Prime 5 unchanged in males’s ballot; Vols climb to 7

Kansas remained solidly entrenched at No. 1 within the AP Prime 25 males’s faculty basketball ballot Monday forward of its showdown with No. 11 Duke in Las Vegas, whereas a pair of colleges from the Magnolia State elbowed their method again into the rankings.

Ole Miss returned to the ballot at No. 23 whereas Mississippi State made its season debut at No. 25.

The Jayhawks obtained 51 of 62 first-place votes from the nationwide panel of media, placing them effectively forward of two-time reigning nationwide champion UConn, which was second with six first-place votes. Gonzaga was third with two first-place votes, Auburn was subsequent with three, and Iowa State rounded out a prime 5 that was unchanged from the earlier week.

There is a good likelihood for motion subsequent week, although, with a number of high-profile matchups in vacation tournaments, and that matchup between the Jayhawks and Duke on Tuesday night time within the Vegas Showdown.

“Oh yeah, I’ve watched them,” mentioned Kansas coach Invoice Self, who picked up his 800th profession win by beating UNC Wilmington final week. “They’re gifted throughout the board. They’re beginning three freshmen, and everyone’s going to speak about [Cooper Flagg], however the different two are potential lottery picks, if not lottery picks too.”

So do the Jayhawks, who’ve already overwhelmed No. 12 North Carolina and Michigan State this season.

Tennessee climbed 4 spots to No. 7 on this week’s ballot, adopted by SEC rivals Kentucky and Alabama. Marquette was tenth after beating then-No. 6 Purdue and Georgia final week to achieve 6-0 for the primary time for the reason that 2011-12 season.

The Blue Devils and Tar Heels had been adopted by Purdue, which fell seven spots within the ballot. Indiana and Wisconsin made it three straight Large Ten colleges, whereas Cincinnati, Baylor, Florida, Arkansas and Texas A&M rounded out the highest 20.

The final 5 had been Creighton, Ole Miss, Arizona, Mississippi State and BYU. The Wildcats narrowly prolonged their run within the AP Prime 25 to 61 weeks — the fourth-longest lively streak within the nation — after back-to-back losses to Wisconsin and Duke.

“We did not play nice,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd mentioned after the loss to the Blue Devils, “so now we have to take a step again and work out why. Are there some schematic issues? Are there some issues with how our personnel is sort of put collectively? And people are the issues we’re going to check out. I really like the fellows. I imply, I just like the plan. However clearly when it isn’t going in addition to you want to, it’s important to be trustworthy with your self and attempt to determine it out.”

WHO’S IN; WHO’S OUT

Xavier returned to the ballot for the primary time for the reason that last ballot of the 2022-23 season forward of its journey to the Fort Myers Tip-Off starting Monday night time. Ole Miss is again within the Prime 25 after briefly dropping out, whereas Mississippi State is again after spending two weeks within the ballot final November however simply six weeks whole over the previous six years.

These three entered on the expense of Illinois, St. John’s and Rutgers. The Illini misplaced to Alabama final week, whereas St. John’s fell to Baylor and Georgia. Rutgers misplaced 79-77 at Kennesaw State, which beat a ranked group for the primary time at school historical past.

RISING AND FALLING

Marquette made the largest climb this week, shifting up 5 spots to No. 10. The Golden Eagles catch a breather this week with Stonehill and Western Carolina earlier than back-to-back showdowns with No. 5 Iowa State and No. 15 Wisconsin.

Purdue, Creighton and Arizona all dropped seven spots however remained within the ballot. The Boilermakers lost to Marquette whereas the Bluejays misplaced to in-state rival Nebraska. The Wildcats dropped to 2-2, the primary time they’ve been .500 at any level in a season since they had been 3-3 to start out the 2017-18 season.

CONFERENCE WATCH

The SEC leads the way in which with 9 of the Prime 25 groups this week, together with 4 within the prime 10: Auburn, Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama. The Large 12 is subsequent with six, together with three of the primary six in top-ranked Kansas, Iowa State and Houston. The Large East had 4 within the ballot, the Large Ten three and the ACC two.