Auburn flies to No. 1 in AP Top 25 for first time in history

Warfare Eagle is flying excessive over males’s school basketball for the primary time in historical past.

A barely ranked afterthought to start the season, Auburn climbed previous Gonzaga to No. 1 within the AP Prime 25 ballot launched Monday. The Tigers beat Kentucky over the weekend for his or her fifteenth consecutive win, then scooped up 45 of 61 first-place votes to change into the nation’s top-ranked crew for the primary time for the reason that ballot started with the 1948-49 season.

The Bulldogs dropped to No. 2 with 15 first-place votes. Arizona remained third and earned the opposite No. 1 vote.

“The No. 1 rating issues as a result of it’s historic,” Tigers coach Bruce Pearl stated Monday. “I’m very glad for Auburn. I’m very glad for my coaches and or gamers to have been in a position to obtain that. That stated, we bought a variety of work to do.”

This week alone, it features a journey to Missouri on Tuesday evening and a showdown with Oklahoma on Saturday.

The Tigers (18-1, 15-0 SEC) spent many of the 1999-2000 season ranked within the prime 10, together with one week at No. 2. In addition they spent every week at No. 2 late within the 1998-99 season and one other week at No. 2 again in February 1959.

However being No. 1? That’s an entire new expertise. The Tigers are the fifth crew to achieve that spot this season, following two stints by the Bulldogs and runs by Duke, Purdue and defending nationwide champion Baylor.

It’s not new for Pearl, although. He led Tennessee to the No. 1 spot throughout the 2007-08 season.

“I don’t know that I might draw variations between the opposite groups,” he stated. “What I can let you know I like extra is how a lot they get pleasure from enjoying with one another, and the way shut they’re off the courtroom. Now, we haven’t confronted a lot adversity. Adversity reveals character, it doesn’t simply construct it. So after we get some adversity and get some losses, then we’ll see how all these friendships shall be challenged. And how one can faucet into them.”

Baylor rebounded from consecutive losses whereas it was No. 1 to beat West Virginia and Oklahoma and climb one place to fourth within the newest ballot. Large 12 rival Kansas is fifth.

The Boilermakers fell two spots to sixth after dropping to Indiana early final week. They have been adopted by Houston and UCLA, deadlocked at No. 7, with Duke and Michigan State rounding out the highest 10.

The Spartans, unranked to start out the season, blew out then-No. 8 Wisconsin final week and have misplaced as soon as since November.

“We bought after it, and that’s the way in which it needed to be, and a variety of it falls on me, too,” Michigan State coach Tom Izzo stated. “I feel we bought some issues completed final week.”

The Badgers fell to No. 11 and have been adopted by Kentucky, Texas Tech, Villanova and Southern California, which bounced again from a loss to Oregon with wins over Colorado and Utah on the street.

Ohio State climbed three spots to provide the Large Ten a fourth crew throughout the prime 16. Windfall, Tennessee, LSU and UConn rounded out the highest 20, whereas Xavier, Marquette, Iowa State, Illinois and Davidson accomplished the ballot.

Stephen Curry’s alma mater is ranked for the primary time since spending a Week at No. 24 in March 2015.

“We’ve bought to be taught classes, and it appears each sport has given us classes to be taught,” Davidson coach Bob McKillop stated, “and one of many joys of studying these classes is we’re studying them with victories and never losses.”

IN AND OUT

Marquette returned to the Prime 25 for the primary time underneath Shaka Sensible, touchdown at No. 23 after the Golden Eagles didn’t have a single vote final week. That’s what occurs once you beat three straight ranked groups — Seton Corridor, Villanova and Xavier — to run your profitable streak to 6 heading into one other showdown with the Pirates on Tuesday evening.

Dropping out have been Texas, which has misplaced three of its final 5, and Loyola, which misplaced to Missouri State on Saturday.

UP AND DOWN

Tennessee made the most important leap this week, climbing six spots to No. 18 following wins over Vanderbilt and LSU. Texas Tech and UConn every jumped 5 spots with the Pink Raiders reaching a season-best No. 13 within the ballot.

Iowa State tumbled the farthest, eight spots to No. 23, after losses to Texas Tech and TCU gave the Cyclones 5 of their final seven video games. Illinois fell seven spots to No. 24 after dropping a heartbreaker to Purdue and getting drilled by Maryland.

CONFERENCE WATCH

The Large Ten and Large East have 5 ranked groups apiece, adopted by the SEC and Large 12 with 4 every. The Pac-12 has three and the ACC, American Athletic, West Coast and Atlantic 10 every had one.