News

Virginia Men’s Basketball Is Unanimous No. 1 In AP Top 25; Michigan Is 7th

Everyone in the AP has agreed Virginia’s men’s basketball team is the best in the nation this year.

AP Top 25 Men’s Basketball Poll news

The Cavaliers earned all 65 first-place votes in Monday’s poll after finishing four games ahead of the field in the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season race.

Virginia joined fellow ACC team Duke as squads to be unanimous No. 1 in the AP Top 25 this season. The Cavs were predicted to finish sixth in the ACC during the preseason.

Villanova took the No. 2 spot (having jumped from No. 4), while Xavier remained third.

Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!

A week of sports news in your in-box.
We find the sports news you need to know, so you don't have to.

Michigan State fell to fourth, followed by Duke and Gonzaga. Michigan climbed eight spots to No. 7 after beating the Spartans and Purdue to win a second straight Big Ten Tournament title.

No. 15 Arizona — which won the Pac-12 regular-season title — and No. 21 Houston had the second-largest climbs, with each rising four spots.

Meanwhile, Rhode Island had the biggest drop. The Rams fell eight spots to No. 25 following a 30-point home loss to St. Joseph’s and then a defeat at Davidson.

Florida and Miami were ranked 23rd and 24th, respectively.

Kentucky and Middle Tennessee both fell out of the poll after brutal losses to end their seasons.

Here are the full poll standings:

(###) Number of first place votes
1
Virginia (65)
ACC
Record: 28-2
PV Rank

1

Points

1,625

2
Villanova
Big East
Record: 27-4
4
1,516
3
Xavier
Big East
Record: 27-4
3
1,510
4
Michigan State
Big Ten
Record: 29-4
2
1,346
5
Duke
ACC
Record: 25-6
5
1,340
6
Gonzaga
West Coast
Record: 28-4
7
1,254
7
Michigan
Big Ten
Record: 28-7
15
1,231
8
Cincinnati
American Athletic Conference (AAC)
Record: 27-4
10
1,213
9
Kansas
Big 12
Record: 24-7
6
1,129
10
Purdue
Big Ten
Record: 28-6
8
1,096
11
Wichita State
American Athletic Conference (AAC)
Record: 24-6
11
861
12
North Carolina
ACC
Record: 22-9
9
852
13
Tennessee
SEC
Record: 23-7
16
825
14
Texas Tech
Big 12
Record: 23-8
12
784
15
Arizona
Pac-12
Record: 24-7
19
739
16
Auburn
SEC
Record: 25-6
14
692
17
Ohio State
Big Ten
Record: 24-8
13
603
18
West Virginia
Big 12
Record: 22-9
20
486
19
Clemson
ACC
Record: 22-8
18
422
20
Saint Mary’s (Cal.)
West Coast
Record: 28-4
22
385
21
Houston
American Athletic Conference (AAC)
Record: 24-6
25
247
22
Nevada
Mountain West
Record: 26-6
21
218
23
Florida
SEC
Record: 20-11
192
24
Miami (FL)
ACC
Record: 22-8
191
25
Rhode Island
Atlantic 10
Record: 23-6
17
86

Caption:CHICAGO, IL – MARCH 27: DaJuan Coleman #32 of the Syracuse Orange shoots against Mike Tobey #10 of the Virginia Cavaliers in the second half during the 2016 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Midwest Regional Final at United Center on March 27, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Pablo Mena

Writer and assistant editor for usports.org. NY Giants and Rangers fan. Film and TV enthusiast (especially Harry Potter and The Office) and lover of foreign languages and cultures.

Recent Posts

Paul George Exits With Knee Injury As 76ers Fall To 2-12 In Loss To Grizzlies

With their big three finally back in action Wednesday, the Philadelphia 76ers suffered another setback…

9 hours ago

VIDEO: Nike Pays Tribute to Rafael Nadal With 30-Foot Projection In Front of Eiffel Tower

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tny--EWynOQ Nike paid tribute to Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal with a 10-meter-tall animated display…

1 day ago

VIDEO: Rafael Nadal Gets Emotional Tribute as He Retires From Tennis

https://youtu.be/dtJoJz9hC48 Tennis legend Rafael Nadal bid a heartfelt goodbye to his devoted Spanish fans as he brought…

1 day ago

VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: U.S. Olympic Fencer Eli Dershwitz Explains The Art Of Fencing

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DQ9Rxhnuer4 U.S. Olympic fencer Eli Dershwitz shed light on the critical skills necessary in fencing…

2 days ago

Two Bears Offensive Linemen Return To Practice, Caleb Williams Desperate For Blocking

Two offensive linemen for the Chicago Bears returned to practice, a massive step in the…

3 days ago

VIDEO: UFC Heavyweight Champion Performs Viral Trump Dance In New York

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/s2g9t_33Myw President-elect Donald Trump received a warm welcome from Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighter Jon…

4 days ago