From the opening night of the season, Arizona men’s basketball has played like the best team in the country. Associated Press poll voters have finally come around to that conclusion.
Arizona is ranked No.
1 in this week’s AP Top 25, receiving 33 first-place votes. Michigan is ranked No. 2, followed by No. 3 Duke, No. 4 Iowa State and No. 5 UConn. Michigan received 19 first-place votes, Duke got seven and Iowa State got one.
The Wildcats moved up in the rankings after dismantling No. 20 Auburn 97-68 Saturday night at McKale Center. Purdue, the former No. 1 team, lost at home to Iowa State Saturday. The Boilermakers dropped to No. 6.
This is the second time Arizona has been ranked No. 1 under coach Tommy Lloyd. Almost two years ago to the day, Arizona ascended to the No. 1 spot. Arizona held the spot for a week before falling to then-No. 2 Purdue in a neutral site game in Indianapolis.
Like two years ago, Arizona’s No. 1 ranking will be put to the test right away. The Wildcats face No. 12 Alabama this Saturday in Birmingham, Ala. The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. MST and will be broadcast on ESPN.
Arizona is one of six Big 12 programs ranked in the top 25 along with No. 4 Iowa State, No. 7 Houston, No. 10 BYU, No. 16 Texas Tech and No. 19 Kansas.
