Skip to main content
Ohio State

Buckeyes inch ahead in latest AP Poll

IMG_7408by: Andy Backstrom12/12/22andybackstrom
On3 image
Ohio State remained in the AP Poll for the third straight week following its Big Ten-opening win over Rutgers. (Matt Parker/Lettermen Row)

COLUMBUS — Ohio State moved up two spots to No. 23 in Monday’s AP Top 25.

The Buckeyes (7-2, 1-0 Big Ten) are one of six Big Ten teams in the AP Top 25. The others are No. 1 Purdue, No. 14 Indiana, No. 18 Illinois, No. 20 Maryland and No. 22 Wisconsin.

Purdue climbed to No. 1, leapfrogging now-No. 2 Virginia. UConn rose to No. 3, and Alabama cracked the top five at No. 4. Houston dropped from the top spot to No. 5 after its loss to the Crimson Tide.

Ohio State has a nine-day pause between its buzzer-beating win over Rutgers and its CBS Sports Classic showdown with North Carolina in Madison Square Garden.

UNC began the year as the No. 1 team in the country and remained in that spot the first two weeks of the season, thanks to an undefeated start. But, since kicking off the year 5-0, the Tar Heels have fallen off. Head coach Hubert Davis’ team — which returned 68.5% of the minutes from UNC’s national runner-up team in 2021-22, the 16th-highest continuity percentage in the country — has dropped four of its last five games, including a quadruple-overtime game to Alabama in Portland, Oregon, for the Phil Knight Invitational.

The Tar Heels’ backcourt duo of Caleb Love and R.J. Davis is struggling from beyond the arc. In fact, both guards are shooting below 30% from outside. Center Armando Bacot’s scoring and rebounding numbers are as expected, as evidenced by five double-doubles so far, but he’s been in foul trouble more times than not. Bacot’s racked up four personals on six separate occasions. Even so, he’s actually averaging more minutes per game (33.8) than he did last year (31.6).

Ohio State and UNC will face off Saturday at 3 p.m. The Buckeyes don’t resume Big Ten play until New Year’s Day at Northwestern.

Lettermen Row has the entire Week 6 AP Top 25 Poll (Dec. 12) below:

  1. Purdue
  2. Virginia
  3. UConn
  4. Alabama
  5. Houston
  6. Tennessee
  7. Texas
  8. Kansas
  9. Arizona
  10. Arkansas
  11. Baylor
  12. Duke
  13. Kentucky
  14. Indiana
  15. Gonzaga
  16. UCLA
  17. Mississippi State
  18. Illinois
  19. Auburn
  20. Maryland
  21. TCU
  22. Wisconsin
  23. Ohio State
  24. Virginia Tech
  25. Miami

Are you subscribed yet?

Are you ready to get all your latest Ohio State news in one place? Become a member of Lettermen Row today. With your Lettermen Row/On3+ membership, you’ll not only have access to everything that’s happening with the Buckeyes, but you’ll also be able to peruse other fan sites within the network to hear just how rivals are feeling about Ohio State, as well. Make sure to follow along on Twitter, Instagram and on Youtube for all the latest Buckeyes news you need to know.

Already signed up? Don’t forget to join us in the Lettermen Lounge to talk about the latest Ohio State sports news.

You may also like