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AP College Basketball Poll 2021: First Regular-Season Rankings Released
November 15, 2021
One week into the 2021-22 college basketball season, the top teams have already gotten a chance to prove themselves.
Gonzaga and UCLA defeated Top Five opponents last week to keep their positioning in the rankings, while surprising results around the country caused major shifts in the Associated Press poll.
Here is how voters ranked the Top 25 after six days of regular-season play.
AP Poll
1. Gonzaga
2. UCLA
3. Kansas
4. Michigan
5. Villanova
6. Purdue
7. Duke
8. Texas
9. Baylor
10. Illinois
11. Memphis
12. Oregon
13. Kentucky
14. Alabama
15. Houston
16. Arkansas
17. Tennessee
18. North Carolina
19. Ohio State
20. Maryland
21. Auburn
22. St. Bonaventure
23. Connecticut
24. Florida
25. USC
Gonzaga was No. 1 in the preseason poll, and few doubt that decision after a strong first week, including an 86-74 win over Texas.
Drew Timme put an early claim toward National Player of the Year with 37 points on 15-of-19 shooting against the Longhorns, continuing his dominance from the NCAA tournament last year.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 20-point halftime lead over a team that entered No. 5 in the country, ending the half with a Rasir Bolton buzzer-beater:
Texas fell to No. 8 after the loss, although Gonzaga will be a difficult opponent for any team this year.
UCLA also proved itself with an 86-77 overtime win over Villanova, which fell slightly from No. 4 to No. 5 in the rankings.
The Bruins ended regulation on an 11-4 run to tie the game and pulled away in overtime in a dramatic battle between elite opponents.
"They do know how to win," UCLA coach Mick Cronin said of his team after the game. "They learned that last year."
UCLA surprised people with a run to the Final Four last year, but the squad won't sneak up on anyone this time around.
Duke's Wendell Moore Jr. was also one of the stars of the week with a triple-double against Army, plus a big dunk early in the game:
Moore had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the win, while Paolo Banchero and Trevor Keels were the stars in the opening victory over Kentucky.
The Blue Devils have a lot of weapons and climbed to No. 7 in the poll after a 3-0 start.
No. 3 Kansas also proved it deserves its high ranking with two wins this week, led by Ochai Agbaji and his 27 points per game.
On the other end of the spectrum, Virginia dropped out of the Top 25 after a disappointing loss to Navy to begin the season.