Michigan State moves up in this week's Associated Press Top 25 college basketball poll
The Michigan State men's basketball team is nearing the end of a week-plus break between games, but the Spartans are still on the move in the national rankings.
Michigan State (9-2) moved up one spot to No. 11 in this week's Associated Press Top 25 poll, revealed Monday.
Michigan State faces Oakland (7-3) on Tuesday at Little Caesars Arena.
Defending national champion Baylor maintained its top spot in the poll, though not without ceding a No. 1 vote to Arizona, while the six remaining unbeatens continued their rise.
The Bears ended a four-week streak of turnover atop the poll by taking care of Oregon last week, receiving 60 of 61 first-place votes from a national panel that regular covers college basketball. The Wildcats got the only other No. 1 vote and climbed two spots to sixth heading into a brutal stretch of games over the next three weeks.
Duke remained No. 2 after ending a two-week break with three easy wins. Purdue was third while Gonzaga and UCLA flip-flopped their spots with the Bruins — currently in the midst of a COVID-19 pause — rounding out the top five.
The Bears (10-0) reached the top spot last week after dominating then-No. 6 Villanova, something they never accomplished during their title-winning season. But they nearly became the fourth straight No. 1 to lose, falling behind the Ducks by four at halftime before rallying for a 78-70 victory in Eugene, Oregon.
“This was really our first road game in two years. Last year everyone had limited crowds,” said Baylor coach Scott Drew, who picked up his 400th career win. “People want to know how important crowds are; we’re the first No. 1 to win on the road.”
The Wildcats (11-0), who cruised past Cal Baptist, will have a chance to prove they deserve their No. 1 vote. They head to No. 19 Tennessee on Wednesday, then visit the Bruins on Dec. 30 and No. 8 Southern California on Jan. 2.
Michigan (7-4) remains unranked after winning its only game last week, 87-50, over Southern Utah. Michigan plays Purdue Fort Wayne on Tuesday at Crisler Center.
Associated Press Top 25
1. Baylor (60 first-place votes), 10-0, 1524 (last week: 1)
2. Duke, 10-1, 1445 (2)
3. Purdue, 10-1, 1360 (3)
4. Gonzaga, 9-2, 1313 (5)
5. UCLA, 9-1, 1294 (4)
6. Arizona (1), 11-0, 1230 (8)
7. Kansas, 9-1, 1210 (7)
8. Southern Cal, 12-0, 937 (10)
9. Iowa State, 11-0, 926 (11)
10. Alabama, 9-2, 897 (6)
11. Michigan State, 9-2, 822 (12)
12. Auburn, 10-1, 782 (13)
13. Houston, 10-2, 780 (14)
14. Ohio State, 8-2, 744 (15)
15. Seton Hall, 9-2, 693 (16)
16. Texas, 8-2, 569 (17)
17. LSU, 11-0, 542 (19)
18. Xavier, 11-1, 469 (22)
19. Tennessee, 8-2, 447 (18)
20. Kentucky, 8-2, 428 (21)
21. Colorado State, 10-0, 328 (23)
22. Providence, 11-1, 266 (NR)
23. Villanova, 7-4, 222 (9)
24. Wisconsin, 9-2, 182 (NR)
25. Texas Tech, 8-2, 86 (25)
Others receiving votes: Oklahoma 65, West Virginia 57, UConn 55, Illinois 49, Loyola Chicago 42, Michigan 9, Arkansas 9, BYU 8, North Carolina 7, San Francisco 6, Wake Forest 5, Virginia Tech 4, Oklahoma St. 4, Iowa 3, Minnesota 3, Creighton 2, Memphis 1.
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