AP poll reaction: Tennessee on the rise, North Carolina slips

1 week ago 17

ESPN staffNov 25, 2024, 01:25 PM ET

Feast Week is a time for ranked teams to be tested, and this year's edition has seen some teams already record losses on their résumés, meaning there has been a bit of a shakeup in the Week 3 AP Poll.

Kansas remains No. 1 and the top 5 remains unchanged. Tennessee, Marquette, Wisconsin and Florida were the biggest risers, with Tennessee and Marquette breaking into the top 10.

With losses, Purdue, Baylor, Creighton and Arizona all fell but remained in the standings. Rutgers, St. John's and Illinois fell out completely, to make way for new entrants Xavier, Ole Miss and Mississippi State.

Below is the full poll, with a key stat from the previous week and what's ahead for all 25 ranked teams.

Previous polls: Preseason | Week 1 | Week 2

Stats courtesy of ESPN Research and The Associated Press.

All times Eastern

1. Kansas Jayhawks

Previous ranking: 1

2024-25 record: 5-0

Stat to know: With the 84-66 win against UNC Wilmington last week, Bill Self had his 800th official win as a Division I coach. He reached the milestone in 1,048 games -- the fourth-fewest in men's Division I history, trailing Adolph Rupp (972), Roy Williams (1,012) and Dean Smith (1,029).

What's next: Tuesday vs. Duke (Vegas Showdown), 9 p.m., ESPN

2. UConn Huskies

Previous ranking: 2

2024-25 record: 4-0

Stat to know: UConn held East Texas A&M to a field goal percentage of 25.42%. That's the second-lowest allowed by the Huskies in 203 games under Dan Hurley (since 2018-19). The lowest, for reference, was against Illinois (25.37%) in last season's Elite Eight.

What's next: Maui Invitational (Monday vs. Memphis, 2:30 p.m., ESPN2

3. Gonzaga Bulldogs

Previous ranking: 3

2024-25 record: 5-0

Stat to know: The Zags have their first 5-0 start since 2021-22 -- the season they went 31-0 before losing in the national championship game.

What's next: Battle 4 Atlantis (Wednesday vs. West Virginia, 2:30 p.m., ESPN

4. Auburn Tigers

Previous ranking: 4

2024-25 record: 4-0

Stat to know: The Tigers seek to defeat their second AP Top-5 team this season (def. No. 4 Houston 74-69 at Toyota Center in Houston). Only once has Auburn defeated multiple Top-5 teams in a season (2018-19), which was when they reached the Final Four.

What's next: Maui Invitational (Monday vs. Iowa State, 9 p.m., ESPNU)

5. Iowa State Cyclones

Previous ranking: 5

2024-25 record: 3-0

Stat to know: Iowa State's defense has been top-tier over the past two seasons, ranking top 2 in Division I in defensive efficiency and forcing turnovers. The Cyclones have been able to capitalize off those, averaging 20.7 PPG off turnovers, which is the most in DI.

What's next: Maui Invitational (Monday vs. Auburn, 9 p.m., ESPNU)

6. Houston Cougars

Previous ranking: 7

2024-25 record: 3-1

Stat to know: Houston has allowed opponents just 53.0 PPG -- the blip being letting Auburn score 74 points two weeks ago. Last season, the Cougars led the country in scoring defense at 57.6 PPG.

What's next: Players Era Festival (Tuesday vs. Alabama, 8 p.m., Max)

7. Tennessee Volunteers

Previous ranking: 11

2024-25 record: 6-0

Stat to know: Against Baylor in the Baha Mar Hoops Championship game, Chaz Lanier came through for the Vols, outscoring Baylor by himself 25-20 in the first half.

What's next: Wednesday vs. UT Martin, 4 p.m., ESPN+/SEC Network

8. Kentucky Wildcats

Previous ranking: 9

2024-25 record: 5-0

Stat to know: The 108-59 defeat of Jackson State is the third time this season that Kentucky has scored 100 or more points in a game -- and the ninth time since the start of last season, the second-most of any Division I team, trailing only Alabama (12).

What's next: Tuesday vs. Western Kentucky, 6:30 p.m., ESPNU

9. Alabama Crimson Tide

Previous ranking: 8

2024-25 record: 4-1

Stat to know: Alabama finished with 100 points against ranked Illinois despite leading scorer and preseason All-American guard Mark Sears being held scoreless in 21 minutes. It was the 118th time since 1996-97 that a Division I team's leading scorer (entering the game) was held scoreless against an AP-ranked opponent (minimum 20 minutes played). Alabama scored the most points of any of those teams.

What's next: Players Era Festival (Tuesday vs. Houston, 8 p.m., Max)

10. Marquette Golden Eagles

Previous ranking: 15

2024-25 record: 6-0

Stat to know: Marquette has opened 6-0 for the first time since 2011-12, when the Golden Eagles won their first 10 games.

What's next: Wednesday vs. Stonehill, 9 p.m., FS2

11. Duke Blue Devils

Previous ranking: 12

2024-25 record: 4-1

Stat to know: Through five career games, Cooper Flagg has 89 points, 44 rebounds, 19 assists, 9 blocks and 9 steals. All of those lead the Blue Devils. Flagg is the only freshman in the past 20 seasons to lead his team in all five categories in this span.

What's next: Tuesday vs. Kansas (Vegas Showdown), 9 p.m., ESPN

12. North Carolina Tar Heels

Previous ranking: 10

2024-25 record: 3-1

Stat to know: With 18 points in the game against Hawai'i, RJ Davis brought his career total to 2,159, passing Sam Perkins (2,145) for fourth on UNC's all-time scoring list.

What's next: Maui Invitational (Monday vs. Dayton, 11:30 p.m., ESPN2)

13. Purdue Boilermakers

Previous ranking: 6

2024-25 record: 5-1

Stat to know: In defeating Marshall on Saturday, Purdue had its 22nd consecutive home win -- that's the fourth longest active streak in Division I behind Houston (25), UConn (24) and Drake (24).

What's next: Rady Children's Invitational (Thursday vs. NC State, 3 p.m., FS1)

14. Indiana Hoosiers

Previous ranking: 16

2024-25 record: 4-0

Stat to know: In Thursday's win over UNC Greensboro, Myles Rice had the first 20-point, 5-rebound, 5-assist game by an Indiana player since Trayce Jackson-Davis in the first round of the 2023 NCAA tournament vs. Kansas State.

What's next: Battle 4 Atlantis (Wednesday vs. Louisville, 12 p.m., ESPN)

15. Wisconsin Badgers

Previous ranking: 19

2024-25 record: 7-0

Stat to know: John Tonje was 10-10 from the free throw line against Pitt in the Greenbrier Tip-Off Championship and against UTRGV last week. He is now the fourth Wisconsin player since 1996-97 to record multiple games shooting 10-for-10 or better from the line, joining Brad Davison (3 times), Nigel Hayes (twice) and Sean Mason (twice).

What's next: Saturday vs. Chicago State, 1 p.m., Peacock

16. Cincinnati Bearcats

Previous ranking: 18

2024-25 record: 5-0

Stat to know: Cincinnati shot 41% (9 for 22) from 3-point range and 52% (32 for 62) overall in the decisive victory against Georgia Tech last week.

What's next: Wednesday vs. Alabama State, 7 p.m., ESPN+

17. Baylor Bears

Previous ranking: 13

2024-25 record: 4-2

Stat to know: After shooting 51.7% from 3 in the double-overtime win against St. John's in the Bahamas, Baylor couldn't repeat the effort the next night against Tennessee, going just 27.3% from beyond the arc.

What's next: Wednesday vs. New Orleans, 2 p.m., ESPN+

18. Florida Gators

Previous ranking: 21

2024-25 record: 6-0

Stat to know: In the 93-68 win against Southern Illinois, Alijah Martin had 32 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists -- making him the first Florida player with 30 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in a game since Egor Koulechov against Gardner-Webb in Nov. 2017.

What's next: ESPN Events Invitational (Thursday vs. Wake Forest, 2:30 p.m., ESPN)

19. Arkansas Razorbacks

Previous ranking: 20

2024-25 record: 4-1

Stat to know: Boogie Fland is averaging 17.4 points and 5.4 assists in his college career. He's the third player coached by John Calipari in the past 25 years to average 15 PPG and 5 APG through five career games. The others were John Wall in 2009-10 and De'Aaron Fox in 2016-17.

What's next: Monday vs. Maryland Eastern Shore, 8 p.m., SEC Network/ESPN+

20. Texas A&M Aggies

Previous ranking: 23

2024-25 record: 4-1

Stat to know: Texas A&M grabbed 29 offensive rebounds against Southern to overcome a slow-shooting start in the first half (23% from the field).

What's next: Players Era Festival (Tuesday vs. Oregon, 4:30 p.m., TNT)

21. Creighton Bluejays

Previous ranking: 14

2024-25 record: 4-1

Stat to know: Creighton set a school record with 42 3-point attempts in the home loss to Nebraska but, just as notably, attempted only 10 2-point field goals -- the second-fewest 2-point attempts in a game by a Big East team over the last 25 seasons (West Virginia had 7 in 2007 against Villanova) and the fewest by a Division I team this season.

What's next: Players Era Festival (Tuesday vs. San Diego State, 2 p.m., TBS)

22. Xavier Musketeers

Previous ranking: Unranked

2024-25 record: 5-0

Stat to know: In the 80-55 win against Siena, Xavier shot 50.8% (33-for-65) from the field, its third game of the season going 50% or better. The Musketeers went 11-for-24 from behind the arc, their fourth straight game with 10 or more 3s.

What's next: Fort Myers Tip-Off (Monday vs. South Carolina, 8:30 p.m., FS1)

23. Ole Miss Rebels

Previous ranking: Unranked

2024-25 record: 5-0

Stat to know: Ole Miss scored 100 points in its win over Oral Roberts, the second time in the past decade that the Rebels have reached the 100-point mark, after last season's 103-85 win over Florida on Jan. 10.

What's next: Rady Children's Invitational (Thursday vs. BYU, 5:30 p.m., FS1)

24. Arizona Wildcats

Previous ranking: 17

2024-25 record: 2-2

Stat to know: The 55 points Arizona scored in the loss to Duke ties for the fewest the Wildcats have scored in a game under Tommy Lloyd (112 games). In the first round of the 2023 NCAA tournament, the Wildcats lost to Princeton 59-55. This was also the first time in the Lloyd era that Arizona lost consecutive games.

What's next: Battle 4 Atlantis (Wednesday vs. Davidson, 7:30 p.m., ESPN2)