Michigan stands firm as top team in Coaches Poll, Duke returns to top five in college basketball rankings
There wasn't much change in this week's Coaches Poll due to winter break

College basketball is about to heat up. With teams officially returning from winter break, Monday's slate represents the first full schedule of basketball games since Dec. 22 -- when the last Coaches Poll released.
Since it's been almost a week -- or, in some cases, more than a week -- since some ranked teams played basketball, there wasn't a whole lot of change in the latest set of rankings. Michigan still held firm as the No. 1 team in the Coaches Poll following its 102-50 win against La Salle on Dec. 21.
That was Michigan's eighth straight win of at least an 18-point margin. Since Nov. 19, the Wolverines are beating their opponents by an average of 34.3 points. They return to the court Monday night for one final tune-up against McNeese State before Big Ten play continues in earnest on Jan. 2 with a key home game against USC.
Arizona is still hot on Michigan's heels for the No. 1 spot, though. The second-ranked Wildcats boast one of the best résumés in basketball thanks to strong non-conference wins against No. 22 Florida -- the reigning national champions -- as well as No. 4 UConn and No. 15 Alabama. They make their debut in conference play Jan. 3 against Utah.
Though there weren't any decisive games following its 82-81 loss to Texas Tech, Duke made its return to the top five at No. 5. The Blue Devils leapfrogged Purdue, which dropped to No. 6 in the process.
First-place votes in parenthesis
Coaches Poll
1. Michigan (20)
2. Arizona (11)
3. Iowa State
4. UConn
5. Duke
6. Purdue
7. Gonzaga
8. Houston
9. Michigan State
10. BYU
11. Vanderbilt
12. North Carolina
13. Nebraska
13. Louisville
15. Alabama
16. Texas Tech
17. Kansas
18. Arkansas
19. Illinois
20. Tennessee
21. Virginia
22. Florida
23. Iowa
24. Georgia
25. St. John's
Others receiving votes: Kentucky 35; USC 25; Utah State 14; Auburn 7; Saint Louis 6; Clemson 6; Seton Hall 5; Oklahoma State 5; Yale 4; UCLA 4; Saint Mary's 4; LSU 3; California 2; Villanova 1; Miami (OH) 1; Indiana 1
















