The first AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll of the 2024 calendar year dropped Monday with a familiar top three and a refresh to round out the new top five. Purdue, Kansas and Houston all clung to their respective spots at Nos. 1, 2 and 3, while UConn and Tennessee each bumped up one spot to round out the top five.
UConn’s move up to No. 4 marks its highest ranking in the poll of the season and highest since it rose to No. 2 last season. The reigning national champions closed out the 2022-23 season with six double-digit NCAA Tournament wins to claim the throne in March Madness, and have raced out to a 11-2 start to the 2023-24 season, headlined by big wins over St. John’s, Gonzaga, North Carolina and Texas.
The Huskies’ recent rise this season did not dissuade voters from their belief in the top three teams in the AP Top 25, though, as Purdue, Kansas and Houston remained the only first-place vote getters in the poll for a third consecutive week. Kansas and Houston again earned five and nine first-place votes, respectively, while Purdue this week garnered 49 first-place votes after receiving just 46 last week in a refreshed ranking set that was updated on Christmas Day.
Elsewhere in the poll, Kentucky earned its highest ranking of the season to No. 6, Marquette climbed three spots to No. 7 and North Carolina bumped up from No. 9 to No. 8 on the week after consecutive wins by double figures over Oklahoma and Charleston Southern. Illinois and Arizona rounded out the new top 10.
AP Top 25
1. Purdue (49)
2. Kansas (5)
3. Houston (9)
4. UConn
5. Tennessee
6. Kentucky
7. Marquette
9. Illinois
10. Arizona
11. Oklahoma
12. BYU
13. Colorado State
14. Duke
15. Memphis
16. Clemson
17. FAU
18. Baylor
19. James Madison
20. Texas
21. Wisconsin
22. Ole Miss
23. Providence
24. Gonzaga
25. Auburn
Others receiving votes: San Diego St. 113, Creighton 106, Colorado 86, Utah 82, Miami 41, Iowa St. 22, Michigan St. 15, Nevada 13, Texas A&M 13, Ohio St. 8, New Mexico 6, Dayton 5, Grand Canyon 5, South Carolina 4, Mississippi St. 4, Northwestern 3, Villanova 3, Alabama 3.
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