The Duke Blue Devils are on top of the AP Poll for the third straight week. The preseason No. 1 defended its status as the top team in the country by moving to 4-0 this week, including a victory over previous No. 2 Michigan State. The Spartans now fall down to No. 4 in this week’s poll.
NCAA basketball rankings 2017: Duke defends No. 1 ranking after beating Michigan State
Arizona moves into No. 2 over Michigan State’s loss to the Blue Devils.
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Duke earned the victory over MSU without star freshman Marvin Bagley, who exited with an eye injury 10 minutes into the game. Senior guard Grayson Allen carried the Blue Devils with a spectacular performance that included 37 points and seven three-pointers. Bagley will be in the lineup again when Duke begins play in the PK80 tournament this week.
Arizona makes into the No. 2 spot behind the star-studden combination of freshman center DeAndre Ayton and junior guard Allonzo Trier. Trier is averaging 30 points per game over three contests and is shooting 70 percent from the field thus far. Ayton is averaging a double-double at 18.7 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. Arizona begins play in the Battle 4 Atlantis this week, that could include a potential title game against No. 5 Villanova Friday.
Here’s the rest of this week’s AP Top 25:
- Duke, 4-0
- Arizona, 3-0
- Kansas, 3-0
- Michigan State, 2-1
- Villanova, 3-0
- Wichita State, 2-0
- Florida, 3-0
- Kentucky, 3-1
- North Carolina, 2-0
- USC, 3-0
- Miami, 3-0
- Cincinnati, 3-0
- Notre Dame, 3-0
- Minnesota, 4-0
- Xavier, 3-0
- Texas A&M, 2-0
- Gonzaga, 3-0
- Purdue, 4-0
- Louisville, 2-0
- Seton Hall, 4-0
- St. Mary’s, 4-0
- Baylor, 3-0
- West Virginia, 2-1
- UCLA, 3-0
- Alabama, 3-0
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