AP College Basketball Poll 2014: Complete Week 8 Rankings Released

One huge matchup in Kentucky resulted in a massive shakeup in the latest Associate Press poll.

Kentucky's win secured the No. 1 seed for the Wildcats for another week, but Louisville's loss dropped the Cardinals to No. 5. Along with Louisville, Arizona also took a tumble after an upset loss at the hands of UNLV on the road.    

Those losses left room for Virginia, Wisconsin and Villanova, who crept up higher in the poll. With conference play getting underway for each team this week, all three will be tested prior to the next release.

Here's a look at the full AP poll for Week 8 of the 2014 college basketball season.

Ranking	Team (First-place votes)	Record
1	Kentucky (65)	13-0
2	Duke	10-0
3	Virginia	11-0
4	Wisconsin	12-1
5	Louisville	11-1
6	Villanova	12-0
7	Gonzaga	12-1
8	Arizona	12-1
9	Iowa State	9-1
10	Utah	9-2
11	Texas	10-2
12	Maryland	12-1
13	Kansas	9-2
14	Notre Dame	12-1
15	St. John's	11-1
16	Wichita State	10-2
17	West Virginia	11-1
18	Oklahoma	8-3
19	North Carolina	9-3
20	Ohio State	11-2
21	Washington	11-1
22	Baylor	10-1
23	UNI	11-1
24	Colorado State	13-0
25	Georgetown	8-3

The Battle for the Bluegrass led to one of the most exciting games of the season but had a familiar ending. Kentucky remained undefeated with a 58-50 win over Louisville, handing the Cards their first loss of the season.

Several stars have stepped up for the Wildcats this year, with Tyler Ulis stepping up against Louisville with a career-high 14 points.

"I was more excited than nervous because it was my first away game," Ulis told reporters after the game. "Being a freshman, I just wanted to see what the atmosphere felt like."

Having a selfless team is a crucial component for coach John Calipari, per Kyle Tucker of The Courier-Journal:

Along with the Wildcats, several other teams remained undefeated on the season. Duke and Virginia both had the week off while Villanova won convincingly over NJIT.

Following Washington's loss at the hands of Stony Brook, Rick Bozich of WDRB noted all of the teams with unblemished records:

The Cavaliers have been one of the most unheralded teams in the country despite their strong start. Coming off a season where the Cavaliers won the ACC regular-season and tournament titles, Tony Bennett has the Hoos off to an even better start.

By comparison, the 2013-14 Cavs were 8-3 after 11 games before surging in the conference. Seth Greenberg of ESPN offered his take on what makes UVA special:

Much like the fellow undefeated programs, Virginia will have stiff tests ahead during conference play. Going against Miami in the first ACC contest of the year, the Hoos face a reeling Hurricanes team looking to turn things around after two shocking losses.

Meanwhile, Arizona, Louisville, Texas and Kansas will also be looking to right the ship after losing in the last week. Each team remains in the Top 25, but all will have targets on their backs as teams in their conferences hope to build a strong resume.

Follow @RCorySmith on Twitter.