Pages

▼

Kansas wins tight race for No. 1 in coaches poll

Center Jeff Withey and Kansas have risen above the rest to be No. 1 this week in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. (Photo: Peter G. Aiken, USA TODAY)

Story Highlights
  • The wild week produced the expected shakeup in the coaches poll
  • Kansas moved into the top position
  • The Jayhawks finished just three poll points ahead of No.2 Michigan

    The wild week in college basketball produced the expected shakeup in the USA TODAY Sports coaches poll, resulting in the closest voting for the No.1 spot in over a season.

    ENGAGE: Does this look right to you?

    Kansas moved into the top position, finishing just three poll points ahead of No.2 Michigan. The Jayhawks received 16 first-place votes to the Wolverines' 14. It was the closest finish for No.1 since the poll of Feb. 28, 2011. Kansas was also involved that week, finishing four points behind Ohio State.

    KU and Michigan were picked one and two in some order on all but one ballot. That last one had Florida No.1. The Gators actually finished fourth, just a single point behind No.3 Indiana. Duke fell from the top spot to No.5 following a midweek drubbing at Miami (Fla.).

    COACHES POLL: This week's top 25 rankings

    MORE: Tough call picking the best college hoops team

    Syracuse slipped two places to No.6, Gonzaga climbed three to No.7 and Arizona fell two to No.8. Michigan State climbed two spots to No.9 despite Sunday's loss to Indiana. The voters were also kind to Butler, which slid only one position to stay in the top 10. The Bulldogs followed a midweek loss at La Salle with a home win against Temple.

    Oregon and Mississippi continued to make big moves. The Ducks, now alone atop the Pac-12, vaulted seven places to No.12. The Rebels jumped eight places to No.16. Miami, which followed its upset of Duke with a victory against Florida State, makes a splashy season debut in the poll at No.15.

    Virginia Commonwealth dropped out of the rankings after a pair of close losses this week. Marquette claimed the No.25 spot this week, replacing fellow Big East member Notre Dame in the poll.

    HIGHLIGHTS: HOW THE TOP 25 FARED THIS PAST WEEKEND

    None
    No. 1 Duke 84, Maryland 64  Gerry Broome, AP
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 2 Kansas 67, Oklahoma 54  Peter G. Aiken, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 3 Michigan 74, Illinois 60  Bradley Leeb, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    Villanova 75, No. 4 Syracuse 71  Howard Smith, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    Georgetown 53, No. 5 Louisville 51  Geoff Burke, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 6 Arizona 74, Southern California 50  Casey Sapio, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 7 Florida 82, Mississippi State 47  Marvin Gentry, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 8 Indiana 75, No. 11 Michigan State 70  Brian Spurlock, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 9 Butler 83, Temple 71  Brian Spurlock, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 10 Gonzaga 66, San Francisco 52  James Snook, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 12 Creighton 81, Southern Illinois 51  Stephen Lance Dennee, AP
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    Iowa State 73, No. 13 Kansas State 67  MATTHEW PUTNEY AP
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    Wisconsin 45, No. 14 Minnesota 44  Mary Langenfeld, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 15 Ohio State 65, Penn State 51  Rich Barnes, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    La Salle 69, No. 16 Virginia Commonwealth 61  Clement Britt, AP
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 25 San Diego State 55, No. 17 New Mexico 34  Jody Gomez, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 18 N.C. State 91, North Carolina 83  Rob Kinnan, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 19 Oregon 81, Washington 76  Scott Olmos, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 22 Missouri 81, Vanderbilt 59  Dak Dillon, USA TODAY Sports
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 23 Notre Dame 73, South Florida 65  Chris O'Meara, AP
    Related story Fullscreen
    None
    No. 24 Mississippi 63, Auburn 61  Todd J. Van Emst, AP
    Related story Fullscreen

    Like this topic? You may also like these photo galleries: