Michigan closing gap on No. 1 Arizona in AP men’s hoops poll

Arizona is still No. 1 in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll, but No. 2 Michigan is closing the gap.

The Wildcats topped the poll for the third straight week in the AP Top 25 released on Monday, receiving 38 first-place votes from a 58-person panel. The Wolverines had 19 first-place votes — four more than last week — and closed the gap in total points, pulling within 20.

No. 3 Iowa State had one first-place vote, with UConn and Purdue rounding out the top five in the final poll of the calendar year. The next Top 25 will be released Jan. 5.

Arizona (11-0) added another quality win to its resume last week, blowing out San Diego 68-45 with a dominant defensive performance. The Wildcats also routed Abilene Christian 92-62 last week.

Team Record1. Arizona11-0(38)2. Michigan11-0(19)3. Iowa St.12-0(1)4. UConn12-15. Purdue11-16. Duke11-17. Gonzaga12-18. Houston11-19. Michigan St.11-110. BYU11-111. Vanderbilt12-012. North Carolina11-113. Nebraska12-014. Alabama9-315. Texas Tech9-316. Louisville10-217. Kansas9-318. Arkansas9-319. Tennessee9-320. Illinois8-321. Virginia10-122. Florida8-423. Georgia10-124. Southern Cal12-125. Iowa10-2

Arizona has won its past six games by at least 20 points, its longest streak since another six-game rout run in 1942-43.

Michigan (11-0) had one game last week, also a blowout. The 102-50 win over La Salle was the fifth time in six games the Wolverines scored at least 100 points and eighth straight win by 15 points or more.

No. 13 Nebraska continued its rise, climbing two places for its highest ranking since reaching No. 11 in 1991-92.

Rising and falling

No. 15 Texas Tech made the largest move up the poll, rising four spots after rallying from a 17-point deficit to beat Duke 82-81, ending the Blue Devils’ unbeaten start to the season. Duke dropped three places to No. 6 after its loss to Texas Tech.

No. 16 Louisville had the biggest fall in this week’s poll, dropping five spots after losing to Tennessee and blowing out Montana. No. 18 Arkansas lost four places following a 94-85 loss to Houston.

In and out

No. 24 USC is ranked for the second time this season following lopsided wins over UTSA and UC Santa Cruz. No. 25 Iowa (10-2) is ranked for the first time since early in the 2022-23 season — its best start since 2020.

Auburn dropped out from No. 21 after being blown out by Purdue, the Tigers’ third loss in five games. St. John’s fell out from No. 22 following a 78-66 loss to Kentucky.

Conference watch

The Big Ten Conference leads with seven ranked teams after USC and Iowa moved into the poll. The Southeastern Conference dropped to six ranked teams after Auburn fell out, matching the Big 12, which has four teams in the top 10.

The Atlantic Coast Conference has four ranked teams, with the Big East and West Coast Conference notching one each.