Duke Takes Over Men's AP No. 1 After Week of Top-Five Carnage

After beating Gonzaga, Duke leads the men's college basketball AP poll rankings over Purdue.

Following its big win over Gonzaga, Duke is the new No. 1 in the men's AP Top 25 college basketball rankings. It captured 51 of 61 first-place votes to earn its spot atop the poll.

After the Bulldogs trounced then No. 2 UCLA last week in Las Vegas, Gonzaga couldn't complete a marquee sweep Friday, falling to the Blue Devils by three in a thriller. But the Zags and Bruins weren't the only top-five team to lose; Kansas was also upset on a buzzer beater by unranked Dayton.

The defeats paved the way for Duke to jump four spots, as well as for undefeated Purdue to rise to No. 2 in the poll. Gonzaga dropped to No. 3, while Baylor (fresh off a Battle 4 Atlantis championship) and UCLA round out the top five. The Jayhawks stayed in the top 10, landing at No. 8.

After a blowout loss to Iowa State, Memphis took a big tumble in the poll, going from No. 9 to No. 18. The Cyclones, now 6–0, made their rankings debut this season at No. 19.

Stephen R. Sylvanie/USA TODAY Sports

Full Top 25 ranking (as of Nov. 29):

1. Duke 
2. Purdue 
3. Gonzaga 
4. Baylor
5. UCLA
6. Villanova
7. Texas
8. Kansas
9. Kentucky
10. Arkansas
11. Arizona
12. BYU
13. Tennessee
14. Florida
15. Houston
16. Alabama
17. UConn
18. Memphis
19. Iowa State
20. USC
21. Auburn
22. Michigan State
23. Wisconsin
24. Michigan
25. Seton Hall

Others receiving votes: Illinois 111, St. Bonaventure 106, LSU 93, Ohio State 75, Indiana 63, Colorado State 59, Xavier 46, Texas Tech 34, Marquette 23, North Carolina 9, Iowa 9, San Francisco 7, Loyola Chicago 3, Virginia Tech 3, Louisville 2, Wake Forest 2, Ohio 1, Iona 1.