AP College Basketball Poll 2015: Complete Week 8 Rankings Released

With college basketball's nonconference schedule wrapping up, we have a pretty good idea of who the contenders are and who the pretenders might prove to be as the conference schedule is set to begin.   

This week's Associated Press poll, then, represents a ranking of the college basketball world after the unofficial halfway point of the regular season. Conference play, of course, will shake things up.

Let's take a glance at the Week 8 rankings and a look back at the week that was.

Rank	Team	Record
1	Michigan State (64)	13-0
2	Kansas (1)	10-1
3	Oklahoma	11-0
4	Maryland	11-1
5	Virginia	10-1
6	Xavier	12-0
7	North Carolina	10-2
8	Arizona	12-1
9	Butler	10-1
10	Kentucky	10-2
11	Iowa State	10-1
12	Providence	12-1
13	Miami (FL)	10-1
14	Purdue	12-1
15	Duke	9-2
16	Villanova	9-2
17	SMU	11-0
18	Louisville	11-2
19	West Virginia	10-1
20	Texas A&M	9-2
21	Utah	10-2
22	Cincinnati	10-3
23	Baylor	9-2
24	South Carolina	11-0
25	UCLA	9-4

Analysis

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

After losing to Ohio State in a shocking upset last week, Kentucky needed a signature win to climb back up the rankings. It got one against its hated rival, Louisville.

Behind Tyler Ulis' 21 points and eight assists, the Wildcats got by Rick Pitino and the Cardinals, 75-73. The win was head coach John Calipari's 200th with Kentucky.

"It was a great team performance and really a good win," Ulis told reporters after the game. "We played with a lot more enthusiasm from the start."

The fact that Kentucky pulled off the win without key guard Isaiah Briscoe—who hurt his ankle in pregame warm-ups—was a testament to the squad's depth and talent. Seth Davis of CBS Sports was certainly impressed the Wildcats pulled off the win without Briscoe:

It was a crucial win for the Wildcats, surely. It was also the premier win of the week, as most of the other top contenders had a relatively easy go of it over the holiday. 

Iowa State reminded teams it was a force with which to be reckoned, however, knocking off then-No. 22 Cincinnati, 81-79. With the Cyclones coming off an upset loss to Northern Iowa, their victory over the Bearcats helped them stem the bleeding. Were it not for Abdel Nader's game-winning three-pointer with 11 seconds remaining, however, Iowa State would have suffered its second straight defeat. 

"You just hope it goes in," Nader told reporters afterward. "I'd been struggling a little bit from the field. It was a relief."

The stakes will ratchet up this week when conference play opens for schools. Among the highlights will be Kansas against Baylor, Oklahoma taking on Iowa State, Xavier facing both Villanova and Butler, Providence facing Butler (the Big East slate is fun this week) and Miami battling with Syracuse.

After a somewhat sparse week of premier matchups, this upcoming week is going to be fantastic. Bring on conference play.