Kentucky moves up to No. 14 and 15 in AP, Coaches Polls
Kentucky only had one opportunity to impress voters last week, but the Wildcats’ 81-66 victory over Penn was enough to move up in both polls on Monday.
Following four- and five-spot drops a week ago following the UNCW loss, UK is trending back in the right direction, moving up to No. 14 overall in the AP Poll and No. 15 overall in the Coaches Poll.
Check out the updated rankings:
AP College Basketball Poll – Dec. 11
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | TREND | POINTS |
| 1 | Arizona | 8-0 | — | 1574 (62) |
| 2 | Kansas | 9-1 | — | 1461 |
| 3 | Purdue | 9-1 | ⬆️ 1 | 1424 |
| 4 | Houston | 10-0 | ⬇️ 1 | 1416 (1) |
| 5 | UConn | 9-1 | — | 1344 |
| 6 | Baylor | 9-0 | — | 1239 |
| 7 | Marquette | 8-2 | ⬆️ 1 | 1221 |
| 8 | Creighton | 8-1 | ⬆️ 2 | 1073 |
| 9 | North Carolina | 7-2 | — | 992 |
| 10 | Gonzaga | 7-2 | ⬇️ 3 | 860 |
| 11 | Oklahoma | 9-0 | ⬆️ 8 | 848 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 6-3 | ⬆️ 5 | 835 |
| 13 | Clemson | 9-0 | ⬆️ 11 | 746 |
| 14 | Kentucky | 7-2 | ⬆️ 2 | 677 |
| 15 | Florida Atlantic | 7-2 | ⬇️ 4 | 622 |
| 16 | Illinois | 7-2 | ⬆️ 4 | 589 |
| 17 | Colorado State | 9-1 | ⬇️ 4 | 522 |
| 18 | BYU | 8-1 | ⬇️ 4 | 503 |
| 19 | Texas | 7-2 | ⬇️ 7 | 451 |
| 20 | James Madison | 9-0 | ⬇️ 2 | 441 |
| 21 | Duke | 6-3 | ⬆️ 1 | 315 |
| 22 | Virginia | 8-1 | — | 300 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | 7-3 | — | 213 |
| 24 | Miami (FL) | 7-2 | ⬇️ 9 | 156 |
| 25 | Northwestern | 7-1 | — | 147 |
Others Receiving Votes
Colorado 116, Mississippi 86, Texas A&M 58, Auburn 57, Memphis 56, Alabama 43, Utah 25, Iowa St. 20, Ohio St. 9, Providence 7, San Diego St. 7, TCU 6, Nevada 5, South Carolina 3, New Mexico 2, Washington 2, Kansas St 1, Grand Canyon 1, Dayton 1, Saint Joseph’s 1.
USA Today Coaches Poll – Dec. 11
| Rank | Team | Record | PTS | 1st | Prev | Chg | Hi/Lo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona | 8-0 | 796 | 28 | 1 | – | 1/11 |
| 2 | Kansas | 9-1 | 739 | 1 | 3 | +1 | 1/6 |
| 3 | Houston | 10-0 | 734 | 3 | 2 | -1 | 2/6 |
| 4 | Purdue | 9-1 | 712 | 0 | 4 | – | 1/4 |
| 5 | UConn | 9-1 | 675 | 0 | 5 | – | 4/5 |
| 6 | Baylor | 9-0 | 642 | 0 | 6 | – | 6/17 |
| 7 | Marquette | 8-2 | 614 | 0 | 7 | – | 3/7 |
| 8 | Creighton | 8-1 | 529 | 0 | 11 | +3 | 7/14 |
| 9 | North Carolina | 7-2 | 486 | 0 | 10 | +1 | 9/21 |
| 10 | Tennessee | 6-3 | 462 | 0 | 13 | +3 | 8/13 |
| 11 | Clemson | 9-0 | 426 | 0 | 20 | +9 | 11/NR |
| 12 | Oklahoma | 9-0 | 422 | 0 | 22 | +10 | 12/NR |
| 13 | Gonzaga | 7-2 | 418 | 0 | 8 | -5 | 8/13 |
| 14 | Florida Atlantic | 7-2 | 359 | 0 | 9 | -5 | 9/20 |
| 15 | Kentucky | 7-2 | 317 | 0 | 17 | +2 | 12/17 |
| 16 | Illinois | 7-2 | 288 | 0 | 18 | +2 | 16/NR |
| 17 | BYU | 8-1 | 261 | 0 | 13 | -4 | 13/NR |
| 18 | Colorado State | 9-1 | 238 | 0 | 12 | -6 | 12/21 |
| 19 | Duke | 6-3 | 194 | 0 | 21 | +2 | 3/21 |
| 20 | James Madison | 9-0 | 181 | 0 | 24 | +4 | 20/NR |
| 21 | Virginia | 8-1 | 160 | 0 | 23 | +2 | 18/NR |
| 22 | Texas | 7-2 | 148 | 0 | 16 | -6 | 16/22 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | 7-3 | 92 | 0 | NR | +3 | 23/NR |
| 24 | Miami (FL) | 7-2 | 82 | 0 | 15 | -9 | 8/24 |
| 25 | Ole Miss | 9-0 | 79 | 0 | NR | +8 | 25/NR |
Schools Dropped Out
No. 19 Texas A&M; No. 25 Ohio State;
Others Receiving Votes
Northwestern 68; Texas A&M 56; Auburn 32; Colorado 31; Alabama 30; Memphis 26; TCU 21; Iowa State 21; Ohio State 18; San Diego State 10; USC 8; Princeton 8; New Mexico 5; Grand Canyon 5; Utah 3; Cincinnati 2; Indiana 1; Drake 1;
Where Kentucky stands in other national rankings
Gary Parrish was indifferent on the Cats this week, keeping them at No. 15 overall in his latest “Top 25-and-One” rankings at CBS Sports. As for ESPN’s Jeff Borzello, he’s a believer in this group, moving Kentucky back into the top 10 to No. 9 in his new Power Rankings.
It’s safe to say John Calipari is done easing in freshman big man Aaron Bradshaw. After missing the first seven games due to injury, Bradshaw played just 13 minutes in the loss to UNC Wilmington in his debut. Against Penn, though, it didn’t appear he had any restrictions. He came off the bench to play 29 minutes, finishing with 17 points, 11 boards — five on the offensive end — and three blocks. Kentucky has sorely missed a presence like his at both ends of the floor so far.
Jeff Borzello, ESPN
CJ Moore of The Athletic, who had been the highest on the Wildcats among all national outlets this season, somehow dropped them down two spots from No. 14 to No. 16 this week.
Kentucky’s 7-foot-1 center Aaron Bradshaw is now part of the rotation, playing 29 minutes on Saturday in the win at Penn. … It appears that Bradshaw, who also made a 3-pointer, can be part of the fun-and-gun style that’s made Kentucky so enjoyable to watch thus far.
CJ Moore, The Athletic
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