The latest Associated Press Poll has been released, and the Duke basketball program has jumped from No. 4 to No. 3 following a huge 66-60 road victory in East Lansing over No. 9 Michigan State on Saturday. After Purdue fell at home to Iowa State in blowout fashion, a three-team debate began between Duke, Arizona, and Michigan as to which program should be ranked No. 1 this week. After it's all said and done, Arizona came in at No.1, followed by Michigan and Duke. After the road win over the Spartans, the Blue Devils own what is likely the best resume in the country. But after Arizona picked up a quality win last week, it would've been difficult to justify jumping Duke up three spots.
The top five of the poll is rounded out by Iowa State as the new No. 4 and UConn staying put at No. 5. At this point, a fairly convincing debate could be made for several teams to be ranked at the top, mainly Duke, Arizona, Michigan, or Iowa State. It's a great sign for college basketball to see so many elite teams this early on in the season, as it feels like there are at least 11 or 12 programs that can realistically compete for a national championship.
Duke basketball moves up one spot to No. 3 in AP Poll, Arizona headlines at No. 1 followed by Michigan at No. 2
The top three resumes in the nation likely belong to the Blue Devils, Wildcats, and Wolverines. Michigan, Duke, and Arizona currently rank No. 1, No. 2, and No. 6 in the NET rankings, respectively. There are only four programs outside of these three that have at least three Quadrant 1 wins.
Duke currently sits with five high-major wins, four of those being against ranked opponents, and only one came at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Michigan owns two ranked wins, but both came by 30 points or more. Arizona owns four ranked victories, including a road win over UConn.
Four ACC teams appeared in the AP Top 25 this week: No. 3 Duke, No. 11 Louisville, No. 14 North Carolina, and No. 24 Virginia. This is tied for the most ACC squads ranked in a single poll this season.