Gonzaga climbed back to No. 2 in both the Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25 on Monday after a 2-0 week that included a victory over Saint Mary’s. The Zags took the place of Baylor, which fell two spots in the Coaches Poll to No. 4 following a Saturday loss to TCU.
The coaches voted Kansas as the unanimous No. 1 just as the the AP voters did. Meanwhile, Seton Hall rose from No. 13 to No. 7 in the Coaches Poll after a win at Marquette on Saturday. Kentucky also got a nice bump from No. 9 to No. 6 after beating Auburn on Saturday to claim the SEC regular season title.
Other notable teams on the rise in the Coaches Poll included Wisconsin, Illinois and Virginia. The Badgers went from receiving just three votes in last week’s Coaches Poll to being ranked No. 24 this week after extending their winning streak to six games with victories over Michigan and Minnesota.
Virginia and Illinois also returned to the poll after both went 2-0 last week. The Cavaliers have won nine of their last 10 and the Illini have won four in a row.
The most notable snub from both polls may have been UCLA. The Bruins received 54 votes in the Coaches Poll after ascending to sole possession of first place in the Pac-12 standings with a victory over Arizona on Saturday. It was the Bruins’ seventh victory in a row and ninth in their last 10 games. But even at 19-11 (12-5 Pac-12), the hesitance of some voters to elevate UCLA into the poll is a reflection of the Bruins’ status as an NCAA Tournament bubble team.
Coaches Poll
The top 25 teams in the USA Today/Coaches Poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Sunday, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last week’s ranking:
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas (32) | 26-3 | 800 | 1 |
| 2 | Gonzaga | 29-2 | 742 | 4 |
| 3 | Dayton | 27-2 | 741 | 3 |
| 4 | Baylor | 25-3 | 742 | 2 |
| 5 | San Diego State | 28-1 | 680 | 5 |
| 6 | Kentucky | 24-5 | 628 | 9 |
| 7 | Seton Hall | 21-7 | 567 | 13 |
| 8 | Florida State | 24-5 | 555 | 6 |
| 9 | Maryland | 23-6 | 516 | 8 |
| 10 | Louisville | 24-6 | 494 | 10 |
| 11 | Duke | 23-6 | 419 | 7 |
| 12 | Villanova | 22-7 | 392 | 12 |
| 13 | Oregon | 22-7 | 387 | 16 |
| 14 | Creighton | 22-7 | 385 | 11 |
| 15 | BYU | 24-7 | 323 | 18 |
| 15 | Auburn | 24-5 | 323 | 15 |
| 17 | Michigan State | 20-9 | 310 | 24 |
| 18 | Iowa | 20-9 | 301 | 17 |
| 19 | Ohio State | 20-9 | 240 | 23 |
| 20 | Penn State | 21-8 | 232 | 14 |
| 21 | Houston | 22-7 | 141 | NR |
| 22 | Virginia | 21-7 | 79 | NR |
| 22 | Illinois | 20-9 | 79 | NR |
| 24 | Wisconsin | 19-10 | 78 | NR |
| 25 | Butler | 20-9 | 60 | NR |
Others Receiving Votes: Michigan 31; UCLA 30; West Virginia 27; Colorado 26; Northern Iowa 19; East Tennessee St. 16; Stephen F. Austin 15; Texas Tech 14; Arizona 14; St. Mary’s 13; Marquette 13; Louisiana State 4; Texas 3; Providence 3; Yale 2; Southern California 2; Wichita St. 1; Stanford 1.
Dropped out: No. 19 West Virginia; No. 20 Colorado; No. 21 Texas Tech; No. 22 Michigan; No. 24 Arizona