The Boilermakers earned 40 of 60 first-place votes in Monday’s latest poll, while fellow unbeaten Connecticut earned the opposite 20 to sit down at No. 2 in an unchanged top.
Purdue had never been ranked No. 1 before a one-week stay there last December, and was unranked to begin the season. However the Boilermakers made a rapid rise from No. 24 to No. 5 in a one-week span in late November, then climbed to No. 1 on Dec. 12.
“We’ve not had any handouts. We’ve needed to work for all the pieces,” coach Matt Painter said afterward, adding: “But we’ve earned it. but we’ve got to maintain earning it. This isn’t the season. That is just a 3rd of the season.”
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No. 3 Houston, No. 4 Kansas and No. 5 Arizona held their positions as the highest five remained in place for a second straight week.
Texas was next at No. 6, followed by Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas and Gonzaga — the preseason selection at No. 2 that returned to the highest 10 after sliding as little as No. 18 earlier this month.
North Carolina is back within the poll at No. 25 after a tumultuous opening to the season.
Returning 4 starters from last yr’s unexpected run to the NCAA title game, the Tar Heels began December by becoming only the sixth team to go from preseason No. 1 to unranked since no less than the 1961-62 season. That got here after a run of 4 straight losses.
But UNC has won 4 straight since, the past two coming against Big Ten teams — Ohio State on Dec. 17 and Michigan last week — to regroup.
Miami had the week’s biggest jump after a win against Virginia, climbing eight spots to No. 14 for its highest rating because the 2017-18 season. No. 20 Auburn rose three spots. In all, 10 teams moved up from last week.
Virginia took the week’s biggest tumble, falling seven spots to No. 13. Mississippi State was close behind, falling six spots to No. 21. Duke was the one other team to slip, falling three spots to No. 17.
Seven teams held their positions from last week, with No. 12 Baylor and No. 19 Kentucky joining the unchanged top five.
Xavier and Recent Mexico are tied at No. 22, while No. 24 West Virginia joined them in latest additions to the poll this season. For the Lobos, it marks the primary time they’ve cracked the AP Top 25 since March 2014.
Illinois (No. 16), Virginia Tech (No. 21), Marquette (No. 24) and Arizona State (No. 25) fell out from last week’s poll.
The Southeastern Conference led all leagues with six ranked teams, followed by the Big 12 with five and the Atlantic Coast Conference with 4.
The Big Ten had three ranked teams while the Pac-12 and Big East each had two. The American Athletic, West Coast and Mountain West conferences each had one.
Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap
AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
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