AP College Basketball Poll 2014: Complete Week 4 Rankings Released

When The Associated Press released its preseason rankings, it appears it hit a home run with the nation's top four teams. Everywhere else? Still very much a work in progress.

For the fourth consecutive week, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Arizona and Duke comprise the nation's early favorites. John Calipari's Wildcats, fresh off a couple more thrashings of overmatched opponents, remain unchallenged at No. 1. The Badgers hold their narrow lead at the No. 2 spot, with Arizona, Duke and newcomer Louisville rounding out the Top Five.      

Here is a quick look at how the entire Top 25 played out:

Ranking	Team (First-place votes)
1	Kentucky (62)
2	Wisconsin (3)
3	Arizona
4	Duke
5	Louisville
6	Texas
7	Virginia
8	Wichita State
9	Gonzaga
10	Villanova
11	Kansas
12	North Carolina
13	San Diego State
14	Ohio State
15	Miami (FL)
16	West Virginia
17	Michigan
18	Arkansas
19	Michigan State
20	Iowa State
21	Maryland
22	Oklahoma
23	Butler
24	Illinois
25	Utah

Atop the standings, there wasn't all that much excitement. Wisconsin took the Battle 4 Atlantis championship with three straight wins by an average margin of 15 points, Arizona toppled a game San Diego State team to win the Maui Invitational and Duke and Kentucky stayed home for the holidays to take down a pair of cupcakes.

The real excitement for each of the nation's best begins this week. Wisconsin hosts Duke on Wednesday night in what could be an early candidate for game of the year. Blue Devils freshman Jahlil Okafor will face his toughest challenge yet in Frank Kaminsky, who has scored at least 15 points in six of the Badgers' seven games.

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Okafor, the nation's top-ranked recruit coming out of high school, is one of three freshmen leading the charge for Duke. The 6'11" big man is averaging 17.7 points and 7.9 rebounds so far, with point guard Tyus Jones and swingman Justise Winslow also contributing in a big way. Their emergence has helped Duke maintain one of the nation's deepest rotations, with 10 players receiving at least 10 minutes per game.

“They’re ahead,” coach Mike Krzyzewski told reporters of his freshmen. “They’re just ahead. So much of it has to do with what they’ve done not just in their high school programs—[they] have been so involved with USA Basketball."

A largely veteran-laden Wisconsin group should provide Duke with its biggest test of the young season. The Badgers keep a tighter rotation and don't have a single freshman receiving even five minutes per game.

The same obviously cannot be said for Kentucky, which, again, boasts a deep freshman class filled to the brim with 5-star talent. The Wildcats are yet to allow a team to come closer than 19 points, though that may change when Texas takes a trip to Lexington on Friday.

The Longhorns have emerged as one of the nation's fiercest defensive teams. No opponent has topped 57 points against them, and Ken Pomeroy's metrics have Texas fourth nationally in defensive efficiency. Freshman forward Myles Turner is one of the nation's most exciting rim protectors, averaging three blocks per game while playing under 20 minutes per game.

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Of course, that may change in Lexington's high-pressure climate. Kentucky has throttled opponents on both ends of the floor, heading into the week as the only top-five team on offense and defense, per Pomeroy. Calipari has continued to shuffle players on and off the court in hockey-like rotations, with 10 players averaging at least 15 minutes a night. That level of depth is good, but Kentucky is yet to establish its go-to five when the game is on the line. 

"What we need is just a hand-to-hand kind of game," Calipari told Jerry Tipton of the Lexington Herald-Leader. "Where a team is not afraid of us. That they make plays and they continue to make them throughout."

Those games are just a couple of a plethora of Top 25 matchups on the docket. Arizona hosts No. 9 Gonzaga on Saturday, Louisville has Ohio State on Tuesday and Virginia travels to a Maryland team that's raced out to a 7-0 start.

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The Terrapins' biggest win came last Tuesday against Iowa State, but it also featured their biggest loss. Senior guard Dez Wells will miss at least four weeks after suffering a broken wrist against the Cyclones, wiping his 16.2 points and team-high 2.6 assists off the board. With the team playing in its first Big Ten season and looking for its first NCAA tournament appearance under Mark Turgeon, Wells' absence could prevent Maryland from getting its second big win of 2014-15.

Speaking of big wins, Butler's upset of North Carolina at the Battle 4 Atlantis helps provide one of the biggest changes in the Top 25. The Tar Heels were held to 38.6 percent shooting and turned the ball over 19 times in the 74-66 loss, which sent them to No. 12 from No. 5. They recovered to take down UCLA and Florida in short order but are still very much a work in progress.

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The Gators' loss dropped them to 3-3 on the season. Ranked seventh before their opening struggles, Billy Donovan's team has already been moved outside the Top 25.

"Right now, the truth is slammed in our face, which I think is great," Donovan told reporters. "A lot of times in your non-conference scheduling, when you don't play against high-level competition it's hard to get to a truth."

Florida isn't the only team having "truth" slammed in its face. VCU was routed by Villanova and upset by Old Dominion in the last seven days, sending the Commodores spiraling from No. 14 all the way to the outside looking in. Their formidable defense struggled mightily in both contests, and it appears they don't have the half-court scoring to atone for cracks in their defensive armor.

VCU and Florida lead the charge of five teams dropping from the rankings this week. Also sent packing were Connecticut, Creighton and UCLA, all of which were holding on by a thread coming into this week. 

Taking their place are the aforementioned No. 21 Maryland and No. 23 Butler, along with Oklahoma, Illinois and Utah. Oklahoma and Utah were previously in the poll before being ousted. 

Chief among the biggest drops in Week 4 are North Carolina and Iowa State, each moving back seven spots from its previous perch. West Virginia, which rose to No. 16, has the biggest cause for celebration among Top 25 teams.

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