AP College Basketball Poll 2024: Complete Week 9 Men's Rankings Released

Purdue sits atop the men's Associated Press Top 25 poll for the third straight week as it prepares to enter its Big Ten slate.

The Boilermakers only had one game last week, cruising to an 80-53 victory over Eastern Kentucky. That was enough for them to again fend off Kansas for the No. 1 ranking.

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AP Poll Top 25

1. Purdue 
2. Kansas 
3. Houston 
4. UConn 
5. Tennessee 
6. Kentucky
7. Marquette 
8. North Carolina 
9. Illinois 
10. Arizona 
11. Oklahoma 
12. BYU 
13. Colorado State 
14. Duke 
15. Memphis 
16. Clemson 
17. Florida Atlantic 
18. Baylor 
19. James Madison 
20. Texas 
21. Wisconsin 
22. Ole Miss 
23. Providence 
24. Gonzaga 
25. Auburn

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For the most part, the week was fairly light on consequential results, especially when contrasted with the chaotic first few months. Like Purdue, Kansas and Houston had a light schedule. The Jayhawks easily handled Wichita State 86-67, and the Cougars nearly doubled up Pennsylvania 81-42.

One major upset got in just under the wire as Stanford rode a hot shooting night to 100-82 triumph over then-fourth-ranked Arizona on Sunday. The Cardinal knocked down 16 of their 25 attempts from long range.

Kanaan Carlyle had 28 points and eight rebounds off the bench, while Spencer Jones was an efficient 8-of-9 from the field en route to a 21-point showing.

"I think this will absolutely be the peak moment of this season for 2023," Cardinal head coach Jerod Haase said. "For 2024, we're going to start from scratch and see new peaks and new highs. Usually I tell them to enjoy the win until midnight. This time I told them they could enjoy this one for the rest of the year."

Wildcats fans might be growing somewhat concerned with the team's current direction. After starting 8-0 and climbing to No. 1 in the polls, Arizona has dropped three of its last five. Granted, two of those were against ranked teams, but the 18-point drubbing by Stanford could be a warning sign.

Before Stanford's shocker to close out the week, Florida Gulf Coast had delivered the biggest surprise.

Florida Atlantic moved up seven spots to No. 7 after handing the Wildcats their second loss. Dusty May's squad proceeded to trip up on the road against FGCU, falling 72-68.

"Hat's off to Florida Gulf Coast, they played extremely well," May said after the game. "They stepped up and made timely plays. Other than our rebounding advantage, they probably outplayed us in every other facet of the game."

Zach Anderson and Dallion Johnson combined for 39 points, and their seven made threes were more than FAU collectively knocked down (four).

The Owls fell 10 spots to No. 17 in the newest AP poll.

Looking ahead to Week 9, plenty of fans will be circling Purdue's battle with Illinois in West Lafayette on Friday. The Fighting Illini will face a big test, not only because they're playing the No. 1 team but also due to fact they're without Terrence Shannon Jr., who remains suspended indefinitely.

North Carolina won back-to-back games after successive losses to UConn and Kentucky in December. Going on the road and besting Clemson would represent a strong statement in what's shaping up to be a wide-open ACC title race.