AP College Basketball Poll 2016: Complete Week 9 Rankings Released

With the new year comes the meat of the conference schedules for the top contenders in college basketball, bringing out the rivalry games and often some of the most memorable matchups of the year.

Let's take a look at how the Associated Press poll breaks down heading into Week 9, review some of the biggest results of last week and analyze some of the biggest matchups on deck.

Rankings

Rank	Team
1	Kansas
2	Oklahoma
3	Maryland
4	Virginia
5	Michigan State
6	North Carolina
7	Arizona
8	Providence
9	Kentucky
10	Xavier
11	Villanova
12	Miami
13	Iowa State
14	Duke
15	SMU
16	Louisville
17	West Virginia
18	Butler
19	Iowa
20	Purdue
21	Texas A&M
22	South Carolina
23	Connecticut
24	Pittsburgh
25	Dayton

Analysis

Matthew Holst/Getty Images

Michigan State's first loss of the season, to upstart Iowa, was without question the top story of the week. The Spartans struggled without star player Denzel Valentine and never led in the game.

That wasn't what bothered coach Tom Izzo after the game, however.

"It was one of the rare times in my career I thought we got, for [lack] of a better choice of words, punked," Izzo told reporters, via ESPN.com. "We got outhustled."

With Valentine out for at least another week, Michigan State will need to rediscover its hustle against Illinois and Penn State.

The Big East had its fair share of big matchups, meanwhile. Xavier had an up-and-down week, getting smoked by Villanova before hammering Butler. Villanova looked good in wins over Xavier and Creighton, while Butler struggled, losing to Providence and, of course, Xavier.

Villanova and Butler are set to face off Sunday.

Other big games to monitor this week include Arizona against UCLA, Iowa State facing Baylor and SMU taking on Cincinnati.

Kansas looked good this week, smoking a talented Baylor side 102-74. It was a big week for the Big 12 in general, as Oklahoma managed to knock off dangerous Iowa State 87-83.

That, of course, sets up a matchup between the top two teams in the nation Monday night. And boy, what a game that will be.

Both teams are experienced. Both teams are led by excellent guard play and shoot well from beyond the arc. Both are peaking at the moment. So who has the edge?

The fact that the game is at Allen Fieldhouse bodes well for Kansas. So does this tweet from Dana O'Neil of ESPN:

Truthfully, this contest could go either way. But the fact that these teams are clashing already in a game with major implications for both the Big 12 and the top of the college basketball rankings hints at a very exciting season yet to come.