Wildcats take hit in AP rankings after loss to UCLA, win over ASU
Jan 31, 2022, 10:19 AM
UCLA guard Tyger Campbell, right, drives toward the basket as Arizona guard Kerr Kriisa defends during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2022, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Splitting the past week with a road loss against a top-10 team and a home win over their rival, the Arizona Wildcats slid from No. 3 to No. 7 in the latest college basketball rankings released by The Associated Press on Monday.
Arizona entered last week behind only No. 1 Auburn and No. 2 Gonzaga, and the Wildcats even garnered one first-place vote.
After losing to the then-No. 7 UCLA Bruins 75-59 last Tuesday, Arizona (17-2) rebounded with a 67-56 victory against the Arizona State Sun Devils on Saturday.
UCLA swapped places with Arizona in the poll, moving to third in the nation with the victory against the Wildcats followed by a sweep of the Bay Area schools over the past week.
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Auburn remained No. 1 for the second straight week, while Kentucky jumped into the top five for the first time in more than two years.
Bruce Pearl’s Tigers earned 49 of 61 first-place votes to extend the program’s first stay at the top and stay comfortably ahead of Gonzaga, which earned the other 12 first-place votes. Auburn (20-1) has won 17 straight games since losing a double-overtime game to Connecticut in November.
UCLA climbed to No. 3, followed by Purdue — which claimed its first No. 1 ranking earlier this season — and Kentucky. John Calipari’s Wildcats (17-4) had the week’s biggest jump, rising seven spots after winning by 18 at Kansas on Saturday.
Houston and Arizona were next, followed by reigning national champion Baylor — which spent five weeks at No. 1 but has split its last six games after Saturday’s loss at Alabama. The Bears’ four-spot slide marked the first time the Big 12 hasn’t had at least one team in the top five since the final poll of the 2018-19 season.
Associated Press Top 25 men’s basketball rankings
| Record | Pts | Prv | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Auburn (49) | 20-1 | 1508 | 1 |
| 2. Gonzaga (12) | 17-2 | 1475 | 2 |
| 3. UCLA | 16-2 | 1338 | 7 |
| 4. Purdue | 18-3 | 1282 | 6 |
| 5. Kentucky | 17-4 | 1195 | 12 |
| 6. Houston | 18-2 | 1164 | 7 |
| 7. Arizona | 17-2 | 1159 | 3 |
| 8. Baylor | 18-3 | 1141 | 4 |
| 9. Duke | 17-3 | 1107 | 9 |
| 10. Kansas | 17-3 | 1014 | 5 |
| 11. Wisconsin | 17-3 | 938 | 11 |
| 12. Villanova | 16-5 | 807 | 14 |
| 13. Michigan St. | 16-4 | 751 | 10 |
| 14. Texas Tech | 16-5 | 741 | 13 |
| 15. Providence | 18-2 | 709 | 17 |
| 16. Ohio St. | 13-5 | 548 | 16 |
| 17. UConn | 15-4 | 483 | 20 |
| 18. Illinois | 15-5 | 445 | 24 |
| 19. Southern Cal | 18-3 | 337 | 15 |
| 20. Iowa St. | 16-5 | 324 | 23 |
| 21. Xavier | 15-5 | 255 | 21 |
| 22. Tennessee | 14-6 | 234 | 18 |
| 23. Texas | 16-5 | 203 | – |
| 24. Marquette | 15-7 | 188 | 22 |
| 25. LSU | 16-5 | 180 | 19 |
Others receiving votes: Alabama 97, Murray St. 42, Boise St. 32, Saint Mary’s (Cal) 32, Miami 29, Indiana 22, Davidson 10, Arkansas 7, Iowa 6, Iona 6, Notre Dame 4, Loyola Chicago 4, TCU 4, Colorado St. 3, Toledo 1.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
