NCAA Men’s Basketball AP Top 25 Rankings – Week 5


The NCAA men’s basketball AP top 25 rankings have been released for Week 5, and to little surprise the UCLA Bruins have shot up the standings following their upset of Kentucky in Lexington.


So how about them Bruins?

UCLA has skyrocketed to the No. 2 spot in the latest AP rankings after marching into Lexington on Saturday afternoon and taking down then-No. 1 Kentucky to go 9-0 on the year. Steve Alford’s squad finds itself nine slots ahead of their previous Week 4 ranking.

John Calipari’s Wildcats, meanwhile, stumbled from the top spot down to No. 6 in the nation.

Sitting atop the AP throne now are the reigning national champion Villanova Wildcats. Nova’s claim to fame stands as its road win over then-No. 15 Purdue, but the ‘Cats will face another tough test on Saturday when they play No. 23 Notre Dame in the Never Forget Tribute Classic.

The hottest team in the country, and receiving the second-most AP first-place votes, is the Baylor Bears. Scott Drew’s team has soared up the rankings to No. 4, five spots up from last week’s slot, after picking up wins over then-No. 4 Oregon, then-No. 24 Michigan State, then-No. 10 Louisville and then-No. 7 Xavier.

That’s undoubtedly the most impressive record and strength of schedule in college basketball. The Bears, who were omitted from the preseason Top 25, have surpassed any and all expectations and show no sign of cooling off any time soon.

The biggest leap in this week’s poll, though, goes to West Virginia. The Mountaineers upset then-No. 6 and defensive juggernaut Virginia, moving up ten spots from last week to No. 15 in the nation. The Hoos fell from No. 6 to No. 14.

After upsetting Xavier, rival Cincinnati jumps into the rankings at No. 22 after being left out of last week’s polls. The only other newcomer to this week’s rankings are the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who remains undefeated on the season thus far.

Week 5 AP Top 25 Rankings

1. Villanova (8-0, 2 last week)
2. UCLA (9-0, 11)
3. Kansas (7-1, 4)
4. Baylor (8-0, 9)
5. Duke (8-1, 5)
6. Kentucky (7-1, 1)
7. North Carolina (8-1, 3)
8. Gonzaga (8-0, 8)
9. Indiana (7-1, 13)
10. Creighton (8-0, 10)
11. Louisville (7-1, 14)
12. Saint Mary’s (CA) (6-0, 12)
13. Xavier (7-1, 7)
14. Virginia (7-1, 6)
15. West Virginia (6-1, 25)
16. Butler (8-0, 18)
17. Wisconsin (7-2, 17)
18. Purdue (6-2, 15)
19. South Carolina (8-0, 20)
20. Arizona (6-2, 16)
21. Florida (7-1, 24)
22. Cincinnati (7-1, N/R)
23. Notre Dame (8-0, N/R)
24. Oregon (7-2, 23)
25. Iowa State (5-2, 19)

MORE: Mark Few On Gonzaga’s Mid-Major Status – ‘I Don’t Know That We Fit Into A Box’