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In this week's AP Poll, Iowa State dropped to #19 from #17 after losing at Texas in overtime last Tuesday and beating Kansas State on the road by 13. The next slate of games on the Cyclones' schedule will go a long way towards determining the conference outcome, with tonight's matchup against newly crowned #1 Oklahoma kicking things off. Iowa State is favored by two points after an admirable showing in Norman over two weeks ago.
Speaking of Oklahoma, the Sooners edged out victories over Oklahoma State on the road and #6 West Virginia at home to take over the #1 spot, although their margin of victory in both games was only two points. Buddy Hield continued to be the driving force for the Sooners, but has played the most minutes in the conference- how long will his legs hold out?
Elsewhere around the Big XII, Kansas fell to #3 after dropping to West Virginia and beating TCU, while the aforementioned Mountaineers climbed to #6 after splitting games against the #1 and #2 teams in the country. #13 Baylor continued its impressive season, blowing out TCU by 28 and narrowly defeating Texas Tech away.
Iowa also keeps climbing the polls after handedly beating Michigan State on the road, this time with a healthy Denzel Valentine in the lineup, and taking care of Michigan at home yesterday. They rise to #9 in the poll, and have a fairly easy schedule the rest of conference play- will their unexpected success continue?
Other significant moves in the polls are North Carolina taking over the #2 spot, with Villanova and Xavier moving to #4 and #5 respectively. Texas A&M also moved into #10, meaning that over the next couple weeks, Iowa State will play four different currently top-10 ranked teams.
AP Top 25
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma (65) | 15-1 | 1,625 |
| 2 | North Carolina | 16-2 | 1,515 |
| 3 | Kansas | 15-2 | 1,499 |
| 4 | Villanova | 16-2 | 1,403 |
| 5 | Xavier | 16-1 | 1,321 |
| 6 | West Virginia | 15-2 | 1,278 |
| 7 | Maryland | 16-2 | 1,259 |
| 8 | SMU | 17-0 | 1,179 |
| 9 | Iowa | 14-3 | 1,167 |
| 10 | Texas A&M | 15-2 | 994 |
| 11 | Michigan State | 16-3 | 950 |
| 12 | Arizona | 15-3 | 801 |
| 13 | Virginia | 13-4 | 649 |
| 13 | Baylor | 14-3 | 649 |
| 15 | Miami (FL) | 13-3 | 645 |
| 16 | Providence | 15-3 | 609 |
| 17 | Louisville | 14-3 | 608 |
| 18 | Butler | 13-4 | 439 |
| 19 | Iowa State | 13-4 | 411 |
| 20 | Duke | 14-4 | 375 |
| 21 | USC | 15-3 | 338 |
| 22 | Purdue | 15-3 | 322 |
| 23 | Kentucky | 13-4 | 276 |
| 24 | South Carolina | 16-1 | 252 |
| 25 | Indiana | 15-3 | 210 |
| Also Receiving Votes: Pittsburgh 184, Clemson 53, Wichita St 38, Valparaiso 30, Notre Dame 14, Dayton 9, Saint Mary's 8, Gonzaga 5, Utah 3, Hawaii 3, Arkansas-Little Rock 1, Monmouth 1, Navy 1, Oregon 1 | |||
| Dropped Out: Pittsburgh 20, Gonzaga 25 | |||
USA TODAY Coaches Poll
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma (26) | 15-1 | 763 |
| 2 | North Carolina (4) | 16-2 | 727 |
| 3 | Kansas (1) | 15-2 | 700 |
| 4 | Villanova | 16-2 | 674 |
| 5 | Maryland | 16-2 | 629 |
| 6 | Xavier | 16-1 | 616 |
| 7 | West Virginia | 15-2 | 585 |
| 8 | Texas A&M | 15-2 | 532 |
| 9 | Iowa | 14-3 | 494 |
| 10 | Michigan State | 16-3 | 461 |
| 11 | Arizona | 15-3 | 438 |
| 12 | Duke | 14-4 | 360 |
| 13 | Virginia | 13-4 | 340 |
| 14 | Miami (FL) | 13-3 | 319 |
| 15 | Baylor | 14-3 | 306 |
| 16 | Louisville | 14-3 | 288 |
| 17 | Providence | 15-3 | 269 |
| 18 | South Carolina | 16-1 | 231 |
| 19 | Kentucky | 13-4 | 206 |
| 20 | Pittsburgh | 15-2 | 179 |
| 21 | Iowa State | 13-4 | 173 |
| 22 | Purdue | 15-3 | 167 |
| 23 | Indiana | 15-3 | 162 |
| 24 | Butler | 13-4 | 156 |
| 25 | USC | 15-3 | 103 |
| Also Receiving Votes: Gonzaga 35, Clemson 29, Dayton 29, Oregon 20, Valparaiso 16, Wichita St 16, Connecticut 12, Saint Mary's 10, Michigan 6, Washington 5, Arkansas-Little Rock 5, California 5, LSU 3, Monmouth 3, Seton Hall 2, UAB 1 | |||
| Dropped Out: Gonzaga 21 | |||