College Basketball: Latest AP Top 25 Poll released
College basketball is in a state of flux at the moment, with COVID-19 impacting multiple conferences and causing rule changes throughout the country. Still, the AP Top 25 Poll marches on with an update after Week 7.
Last week, a combination of Christmas break and the on-going pandemic put a pause of the season for many programs. More than fifty schools are currently using a wait and see approach, including Florida State, Louisville and USC.
While the coming weeks will be interesting, it’s the hope of many that college basketball can return to a normal schedule. Still, some big programs were able to get their games in throughout the week of Christmas.
In their one game last week, Kentucky put on a show for their fans. Against Western Kentucky, forward Oscar Tshiebwe had a game for the ages — pulling down 28 rebounds for the Wildcats.
Not every team received what they wanted for Christmas, as Alabama got a loss from Davidson for the holidays. Moreover, a heart-breaking one-point loss from the Crimson Tide is sure to send them moving down the AP Poll.
Furthermore, a huge victory from Tennessee gave the week a shot of excitement. On Wednesday, the Volunteers used 24 points from forward John Fulkerson to help them defeat No. 6 Arizona in a riveting showdown. Next up for the Volunteers is one of the best games of the week — a game against SEC rival Alabama.
Finally, the No. 1 team in the country stayed on-top — the Baylor Bears remained undefeated prior to the holidays. With a victory over Alcorn State, the defending champions of college basketball continued to assert their dominance.
As college basketball attempts to return to a more consistent schedule, here’s the AP Top 25 Poll for the final week of 2021.
AP Top 25 Poll:
1) Baylor Bears
2) Duke Blue Devils
3) Purdue Boilermakers
4) Gonzaga Bulldogs
5) UCLA Bruins
6) Kansas Jayhawks
7) USC Trojans
8) Iowa State Cyclones
9) Arizona Wildcats
10) Michigan State Spartans
11) Auburn Tigers
12) Houston Cougars
13) Ohio State Buckeyes
14) Tennessee Volunteers
15) Seton Hall Pirates
16) LSU Tigers
17) Texas Longhorns
18) Kentucky Wildcats
19) Alabama Crimson Tide
20) Colorado State Rams
21) Providence Friars
22) Villanova Wildcats
23) Xavier Musketeers
24) Wisconsin Badgers
25) Texas Tech Red Raiders