Arizona, future opponent Purdue are atop AP men’s college basketball rankings
Nov 27, 2023, 11:56 AM
The Arizona Wildcats huddle during the second half of the game against the Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium on November 10, 2023 in Durham, North Carolina. Arizona won 78-73. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
(Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
The Arizona Wildcats inched up a spot in The Associated Press Top 25 rankings for men’s college basketball thanks to previously ranked No. 1 Kansas falling this past week.
Tommy Lloyd’s team came in second and earned one No. 1 vote, with 60 others going to the top-ranked Purdue Boilermakers. No. 4 UConn earned two No. 1 votes.
The Wildcats moved to 6-0 on the season with a 74-68 win in Palm Desert, California, against the then-ranked No. 21 Michigan State Spartans (3-3).
Arizona’s five starters hit double-digits in the win Thursday. Guard Caleb Love led the way with 17 points and four assists.
Purdue ascended to No. 1 on Monday after an impressive run through a loaded field at the Maui Invitational. The Boilermakers beat Gonzaga, Tennessee and Marquette — three of the top 11 teams in the nation — in consecutive days, and that was enough to earn 60 of 63 first-place votes from the national panel voters.
Marquette came in at No. 3 after a 78-75 loss to Purdue in Hawaii.
The Wildcats and Boilermakers are in line to potentially clash on Dec. 16 as the top two teams in the nation.
Arizona hosts Colgate (Saturday) and Wisconsin (Dec. 9) before playing Purdue in Indianapolis.
Ahead of that game, Purdue faces Texas Southern (Tuesday), Northwestern (Friday), Iowa (Dec. 4) and No. 23 Alabama (Dec. 9).
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Men’s college basketball rankings — AP Poll (Nov. 27)
| Team | Record | Pts | Prv |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Purdue (60) | 6-0 | 1572 | 2 |
| 2. Arizona (1) | 6-0 | 1467 | 3 |
| 3. Marquette | 5-1 | 1418 | 4 |
| 4. UConn (2) | 6-0 | 1411 | 5 |
| 5. Kansas | 5-1 | 1312 | 1 |
| 6. Houston | 7-0 | 1289 | 6 |
| 7. Duke | 5-1 | 1194 | 9 |
| 8. Miami | 5-0 | 1031 | 10 |
| 9. Baylor | 6-0 | 1030 | 13 |
| 10. Tennessee | 4-2 | 967 | 7 |
| 11. Gonzaga | 4-1 | 964 | 11 |
| 12. Kentucky | 5-1 | 727 | 16 |
| 13. FAU | 5-1 | 664 | 19 |
| 14. Texas A&M | 6-1 | 646 | 12 |
| 15. Creighton | 5-1 | 613 | 8 |
| 16. Texas | 5-1 | 571 | 15 |
| 17. North Carolina | 5-1 | 567 | 14 |
| 18. Villanova | 6-1 | 534 | – |
| 19. BYU | 6-0 | 416 | – |
| 20. Colorado St. | 6-0 | 330 | – |
| 21. Mississippi St. | 6-0 | 309 | 25 |
| 22. James Madison | 6-0 | 303 | 22 |
| 23. Alabama | 5-1 | 259 | 17 |
| 24. Illinois | 5-1 | 134 | – |
| 25. Oklahoma | 6-0 | 120 | – |
Others receiving votes: Memphis 108, San Diego St. 102, Colorado 70, Ohio St. 67, TCU 66, Michigan St. 57, Auburn 46, UCLA 24, Princeton 14, Arkansas 10, Florida St. 8, Iowa St. 8, Southern Cal 7, Liberty 7, Nevada 6, Clemson 6, Virginia 6, Mississippi 5, Nebraska 4, South Carolina 2, Cincinnati 2, Kansas St 1, Bradley 1.
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