The Big Ten conference had three teams rise up one spot from their preseason rankings in the latest edition of the men’s Associated Press Top 25 poll released Monday.
The conference has four programs ranked in this week’s poll, led by last year’s national runner-up Purdue at No. 13 after the Boilermakers’ 2-0 start. Indiana (2-0) also rose one spot to No. 16, while No. 21 Ohio State remained at its previous spot from the preseason poll. Rutgers (No. 24) rose spot as well, swapping with No. 25 Ole Miss.
Six other Big Ten programs earned votes: Illinois, Michigan State, Oregon, Wisconsin, Maryland, and Michigan. The Fighting Illini were on the outside looking in, trailing Ole Miss for a top 25 spot by only three points.
The biggest tumble of the week went to Texas A&M, falling ten spots to No. 23 after losing to unranked UCF 64-61 on Nov. 4.
The top three teams remained unchanged, with Kansas leading the way at No. 1 followed by No. 2 Alabama and two-time reigning national champion UConn at No. 3. Gonzaga rose two spots to No. 4, with Auburn having jumped six spots to No. 5. The Tigers made the biggest leap in this week’s poll after winning over previous No. 4 Houston 74-69 Saturday. The Cougars fell to No. 8.
The Big 12 conference’s depth flexed with six teams in the rankings and five of the six in the top 12. Iowa State fell two spots to No. 7, while Arizona rose to No. 9. Baylor fell out of the top ten to No. 12 after a 1-1 start with a 101-63 blowout loss to No. 4 Gonzaga then returning with a 72-67 win against No. 18 Arkansas.
The SEC has seven teams ranked, with Alabama and Auburn leading the pack ahead of No. 11 Tennessee, Arkanasas, No. 19 Kentucky, No. 20 Florida, Texas A&M, and Ole Miss. The ACC featured only two teams, but both were placed in the top ten: No. 6 Duke and No. 10 North Carolina. The Big East has UConn and No. 14 Creighton leading the charge along with No. 16 Marquette and No. 22 St. John’s.
Nebraska basketball does not face a top-25 foe until visiting Omaha on Friday, Nov. 22 at the CHI Health Center to play the No. 14 Creighton Bluejays. As of this week’s rankings, Nebraska remains with contests against three ranked teams: Indiana, Purdue, Rutgers, and Ohio State.
The Huskers opened their season at Lincoln’s Pinnacle Bank Arena with an 87-67 win over the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley on Monday followed by a 63-58 victory over Bethune-Cookman Saturday. Nebraska will battle Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday at 7 p.m. CST to continue the Huskers’ nonconference schedule.
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