert show,'' Mulkey said. ``You don't average a double-double like Danielle Cockrom is unless you're good. And this is a kid that hasn't done it at Baylor before. Now she has a sparkle in her eye.

``Then everyone around those two fills their role and fills it well. There's just a trickle-down effect. And of course, it helps to be winning.''

Baylor was ranked 16 times in the first two years of The AP poll, which started in 1976. But after being ranked 18th the week of Jan. 25, 1978, the Lady Bears dropped out and did not reappear until Monday.

``I'm happy for the kids and the program,'' said Mulkey, who was with a perennial Top Ten program at Louisiana Tech. ``We all know it's a long season and in the Big 12, you can be ranked today and out of it tomorrow. But it's certainly something these kids will feel rewarded for.''

Connecticut (11-0) was a unanimous choice at No. 1 for the 10th time in as many polls this season and has led the poll every week since the 1999-2000 preseason rankings.

The Huskies began the 2001 calendar year with a 107-45 rout of Georgetown, then won at No. 8 Louisiana Tech 71-55.

Tennessee (14-1) remained second, and Notre Dame (14-0), which plays host to Connecticut next Monday, was third. The Irish were followed by Georgia, Duke, Purdue, Iowa State and Louisiana Tech.

The top eight teams combined for a 16-1 record in the past week, with Tennessee winning three times. The Lady Vols beat two ranked teams â€” Rutgers and Louisiana State.

LSU followed its loss to Tennessee with a victory over Mississippi State and moved up two spots to ninth. Florida climbed four places to 10th.

Texas Tech moved up two spots to 11th and Rutgers, which also lost to Notre Dame, fell from ninth to 12th. Then it was Penn State, Texas and Southwest Missouri State, followed by Clemson, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, North Carolina State and Oregon.

The final five teams were Mississippi State, Arizona, Baylor, Stanford and Auburn.

Arizona (12-2) was ranked all last season and was 21st in the final poll. The Wildcats, who returned only one of their top five scorers, began Pac-10 play with road wins over California and Stanford. Their only losses this season were at Notre Dame and to Auburn in Puerto Rico.

Xavier (10-2), which had been ranked for seven weeks, dropped out after an 88-74 loss to George Washington. The Musketeers were 22nd last week.

Utah (12-2), which had been 25th, lost to Loyola Marymount and beat New Mexico. The Utes were ranked for three weeks.