Kentucky basketball hits rock bottom in Associated Press Top 25 poll
It should come as no surprise that a pair of losses to Kansas and Georgia Tech this past week cost Kentucky its spot in the Associated Press Top 25. They’re also not among those receiving votes.
The Cats, now 1-3 after three straight defeats, started out 10th in the preseason poll. They dropped to 20th last week after a season-opening win against Morehead State and a loss to Richmond.
Two of the Cats’ three losses have been by double digits. “I mean everybody is knocking us around right now,” Coach John Calipari said after Sunday’s 79-62 loss to the Yellow Jackets (1-2).
It is the first time UK is unranked heading into the fifth game of the season since Billy Gillispie’s seasons of 2008-09 and 2007-08.
Gonzaga remained at No. 1 with 54 of 61 first-place votes by media members. No. 2 Baylor received the other seven nods for the top spot. The Zags and the Bears were scheduled to face off this past weekend but the matchup was called off because of COVID-19.
Kansas moved up two spots to fifth and Richmond held steady at No. 19. No. 12 Tennessee (0-0) is the only Southeastern Conference team ranked. Louisville is 4-0 and eked its way into the top 25 at No. 25.
Former Kentucky star Travis Ford’s Saint Louis squad is second among those teams receiving votes.
The top 10 could get a shakeup this week. No. 3 Iowa plays No. 16 North Carolina and No. 6 Illinois faces No. 10 Duke in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge on Tuesday night. The Jayhawks play No. 8 Creighton on Tuesday in the Big East-Big 12 Battle.
Next up for UK is a home game against Notre Dame at noon Saturday.
UK women move into top 10
The poll news was better for Kentucky’s women’s team. The 4-0 Wildcats improved two spots this week to ninth after a week that included a come-from-behind victory over then-No. 13 Indiana. The Hoosiers dropped to 15th.
Stanford is the new No. 1 team. The Cardinal ascended to the top spot after previous No. 1 South Carolina lost at home to then-No. 8 N.C. State. Stanford received 24 of the 30 first-place votes. Two others went to No. 2 Louisville, which moved up three spots to match its highest ranking in school history.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
AP men’s Top 25
Record | Pts | Pvs | |
1. Gonzaga (54) | 3-0 | 1,518 | 1 |
2. Baylor (7) | 3-0 | 1,470 | 2 |
3. Iowa | 3-0 | 1,385 | 3 |
4. Michigan State | 5-0 | 1,296 | 8 |
5. Kansas | 4-1 | 1,195 | 7 |
6. Illinois | 3-1 | 1,104 | 5 |
7. Houston | 4-0 | 1,090 | 10 |
8. Creighton | 3-0 | 1,068 | 9 |
9. Villanova | 4-1 | 1,033 | 12 |
10. Duke | 2-1 | 954 | 6 |
11. West Virginia | 4-1 | 918 | 11 |
12. Tennessee | 0-0 | 767 | 13 |
13. Wisconsin | 3-1 | 750 | 4 |
13. Texas | 4-1 | 750 | 17 |
15. Virginia Tech | 4-0 | 688 | 16 |
16. North Carolina | 3-1 | 547 | 14 |
17. Texas Tech | 4-1 | 541 | 17 |
18. Virginia | 3-1 | 474 | 15 |
19. Richmond | 2-0 | 419 | 19 |
20. Florida State | 1-0 | 350 | 22 |
21. Rutgers | 3-0 | 293 | 24 |
22. Ohio State | 3-0 | 287 | 23 |
23. Arizona State | 3-1 | 218 | 25 |
24. San Diego State | 4-0 | 123 | - |
25. Louisville | 4-0 | 122 | - |
Others receiving votes: Michigan 107, Saint Louis 94, Florida 90, Indiana 40, Oregon 26, Oklahoma State 26, Marquette 22, Missouri 19, Connecticut 12, Xavier 9, Clemson 7, Alabama 5, Washington State 3, Maryland 2, UCLA 1, SMU 1, Oklahoma 1.
AP women’s Top 25
Record | Pts | Pvs | |
1. Stanford (24) | 3-0 | 740 | 2 |
2. Louisville (2) | 4-0 | 689 | 5 |
3. Connecticut (2) | 0-0 | 675 | 3 |
4. N.C. State (2) | 4-0 | 670 | 8 |
5. South Carolina | 4-1 | 647 | 1 |
6. Arizona | 3-0 | 605 | 7 |
7. Baylor | 2-1 | 552 | 4 |
8. Oregon | 4-0 | 525 | 10 |
9. Kentucky | 4-0 | 504 | 11 |
10. Texas A&M | 4-0 | 463 | 12 |
11. UCLA | 2-1 | 452 | 9 |
12. Mississippi State | 2-1 | 413 | 6 |
13. Arkansas | 5-1 | 409 | 16 |
14. Maryland | 3-1 | 342 | 14 |
15. Indiana | 2-1 | 304 | 13 |
15. Oregon State | 3-0 | 304 | 17 |
17. Northwestern | 0-0 | 271 | 15 |
18. Ohio State | 3-0 | 191 | 19 |
19. Michigan | 3-0 | 170 | 24 |
20. Syracuse | 3-0 | 169 | 22 |
21. Missouri State | 2-1 | 162 | 21 |
22. South Dakota State | 3-0 | 104 | - |
23. Texas | 3-1 | 69 | 25 |
24. DePaul | 1-2 | 63 | 20 |
25. Gonzaga | 1-2 | 62 | 18 |
Others receiving votes: South Florida 59, Iowa State 54, North Carolina 38, Arizona State 12, Notre Dame 8, West Virginia 6, Wake Forest 5, Boston College 4, Ohio 4, Georgia 3, Virginia Tech 2.
This story was originally published December 7, 2020 at 12:01 PM.
