Auburn continues to excel in close contests, which has helped cement its status at the top of the AP Top 25 for men’s college basketball. For the second week in a row, the Tigers were the unanimous choice, earning all 62 votes from the national media panel. Their position as the number one team was reinforced by a last-minute win, featuring a decisive 3-point shot by Miles Kelly with just 30 seconds remaining, leading to a 53-51 triumph over the previous No. 6 team, Tennessee.
Tigers’ head coach Bruce Pearl expressed confidence in his team, noting, “We can play better, and we still were able to beat a great team.” He acknowledged the challenge of consistently winning tight games, stating, “We’ve won four of the last six games in the last possession. It’s going to be a battle every night, but we’re happy with this one because that’s a great team.” Additionally, the squad welcomed back All-American forward Johnni Broome, who had missed two games due to an ankle injury. Broome significantly impacted the game against the Vols, scoring 16 points, grabbing 12 rebounds, and blocking four shots.
The top five teams in this week’s rankings remain unchanged. Duke holds the second spot, followed by Iowa State, Alabama, and Florida, which secured victories against South Carolina and Georgia earlier in the week. Significant movement, however, took place further down the Top 25.
Houston rose to No. 6 after achieving a dominating win over Utah, followed by a nail-biting double-overtime victory against Kansas. Coach Kelvin Sampson praised his team’s resilience and understanding of their winning strategy, reflecting on the tough nature of their recent successes. Meanwhile, Michigan State climbed to No. 7, with Tennessee, now ranked eighth, balancing their loss to Auburn by defeating No. 14 Mississippi State. The top ten is completed by Marquette and Purdue, the latter having recently secured a win against then-No. 21 Michigan.
Kansas’s resilience paid off, moving up one position to No. 11 despite their loss to Houston. Conversely, Kentucky slipped to No. 12 after suffering a defeat against Vanderbilt. Texas A&M and Mississippi State followed closely behind after going 1-1 over the week. St. John’s made a notable jump, climbing five spots to No. 15 after an overtime victory against Xavier, achieving its highest ranking since late December 2014.
Following St. John’s are Oregon at No. 16 and Wisconsin, Illinois, Memphis, and Missouri completing the list. Louisville is on the rise, now at No. 21, trailed by Texas Tech, which made its introductory appearance in the rankings following two recent wins. Mississippi fell to No. 23, Vanderbilt debuted at No. 24, and the two-time defending national champions, UConn, dropped to No. 25 after a loss against Xavier.
St. John’s and Memphis were the biggest movers this week, both rising five spots. The Red Storm have received a boost from a six-game winning streak post a defeat by Creighton, while Memphis has won seven of its last eight games, sharing the top spot in the American Athletic Conference. On the other hand, Ole Miss experienced a significant drop, falling seven spots after suffering narrow losses to Texas A&M and Missouri. UConn also witnessed a decline, sliding six spots but maintaining its status in the Top 25 for the 52nd consecutive week, marking the fourth-longest streak among programs nationwide.
In terms of team entries into the rankings, Texas Tech made a notable entrance at No. 22 after securing wins against Cincinnati and Oklahoma State, stretching its Big 12 winning streak to four games. Vanderbilt also marked its return to the poll at No. 24 for the first time since late 2015, coinciding with its women’s team also breaking into the rankings for the first time since 2014. These adjustments led to Michigan and West Virginia being dropped from the rankings after both teams lost to unranked opponents.
The SEC continues to make its mark in college basketball, boasting three teams in the top five, four in the top ten, and a total of ten teams represented in the poll. Following the SEC, the Big Ten counts five ranked teams, with the Big 12 holding four, the Big East three, the ACC two, and the American counting one.
