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For the seventh week in a row, Ohio State tops The List following convincing victories over Illinois (89-70) and Indiana (82-61). Joining the Buckeyes in the top five are Kansas, Duke, Brigham Young and Purdue.
Louisville makes the biggest jump this week, going from No. 23 to No. 16 following victories over Rutgers and Villanova and Pittsburgh. Arizona suffered the biggest drop, going from No. 11 to No. 21 following an 0-2 weekend in Los Angeles with losses to Southern California and UCLA.
Cincinnati is the only newcomer to The List this week while George Mason drops off after only one week.
Unlike The Associated Press' media poll and USA Today/ESPN's coaches (re: sports information directors) poll, we take into account subjective data to present our weekly Top 25, a cross section of Ken Pomeroy's Pomeroy Ratings at kenpom.com, the Jeff Sagarin ratings for USA Today at usatoday.com, Team Rankings at teamrankings.com, Kyle Whelliston's State of Basketball rankings at basketballstate.com and the Ratings Percentage Index, more commonly known as the RPI, which can be found at various sources. We also project the 68 teams most deserving of being in the NCAA Tournament.
1.Ohio State (27-2)
Previous Ranking: 1
Last week: Defeated Illinois 89-70 and Indiana 82-61
This week: at Penn State on Tuesday, No. 11 Wisconsin on Sunday
Information: The Buckeyes are second in the nation with a 122.8 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
2.Kansas (27-2)
Previous Ranking: 3
Last week: Defeated Oklahoma State 92-65 and Oklahoma 82-70
This week: Texas A&M on Wednesday at Missouri on Saturday
Information: The Jayhawks are third in the nation with a 122.0 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
3.Duke (26-3)
Previous Ranking: 2
Last week: Defeated Temple 78-61, lost to Virginia Tech 64-60
This week: Clemson on Wednesday, at No. 9 North Carolina on Saturday
Information: The Blue Devils are third in the nation with an 86.5 adjusted defensive efficiency rating.
4.Brigham Young (27-2)
Previous Ranking: 4
Last week: Defeated Colorado State 84-76 and No. 5 San Diego State 80-67
This week: New Mexico on Wednesday, Wyoming on Saturday
Information: The Cougars are sixth in the nation with a 116.6 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
5.Purdue (24-5)
Previous Ranking: 8
Last week: Defeated Indiana 72-61 and Michigan State 67-47
This week: Illinois on Tuesday, at Iowa on Saturday
Information: The Boilermakers are fourth in the nation with an 86.6 adjusted defensive efficiency rating.
6.Pittsburgh (25-4)
Previous Ranking: 6
Last week: Defeated No. 21 West Virginia 71-58, lost to No. 23 Louisville 62-59
This week: at South Florida on Wednesday, No. 24 Villanova on Saturday
Information: The Panthers are fourth in the nation with a 119.7 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
7.San Diego State (25-2)
Previous Ranking: 7
Last week: Lost to No. 4 Brigham Young 80-67
This week: at Wyoming on Tuesday, Colorado State on Saturday
Information: The Aztecs are 10th in the nation with a 44.2 opponent field-goal percentage.
8.Texas (24-5)
Previous Ranking: 7
Last week: Defeated Iowa State 76-53, lost to Colorado 91-89
This week: Kansas State on Monday, at Baylor on Saturday
Information: The Longhorns are first in the nation with an 84.2 adjusted defensive efficiency rating.
9.North Carolina (22-6)
Previous Ranking: 10
Last week: Defeated North Carolina State 75-63 and Maryland 87-76
This week: at Florida State on Wednesday, No. 3 Duke on Saturday
Information: The Tar Heels are second in the nation with an 86.4 adjusted defensive efficiency rating.
10.Syracuse (24-6)
Previous Ranking: 15
Last week: Defeated No. 17 Villanova 69-64 and No. 9 Georgetown 58-51
This week: DePaul on Saturday
Information: The Orange are first in the nation with a 19.3 defensive block percentage.
11.Wisconsin (22-6)
Previous Ranking: 12
Last week: Defeated Michigan 53-52 and Northwestern 78-63
This week: at Indiana on Thursday, at No. 1 Ohio State on Sunday
Information: The Badgers lead the nation with a 124.1 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
12.Notre Dame (23-5)
Previous Ranking: 14
Last week: Defeated Providence 94-93 and Seton Hall 60-48
This week: No. 24 Villanova on Monday, at No. 18 Connecticut on Saturday
Information: The Fighting Irish are ninth in the nation with a 118.8 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
13.Georgetown (21-8)
Previous Ranking: 9
Last week: Lost to Cincinnati 58-46 and No. 15 Syracuse 58-51
This week: at Cincinnati on Saturday
Information: The Hoyas are sixth in the nation with a 55.3 effective field-goal percentage.
14.Kentucky (20-8)
Previous Ranking: 13
Last week: Lost to Arkansas 77-76 and defeated No. 19 Florida 76-68
This week: No. 23 Vanderbilt on Tuesday, at Tennessee on Sunday
Information: The Wildcats are seventh in the nation with a 119.2 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
15.Utah State (25-3)
Previous Ranking: 16
Last week: Defeated Idaho 84-68
This week: at New Mexico State on Wednesday, at Louisiana Tech on Saturday
Information: The Aggies are second in the nation with a 75.4 defensive rebounding percentage.
16.Louisville (22-7)
Previous Ranking: 23
Last week: Defeated Rutgers 55-37 and No. 6 Pittsburgh 62-59
This week: Providence on Wednesday, at No. 19 West Virginia on Saturday
Information: The Cardinals are seventh in the nation with an 88.2 adjusted defensive efficiency rating.
17.Florida (22-6)
Previous Ranking: 19
Last week: Defeated Georgia 71-62, lost to No. 13 Kentucky 76-68
This week: Alabama on Tuesday, at No. 23 Vanderbilt on Saturday
Information: The Gators are third in the nation with 24.9 defensive free throw attempt/field goal attempt ratio.
18.Connecticut (21-8)
Previous Ranking: 18
Last week: Lost to Marquette 74-67, defeated Cincinnati 67-59
This week: at No. 19 West Virginia on Wednesday, No. 12 Notre Dame on Saturday
Information: The Huskies are seventh in the nation with a 38.9 offensive rebounding percentage.
19.West Virginia (18-10)
Previous Ranking: 21
Last week: Lost to No. 6 Pittsburgh 71-58, defeated Rutgers 65-54
This week: No. 18 Connecticut on Wednesday, No. 16 Louisville on Saturday
Information: The Mountaineers are sixth in the nation with a 39.4 offensive rebounding percentage.
20.St. John's (19-9)
Previous Ranking: 22
Last week: Defeated DePaul 76-51 and No. 17 Villanova 81-68
This week: at Seton Hall on Thursday, South Florida on Saturday
Information: The Red Storm is 17th in the nation with a 24.3 defensive turnover percentage.
21.Arizona (23-6)
Previous Ranking: 11
Last week: Lost to Southern California 65-57 and UCLA 71-49
This week: Oregon State on Thursday, Oregon on Saturday
Information: The Wildcats lead the nation with a 27.4 three-point field goal percentage defense.
22.Cincinnati (22-7)
Previous Ranking: 25
Last week: Defeated No. 9 Georgetown 58-46 and lost to No. 18 Connecticut 67-59
This week: at Marquette on Wednesday, No. 13 Georgetown on Saturday
Information: The Bearcats are 10th in the nation with an 88.7 adjusted defensive efficiency rating.
23.Vanderbilt (21-7)
Previous Ranking: 20
Last week: Lost to Tennessee 60-51, defeated Louisiana State 90-69
This week: at No. 14 Kentucky on Tuesday, No. 17 Florida on Saturday
Information: The Commodores are seventh in the nation with a 28.9 three-point field goal percentage defense.
24.Villanova (21-8)
Previous Ranking: 17
Last week: Lost to No. 15 Syracuse 69-64 and No. 22 St. John's 81-68
This week: at No. 12 Notre Dame on Monday, at No. 6 Pittsburgh on Saturday
Information: The Wildcats are 17th in the nation with a 114.9 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
25.Washington (19-9)
Previous Ranking: 25
Last week: Defeated Seattle 95-74, lost to Washington State 80-69
This week: UCLA on Thursday, Southern California on Saturday
Information: The Huskies are eight in the nation with a 118.8 adjusted offensive efficiency rating.
Dropped out: No. 24 George Mason
Others to watch: Belmont (27-4), George Mason (25-5), Nevada-Las Vegas (22-7), Virginia Tech (19-8), Xavier (22-6)
Projected NCAA Field of 68
ACC (6): Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia Tech
America East (1): Vermont
Atlantic Sun (1): Belmont
Atlantic 10 (2): Temple, Xavier
Big 12 (5): Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, Texas, Texas A&M
Big East (11): Cincinnati, Connecticut, Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia
Big Sky (1): Montana
Big South (1): Coastal Carolina
Big Ten (4): Illinois, Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin
Big West (1): Long Beach State
Colonial (2): George Mason, Old Dominion
Conference USA (3): Memphis, Southern Mississippi, UAB
Horizon (2): Butler, Cleveland State
Ivy (1): Harvard
Metro Atlantic (1): Iona
Mid-American (1): Buffalo
Mid-Eastern (1): Hampton
Missouri Valley (2): Missouri State, Wichita State
Mountain West (3): Brigham Young, Nevada-Las Vegas, San Diego State
Northeast (1): Long Island
Ohio Valley (1): Morehead State
Pac-10 (3): Arizona, UCLA, Washington
Patriot (1): Bucknell
SEC (6): Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Vanderbilt
SWAC (1): Texas Southern
Southern (1): College of Charleston
Southland (1): Stephen F. Austin
Summit (1): Oakland
Sun Belt(1): Florida Atlantic
WAC (1): Utah State
West Coast (1): Gonzaga
John Perrotto is an author of Basketball Prospectus.
You can contact John by clicking here or click here to see John's other articles.
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