The Kentucky women’s basketball program is ranked 14th in this week’s AP poll. Wait, 14? Here’s how they were ranked last week. Didn’t they beat a top 20 opponent by double digits and remain undefeated this season? I’m glad you asked. that’s exactly right. Last week they took on No. 19 Illinois and won 76-53 against another top-20 opponent. Yet they didn’t advance? Yes, and it’s confusing.

The Lady Cats are off to a 7-0 start to the season and have two top-20 wins against Louisville and Illinois on their record. They continue to impress and win games convincingly, but somehow AP poll voters remain unconvinced and unwilling to move them up. There was a lot of movement around them, including TCU moving up eight spots from behind the Wildcats to No. 9 thanks to a big win over #3 Notre Dame.

There is speculation that Kentucky women are staying at 14 in part because their last two games were on a random subscription-based service: BallerTV. Because it was buried in some back channel of the Internet, not enough voters could see the convincing victory over Illinois. However, that’s a lame excuse since the box score isn’t hidden and the summary is available to anyone who wants to search for it.

It really seemed like an oversight as teams were moving all around them, but Kentucky got stuck in the same spot. This week, the Lady Cats have another opportunity to impress AP Poll voters by participating in the ESPN SEC/ACC Basketball Challenge. Their matchup is on the road against the #16 North Carolina Tar Heels. This game takes place on December 5th at 5 p.m. on ESPN2. If they can win this competition it will give them three top 20 wins on their resume.