There will be plenty of movement in the AP Top 25 men's college basketball poll on Monday after a wild week of conference play across the country. Eighteen ranked teams took at least one loss, and two of them fell twice. The only certainty is that No. 1 Auburn will remain No. 1.
It gets interesting at No. 2 after Iowa State climbed to that spot last week and fell a few days later 64-57 at West Virginia. The loss opens the door for Duke after it won twice this week and earned the longest active winning streak (12 games) in college hoops. That's how I project the No. 2 spot to ultimately settle when the votes are tabulated Monday, with Iowa State dropping from its program-high position, but not far.
With so many losses by ranked teams, AP voters will have their work cut out for them to make sense of everything that transpired last week. So ahead of the refreshed rankings, I tried to crawl into the minds of AP voters to see how they might react to all the latest results.
My projected Top 25 -- what I think the poll will look like based on how AP voters will sort it all out -- is below.
| 1 |  |
| With Johni Broome sidelined due to an ankle injury, Auburn managed to go 2-0 this week and will likely retain its spot at the top of the rankings Monday. The Tigers held off a furious UGA comeback Saturday to move to 5-0 in SEC play. Last week: No. 1 | |
| 2 |  |
| Monday will bring Duke its highest standing in the since the preseason poll in 2023-24 after No. 2 Iowa State suffered its first loss since November. Duke dominated in both its ACC outings this week and is 8-0 in ACC action. Last week: No. 3 | |
| 3 |  |
| The first loss for Iowa State in nearly two months -- a 64-57 defeat at West Virginia -- likely won't cost the Cyclones much given their resume this season. It is 5-2 in Quad 1 games on the season with losses to No. 1 Auburn and a West Virginia team that will likely be ranked Monday. Last week: No. 2 | |
| 4 |  |
| Bama opened its week with a puzzling 10-point loss to Ole Miss at home then redeemed itself over the weekend with a win at Kentucky in which it scored 102 points. That should keep the Crimson Tide where they were last week. Last week: No. 4 | |
| 5 |  |
| Florida went 1-1 this week with a home loss to Missouri and a big win over Texas. The Gators are 16-2 on the season after starting 13-0. Last week: No. 5 | |
| 6 |  |
| After losing its standing at No. 1 in the AP poll last week, Tennessee will likely remain outside the top five for a second consecutive week after falling on the road to Vanderbilt on Saturday. Last week: No. 6 | |
| 7 |  |
| The SEC cannablized itself this week and Kentucky -- with a win over Texas A&M and a loss to Alabama -- was part of that. UK should still be in line to hold steady or even move up. Last week: No. 8 | |
| 8 |  |
| Losing to Xavier at home as a double-digit favorite Saturday gave Marquette its first loss in Big East play and will likely prevent the Golden Eagles from moving up further than its No. 7 ranking from last week. Still, they'll remain in the top 10 for a ninth consecutive week. Last week: No. 7 | |
| 9 |  |
| Where Houston lands will be one of the few major questions. It went 2-0 this week but narrowly escaped on the road what would have been a bad loss at UCF. The Coogs have won 10-straight and should be on the rise. Last week: No. 10 | |
| 10 |  |
| Tom Izzo's Spartans are no longer flying under the radar after a big 80-78 win over Illinois on CBS. They've won 11 consecutive games dating back to November and have the second-longest active winning streak in college basketball. Last week: No. 12 | |
| 11 |  |
| With two road wins on the west coast this week -- at Washington and at Oregon -- Purdue extended its winning streak to seven games and has now won six-straight in Big Ten play. It faces Ohio State and Michigan this week at home. Last week: No. 17 | |
| 12 |  |
| The offensive buzzsaw that is Kentucky basketball chopped up A&M's usually-strong defense for 81 points to start the week. It responded with a home win over the weekend vs. LSU to get back on track with Zhuric Phelps going for 13 points, six assists and six boards in the win. Last week: No. 11 | |
| 13 |  |
| The preseason No. 1 Jayhawks fell at Iowa State by 17 on Wednesday but bloomed back into the win column Saturday with an 84-74 victory over Kansas State in the Sunflower Showdown. KU will fall out of the top 10 this week but probably won't drift far. Last week: No. 9 | |
| 14 |  |
| Two losses in its last three games isn't the catastrophe it may sound like given that one loss was at No. 1 Auburn and the other was to a top-10 Kentucky team. The Bulldogs got a hard-fought win Saturday at home vs. Ole Miss in OT to snap its skid, but they go on the road to face Tennessee on Tuesday. Last week: No. 15 | |
| 15 |  |
| The rare team that has performed better away from its home floor, Oregon fell in Eugene on Saturday and suffered its third loss of the season -- all of which have come at home. It won in its previous three outings by a combined seven points. Last week: No. 13 | |
| 16 |  |
| Liam McNeeley's extended absence has hurt the Huskies, who are now 3-2 in the month of January and losers of two of their last three. A 68-63 home loss to Creighton on Saturday was UConn's first loss in Gampel since Jan 25, 2023. Last week: No. 14 | |
| 17 |  |
| Chris Beard's Rebels cooled off with an OT loss to Mississippi State over the weekend but have still been soaring of late. They have wins over Arkansas, Georgia and Alabama the last few weeks that should keep voters convinced of their bonafides as a top-20 team. Last week: No. 21 | |
| 18 |  |
| It'd be hard to move Illinois down this week after dominating Indiana in Bloomington then falling by two to Michigan State in a game in which Kasparas Jakucionis was limited to just eight minutes. Voters might do it, but I'm skeptical. I'll give them some pre-credit and put them at No. 18. Last week: No. 19 | |
| 19 |  |
| After joining the AP poll for the first time in a month, Wisconsin went 2-0 this week culminating with an 84-69 road win at USC on Saturday. The Trojans have won seven consecutive games and played their way into Big Ten title contention. Last week: No. 24 | |
| 20 |  |
| The Wolverines keep a new and painful way to lose a close game on Thursday in OT at Minnesota. However, they rebounded to finally scored a close win Sunday in OT at Northwestern. Michigan is 6-1 in Big Ten play and have won six of their last seven dating back to mid December. Last week: No. 20 | |
| 21 |  |
| A 77-68 road win over Charlotte gave the Tigers their first true road win of the season and moved them to a share of first in the AAC regular season race. Last week: No. 18 | |
| 22 |  |
| It's time to talk to your kids about the NCAA Tournament-bound Missouri Tigers. They are winners of four-straight, which this week included a road win at Florida and a beatdown of Arkansas in Columbia. They're 15-3 on the season. Last week: NR | |
| 23 |  |
| Winners of 11 of its last 12, St. John's deserves to be back in the AP poll after a two-month hiatus. They are 7-1 in Big East play and the solo leader in the conference race ahead of UConn and Marquette. Last week: NR | |
| 24 |  |
| First-year coach Darian DeVries continues to find ways for his Mountaineers to win tough ones, with Saturday's 64-57 victory over No. 2 Iowa State just the latest example. They have four wins over ranked opponents this season -- three of which came against top-10 teams. Last week: NR | |
| 25 |  |
| Voters may have a tough decision debating what to do with Georgia, Louisville, Utah State, Gonzaga, Baylor and other worthy teams. I have UGA hanging in the top 25 despite two losses this week considering they came against No. 6 Tennessee and No. 1 Auburn. Last week: No. 23 | |
Projected to drop out: Gonzaga, Utah State, Baylor
