University of Maine junior forward Adrianna Smith was named the America East women’s basketball player of the week for the second time this season on Monday.

Smith recorded 28 points, 15 rebounds and four assists in the Black Bears’ lone game of the week, a 78-52 win over the University of New Hampshire on Thursday. In 32 minutes against the Wildcats, Smith was 9 for 13 from the floor and 10 for 10 from the free-throw line.

Smith has 11 double-doubles this season and is averaging 15.4 points and 10.9 rebounds per game for the Black Bears (10-7, 3-0 America East). She was also named the conference’s player of the week on Nov. 27. Teammate Anne Simon has earned the honor five times this season.

The Black Bears return to action on the road against the University of Maryland-Baltimore County at 6 p.m. Thursday.

AP POLL: Iowa moved up to No. 2 and Colorado to No. 3 behind top-ranked South Carolina in The Associated Press Top 25 poll after a chaotic week that saw half of the top 10 teams lose.

The Gamecocks (15-0), who are the last unbeaten team, routed Missouri in their lone game last week and received all 36 first-place votes from the national media panel in the poll released hours before South Carolina hosted Kentucky.

Previously undefeated UCLA and Baylor both lost and fell in the rankings. The Bruins dropped from second to fifth and the Bears plummeted from fourth to 12th after losing to both Kansas and Iowa State. The Cyclones entered the poll at No. 24.

Clark and Iowa moved up to second after routing then-No. 14 Indiana on Saturday night. Colorado and N.C. State followed the Hawkeyes. The Buffaloes are 15-1 for the first time since the 1992-93 season.

The Hoosiers, led by Gorham’s Mackenzie Holmes, fell to No. 16. Notre Dame, whose roster includes Anna DeWolfe of Cumberland, is ranked 19th.

MEN’S HOCKEY

UMAINE: Sophomore Brandon Holt was named the Hockey East defender of the week after scoring twice in the Black Bears’ 5-3 win over UConn on Friday night.

The Black Bears, who had a nine-game unbeaten streak end with a 2-0 loss to UConn on Saturday, fell one spot to eighth in the latest USCHO Division I men’s hockey poll. Maine earned one first-place vote.

Boston University is ranked No. 1, followed by Boston College, Quinnipiac, Wisconsin and Denver.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

AP POLL: Connecticut has followed last year’s run to the NCAA championship with its first No. 1 ranking in The Associated Press poll in nearly 15 years, while Gonzaga has fallen out of the AP Top 25 for the first time in eight years.

The Huskies moved to the top of the latest poll after a tumultuous and upset-filled week across the sport, which included five new teams entering the rankings. UConn claimed 39 of 63 first-place votes to climb three spots and replace Purdue at the top after the Boilermakers’ loss at Nebraska dropped them to No. 2.

This marks the first time UConn has hit No. 1 in the AP Top 25 since spending four weeks there in the second half of the 2008-09 season, which ended with the Huskies reaching the Final Four.

Purdue claimed 20 first-place votes, followed by Kansas – the poll’s only team to stay in place from last week – holding three first-place votes despite a loss at UCF.

There was also North Carolina’s three-spot jump to No. 4 after beating rival North Carolina State for its third Atlantic Coast Conference road win in as many tries and blowing out Syracuse at home. UNC even picked up a first-place vote.

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