Tomorrow's Top 25 Today: Michigan State makes big jump; BYU, Louisville fall out of projected AP Top 25
The Spartans will move into the top 10 of the AP Top 25 after Sunday's 77-64 win at Indiana on Sunday
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5 min read
A major shake-up is in store for Monday's AP Top 25 after preseason darlings like Louisville and BYU had a disastrous week. Louisville has been awesome against undermanned units, but when it plays up, it does not look pretty. Another slow second-half start doomed the Cardinals in losses to North Carolina and Clemson this week. A club that looked poised to make a run at a potential Final Four will likely drop out of the polls.
BYU is right there with Pat Kelsey's boys. The Cougars' defense went MIA in losses to UCF and West Virginia. No Richie Saunders is a blow, but BYU's attention to detail defensively is at all-time lows.
Here's our best guess at how the rankings will look and how voters' ballots will shake out.
| 1 |  |
| Duke has a vice grip on the No. 1 spot in the country after a 77-51 romp over No. 11 Virginia . Isaiah Evans drilled five treys, and Duke's defense just evaporated Virginia's once-rolling offense. Last week: 1 | |
| 2 |  |
| Arizona is showing it can win using different recipes. It has a pace-and-space lineup that emerged when Koa Peat when down with a leg injury. The five-star freshman forward returned for Saturday's contest against No. 14 Kansas , and Arizona reverted back to smashmouth basketball on its way to a 23-point romp. Tommy Lloyd has everything in the chamber to go banner-hunting. Last week: 2 | |
| 3 |  |
| Michigan is a flat-out wagon. Aday Mara , Morez Johnson and Yaxel Lendeborg just eviscerated Illinois ' front-line in Friday's 84-70 roadkill victory. It's one of Michigan's most impressive victories of the season. Michigan might be No. 3 in the polls, but it is No. 1 for a lot of people in the basketball world. Last week: 3 | |
| 4 |  |
| UConn did not just beat St. John's . It destroyed its rivals in record-breaking fashion. The Huskies will rise in the polls this week. Last week: 6 | |
| 5 |  |
| The Gators are playing like one of the elite teams in all of college basketball. Prayers up for the No. 1 seed who gets the gift of Florida as the No. 2 seed. Last week: 7 | |
| 6 |  |
| Houston unleashed some of its frustrations on Colorado after suffering a three-game losing streak due to a brutal schedule. The Cougars romped Colorado, 102-62, behind 26 points from Milos Uzan . Eight different Cougars scored at least nine points. It was the most predictable blowout of the entire season. Last week: 5 | |
| 7 |  |
| Iowa State is poised to slip after tripping up against short-handed Texas Tech at home. The role players continue to be a rollercoaster for TJ Otzelberger's bunch. Last week: 4 | |
| 8 |  |
| Jeremy Fears Jr . and the Spartans are starting to peak at just the right time. Big man Carson Cooper has developed into a fearsome back-to-the-basket weapon. MSU will make a big jump after defeating Purdue 76-74 on Thursday and beating Indiana 77-64 on Sunday. Last week: 13 | |
| 9 |  |
| A home loss to Michigan could provide a gut-check moment for the Illini. This group is clearly talented, but it needs to find some grit instantly. Michigan manhandled the Illini frontcourt for all 40 minutes. Last week: 10 | |
| 10 |  |
| Fred Hoiberg's group is just filled with problem-solvers. Nebraska took care of business this week against Maryland and USC , and should be rewarded for its efforts. Last week: 12 | |
| 11 |  |
| Gonzaga's offense went MIA in the second half against Saint Mary's . The Zags' collection of shooters leaves plenty to be desired. This is a defense-first team now. Last week: 9 | |
| 12 |  |
| The ebbs and flows in the back-loaded Big 12 schedule continue. Kansas whipped Houston on Big Monday, before getting scorched by Arizona on Saturday. Such is life in the best conference in the country. Thankfully, Darryn Peterson played his full allotment of minutes for the third game in a row. He was awesome in the second half against Arizona. Last week: 14 | |
| 13 |  |
| Alabama remains a brutal team to prepare for. Labaron Philon hit a pull-up jumper in the closing seconds to steal a road win over Tennessee . Latrell Wrightsell Jr . went off with a boatload of 3-pointeres, which is a scary sign. If Wrightsell can hoop like this, Alabama is a headache. Last week: 17 | |
| 14 |  |
| Purdue will drop after another home loss, this time to Michigan State, and Sunday' road loss to Indiana. The Boilermakers would have remained inside the top-10 if they had beaten the Hooisers because there was carnage throughout the AP Top 25. Last week: 8 | |
| 15 |  |
| Whatever St. John's had in its system against UConn seemed to get eradicated against Villanova . The Johnnies smoked Kevin Willard and Co., leaving no doubt who the second-best team in the Big East truly is. Last week: 15 | |
| 16 |  |
| Texas Tech is a band of warriors. To be able to go into Hilton and beat a team like Iowa State without JT Toppin is a Herculean feat. Grant McCasland's crew will be a brutally tough out in March Madness . Last week: 16 | |
| 17 |  |
| UNC has held serve without Caleb Wilson . Finding ways to beat both Louisville and Virginia Tech with its best player on the mend is some impressive resolve from Hubert Davis' crew. Man, how good is Henri Veesaar !? Last week: 18 | |
| 18 |  |
| Miami University's magical season continued in epic form. The Redhawks got a game-winning layup from Trey Perry to outlast Western Michigan , 69-67. It wasn't pretty but the Redhawks improved to 29-0. Last week: 21 | |
| 19 |  |
| Darius Acuff, Meleek Thomas , Billy Richmond and Trevon Brazile are ballers, but Arkansas ' issues at center could be the Achilles heel. They were no match for Florida's frontcourt. Last week: 20 | |
| 20 |  |
| Virginia just is not in Duke's class in the ACC. That much is clear. This group still has tons of size, skill and shooting, but on the cold-shooting nights, it can get ugly in a hurry. Last week: 11 | |
| 21 |  |
| Losing to a desperate Dayton team on the road should not be that much of a surprise. Dayton matches up well with SLU across the board. The Billikens need to play better down the stretch, but this group is still terrific. Last week: 23 | |
| 22 |  |
| Vanderbilt is not a National Championship contender, but it is starting to get whole again, which is a very positive sign for its March outlook. Last week: 25 | |
| 23 |  |
| Randy Bennett and St. Mary's should be in the polls after a strong week. The Gaels totally dominated Gonzaga in the second half of Saturday's 70-59 victory. Mikey Lewis went on a major heater with a barrage of 3-pointers. Saint Mary's is 27-4 and up to No. 22 on KenPom. It's the highest the Gaels have been all year. Last week: NR | |
| 24 |  |
| Tennessee lost to Alabama, but all eyes are on the health of Nate Ament . The freshman sensation suffered a nasty-looking leg injury. The Vols need him desperately. Last week: 22 | |
| 25 |  |
| Wisconsin could get a bump after Louisville and BYU puked all over themselves. The Badgers didn't look great against Oregon , but it bounced back with a dominant win over Washington on the road. Wisconsin, when clicking, can beat anybody. It can also lose to anyone. Last week: NR | |
