Major conferences races heating up down the stretch

South Carolina guard Raven Johnson (25) advances the ball up the court during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Georgia, Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Artie Walker Jr.)

(AP)– The conference races are coming down the homestretch and while No. 1 South Carolina has basically run away with the SEC, many of the other power five leagues are still up for grabs.

The Gamecocks have a three-game lead over LSU with four contests left for Dawn Staley’s squad. LSU had been the preseason pick to win after South Carolina lost all five of its starters from last season. South Carolina can seal its fourth conference title in five years with two wins this week over Alabama on Thursday and Kentucky on Sunday.

No. 3 Stanford is also in a good spot to win its 27th regular-season Pac-12 championship, holding a two-game lead over USC, Oregon State and Colorado. The Cardinal, who are playing their final season in the conference, have a relatively easy schedule left with home games against Arizona and Arizona State before traveling to face Oregon and Oregon State.

While South Carolina and Stanford both have cushions in their conferences, Virginia Tech, Ohio State and Oklahoma each have one-game leads in the ACC, Big Ten and Big 12, respectively.